The Importance of Constructive Feedback

Written by Stephanie Burford, PHR, HR Manager at Advisor HR

Feedback is an instrumental part of our lives both personally and professionally. It provides us with information internally and externally that we can use to identify our strengths and weaknesses, understand expectations, and improve our skills and knowledge. Think about this: every day you walk outside, the moment you step foot outside, look at the weather app, or even look out the window, you decide if you should change, bring a coat, pack an umbrella etc. Simply based on the temperature or visible weather conditions, you immediately decide on what you should do next. How you proceed based on the feedback you just got is up to you, and the outcome of your decision will reflect whether the choice you made was appropriate.

In an organization, constructive feedback is no different than deciding on what to wear/pack based on the weather conditions. When information is provided to you, you are faced with two decisions: do I continue doing what I was doing, or do I need to make a change? Based on how we decide to respond is completely up to us, but the outcome of the decision will reflect whether the choice that was made was in line with what was expected.

When providing feedback, it should be done immediately. When feedback is delayed, it ends up being irrelevant or maybe even forgotten about. When an employee did something great, let them know right away. This will give them positive reinforcement and confidence to continue doing what they are doing. When an employee steps out of line or is not meeting expectations, let them know immediately. This will give the employee an opportunity to change their behavior or make changes in performance to ensure they are meeting expectations. By delaying this feedback, the employee could have viewed their behavior as tolerated or forgotten about the severity of the event. By providing constructive feedback to employees, not only does it show you care but this information can enhance performance, boost employee morale, and overall drive a successful organization.

Feedback is often associated with a negative connotation and can be intimidating but the reality is that feedback is just another perspective maybe we didn’t think of. It gives us an opportunity to see things from a different point of view and how we choose to respond is completely up to us.

The middle of the year is a great time and opportunity for managers to provide formal feedback to their employees. It gives employees an opportunity to get reinforcement and clarity regarding what they should keep doing and where they need to make improvements. This conversation will encourage collaboration, promote transparency, and enhance trust. The employee should be able to take away actionable outcomes that gives them an opportunity to improve their skills and knowledge.

It’s important that when going into a conversation, the person giving feedback comes prepared. We don’t have to be mean; we just must be honest and accurate. To ensure accuracy as well as a constructive conversation, use the steps below to come prepared when providing feedback to an employee:

1. Define who you are giving feedback to, where the feedback is taking place, and how you anticipate them responding

Everyone reacts to feedback different and it’s important to keep that in mind. Make sure that when providing feedback, it’s in a safe space. Not all employees like to receive positive feedback in front of a group of people and certainly be mindful where negative feedback is being provided. Additionally, be prepared on how they may react and how to keep the conversation effective.

2. Define the situation(s):

Explain what happened or what has been happening. This information needs to be specific because it sets the foundation for what you will say next. Some examples include: “this morning during your presentation…” or “when you talk with clients you…”

3. Define the behavior:

Understand how their behavior impacted the situation. Maybe they did not realize what they were doing was disengaging or inappropriate. Bring it to light with the intention to help. Some examples include: “you did not sound engaged when…” or “you don’t explain our product clearly.”

4. Clarify the impact:

Identify why this is important and what happened or what can happen. The impact gives the employee an opportunity to connect all the dots and how this impacts the bigger pictures. Some examples include: “This bored the audience resulting in a low engagement level.” Or “This confuses the clients resulting in missed sales opportunities”

5. Make a suggestion:

Come prepared with recommendations on how they can work on areas of improvement and don’t forget to remind them of their strengths. By recommending they attend a specific training, spend more time with a certain person, get organized, be more mindful of their tone of voice or behavior, etc. This gives the employees actionable items to take with them as they work

Throughout the conversation, create an environment that encourages a two-way conversation. See what their perspective is, ask questions, and understand what support they may need. It’s important to remember that the ultimate goal is to help the employee succeed.

Are you looking to start a process to document improve feedback or create a performance review process? ISolved has a built-in notes section where you can keep track of conversations you had with employees right in the system at no additional cost. Additionally, it offers a basic performance review feature at no cost or enhanced version through Share and Perform!

Reach out to hr@advisohr.net if this is something you are interested in learning more about!