By William Taylor
People want and need to know how they’re doing in their jobs. Feedback is important to employees, and it’s also an important management tool for improving performance. The thing is that feedback is not always done well, and it is also not always received well. Why? What can companies do to make feedback efficient and boost productivity?
Most employees fill out questionnaires to help the HR department spot problems and issues. However, typically, employees either don’t have time to give proper answers or they fear that honesty will get them fired, which renders the surveys meaningless.
Here are some tips to help companies with understanding workplace feedback.
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Feedback That’s a Puzzle
Sometimes feedback is so vague that you don’t know how to take it. For example, you may receive a comment about your working style like the following: “She would do better if she adjusted her working style.” If you receive a comment like this, what does it mean? What are you supposed to do about it? You can tell that the person is asking for some type of change, but it is not clear at all what should be changed and how. It’s a puzzle.
If you receive puzzling feedback, it does give you one clear insight. The person providing the feedback sees some sort of issue with your performance. If you don’t do anything about it, your career could suffer. You might not get the raises or promotions that you could get if you addressed the issue, or you might even end up one of the unfortunate targets if a downsizing occurs.
It’s never comfortable having a conversation about performance issues, but your best bet is to sit down with the person who wrote this, and find out what they meant. Ask questions so that you can understand the issue as clearly as possible, and ask what corrective action they would like to see.
If the comment was anonymous, you can ask the group as a whole.
Feedback That’s a Punishment
Punishing feedback is rooted in anger and frustration. The person giving it can be extremely harsh and negative. It is not intended as constructive feedback to help you improve, but as a punishment for something that you did wrong. If you receive feedback like this, the hardest thing is to not react in kind. If you lash out angrily in return, you can escalate the situation in a bad way. What you need to do instead is to defuse the situation and lower the tension.
A good strategy is to sit down with your boss or supervisor, with a pad of paper and a pen. Ask the boss to explain what he or she is upset about, and make notes. Use lines like, “I want to make sure I understand what you mean.” Don’t be defensive and don’t argue; just let the person talk and get it out. By the end of the conversation, the boss will usually be much calmer, and you will have detailed notes about what corrective actions you need to take.
Feedback That’s a Gift
The best type of feedback to receive is that which is given constructively, with solid suggestions for ways to improve your performance. When you make use of this type of feedback, it can help you progress in your career. For example, you might see something like “He often has great ideas, but seems shy about speaking up and sharing them with the group. I’d like to see him contribute more in meetings.” This sort of feedback is exactly what you need. Pay attention, follow the suggestions, and appreciate the gift.
Constructive feedback at the workplace can boost self-esteem and confidence. The boss is not yelling at the employees, but rather talks to them and tells them what they did wrong. Unlike the punishment and the puzzle type of feedback, the gift is a lesson. Employees have to use it wisely and do everything they can to exceed the expectations of their superiors.
The three sides of workplace feedback have a purpose—to persuade workers to improve their style, strive to achieve better results, and learn from their mistakes. It is important for employees to welcome criticism because it’s the only way they can learn to be better, excel at what they do, and eventually provide feedback, too, in the foreseeable future.
About Today’s HR Daily Advisor Blogger:
William Taylor is basically interested in writing about business-related topics, negotiation, and employee engagement. Also, he is a regular contributor at http://www.peopleinsight.co.uk/, a site that offers employee engagement surveys. –
Of course, feedback that is a gift isn’t always perceived that way by the recipient!