The whole point of employee feedback is to make employees aware of what they’re doing well and what they need to improve in – without crashing the relationship. It’s important to give balanced feedback. By balanced, I mean give both positive feedback when it’s appropriate and criticism when the employee needs it.
To that end here are some strategies to give negative feedback that will help set you up for success:
- Think it through, be clear in advance of what outcome you want
- Arrange to give feedback when you are very resourceful, e.g. not emotional, not tired, etc.
- Schedule it when there is ample time to talk, don’t do it when you’re rushed.
- Select 2 points maximum to make on the behavior you want changed
- Stay focused on the behavior and don’t make it about the person
It is especially important to have the skill set to be effective at giving all types of feedback, without damaging the relationship – like when you supervise others. It’s critical for people to understand what needs to change in order for all of you to be successful. If you’re like a bull in a china shop or worse yet, don’t say anything until you’re ready to fire the person, then you need these skills and strategies. This best practices workshop is designed to help you develop new skills and break patterns of poor communication. You will learn:
- How to set the stage for optimum communication
- Skills, tools (words) and strategies for dealing with the unexpected in the moment
- How to give meaningful employee feedback that you’re comfortable with while helping them be more successful.
Contact us about future workshop dates.