One of the most difficult things about being a manager is learning to provide effective feedback. When you’re a manager, you become responsible for your team’s success or failure, and you need to be focused on what you can do to help each member of your team be successful in his or her role.
Instead of viewing feedback as a negative conversation, look at it this way: Feedback can be both positive and negative, and it gives people an opportunity to grow.
1. Prepare in Advance
Think about what happened, why it should be addressed, how it can be fixed moving forward, and what concrete action items and next steps can be taken. It’s helpful to address specific situations instead of general things that you’ve noticed. “If you’re going to give feedback, it is best to have some examples of what you’re referring to and your advice on how they could of done it differently,” says Lauren McGoodwin, founder and CEO of Career Contessa. McGoodwin also recommends making sure that feedback is constructive—and not a complaint.
2. Set Up a Meeting
No one likes to be caught off guard. “I think the biggest mistake people make when giving feedback is doing it at a time that works for their schedule only,” McGoodwin says. “To give feedback so it works for both parties, I suggest you schedule specific feedback time with the other person. Let them know that that is the purpose of the meeting so they can also be prepared to receive it. No one wants to feel like they got attacked.” Arrange a time to meet in person.
3. Discuss Something Specific
Don’t view the meeting as an opportunity to vent. View it as a time to discuss a specific topic and help your team member improve in the future. In a Stanford Graduate School of Business article, lecturer Carole Robin discusses the importance of explaining the impact the behavior has on the company and colleagues. When doing this, she recommends using “I” language instead of “You” language to avoid making accusations. And say something when you notice it—not months later. If you wait until something snowballs into a bigger deal, it isn’t fair to your employee because they could have had months to improve and fix it had they only known there was a problem.
4. Be Solution-Oriented
Use the meeting as a time to come up with a solution for the future. “I love getting feedback, but I hate when people give me feedback on why they didn’t like something with no suggestion on what they would have wanted to see. Don’t leave people in the dark,” McGoodwin says. Frame the conversation as a two-way discussion, not a one-sided accusation. Listen to how they interpreted the situation and their suggestions. Show that you are empathetic by asking how you can help. For example, if there were multiple typos in a document that went to a client, ask if you can help by being an extra set of eyes on the next one.
5. Don’t Forget Positive Feedback
Recognize and praise people’s accomplishments. It makes people feel good to know that you recognize and appreciate hard work, progress, and achievements. Giving positive feedback will empower people and motivate them to continue to work hard and use the same strategies in the future. Don’t just say “great job”—explain why it was great and the impact it has on the company and the team.
The objective of feedback is to improve performance, so give feedback to help your team utilize and expand their strengths and improve on their weaknesses.
This article is by me and it was originally published on Levo League.
These are valuable tips! I think it is important to be solution-oriented when giving feedback, that way your employee knows how they can do a better job next time and what is expected of them. They may also be more likely to solicit advice from their manager when they are stuck in the future.
http://www.livinginsteil.com
This is really helpful for someone who is going through her first round of feedback! My managers ask for feedback, so I love that I know what they look for when giving me feedback!
xoxo
These are great tips! It’s definitely true that people like to hear positive comments!
Oh my goodness your desk is perfect!!!! Love the chair and the Prada art!
Yet another great post! I love this advice and hope to be a great manager if I ever reach that point! My company has a specific model for work-related feedback, and I wish it put more focus on positivity.
Thanks for sharing!
apeachysonder.blogspot.com
I might want to do HR one day, and I think these would be really helpful in that kind of job too.
This is such great advice. I’m not a manager but if I ever am I will keep these tactics in mind. Crossing my fingers that all of my managers use this same advice (:
I’ve both been in a management position and been under managers that DO NOT practice these- and I wish everyone would! Such great tips, especially for those of us ladies involved in Greek leadership!
I wish all managers practiced these tips! Especially informing people of what they’re doing wrong right off the bat instead of coming back and telling them months later.
xoxo, Jenny || Breakfast at Lillys
These are some things every manager needs to know! Currently going through a rocky road at work so I wish I could secretly send this to someone I know needs it…
Lauren
The Fashionista’s Diary
Great great tips!! My own manager at my job does a lot of these things, and it helps the store that I work at run a lot more smoothly for sure!
xoxo A
http://www.southernbelleintraining.com
These are such great tips!!
I managed interns for a little bit at my first job right out of college, and it was incredibly difficult for me to figure out how to provide my interns with constructive criticism. I don’t manage anyone anymore, but I’m definitely keeping this post in mind for the future when I become a #girlboss. Loved these tips!
xo, Alicia | http://www.aliciatenise.com
These are great tips for management position!!
I thrive when I get positive feedback. A lot of people don’t realize that positive feedback is better than negative and no feedback at all.
These tips were definitely very helpful. I definitely think it’s important to be specific when dealing with feedback. I would hate for anyone to ask me to change something or do something differently without giving me something specific to change or showing me exactly where I went wrong. That might lead to me making more mistakes or not being able to properly fix what was wrong to begin with!
#5 is definitely important! But I know I’d prefer any kind of feedback rather than silence. Whether it’s positive or negative!
Kayla | kaylablogs.com
This is awesome! You’re the best at career advice! I will definitely need all of these posts in the future!
Are you a manager right now, Elana?? I feel like you would be *such* a good one. Be my boss?! LOL!
Coming Up Roses
These are wonderful tips! As someone who technically isn’t a manager but sometimes has to act like one, I’ve used a lot of these suggestions at work! 🙂