In the bestseller, Good to Great, Jim Collins discovered that, “… the
good-to-great companies continually refined the path to greatness with the
brutal facts of reality.”
And, in his recent autobiography, Jack Welch reports that he spent about half
of his time on people: recruiting new talent, picking the right people for
particular positions, grooming young stars, developing managers, dealing with
under performers, and reviewing the entire talent pool.
Says Welch, “Having the most talented people in each of our businesses is the
most important thing. If we don’t, we lose.”
Why is it that many of us put off giving feedback to our employees even
though we intuitively know that giving and getting honest feedback is essential
to grow and develop and to build successful organizations? Maybe it is because
there are so many ways to screw it up.
Here are ten common feedback mistakes:
Speaking out only when things are wrong. “Praise to a human being
represents what sunlight, water and soil are to a plant – the climate in which
one grows best.” – Earl Nightingale
“Drive-by" praise without specifics or an honest underpinning. – “Great
job!”
Waiting until performance or behavior is substantially below expectations
before acting on it.
Giving positive or negative feedback long after the event has occurred.
Not taking responsibility for your thoughts, feelings and reactions. “This
comes straight from the boss.”
Giving feedback through e-mail messages, notes, or over the telephone.
Giving negative feedback in public.
Criticizing performance without giving suggestions for improvement.
No follow up afterwards.
Not having regularly scheduled performance review meetings.
Giving and receiving clear and constructive feedback requires courage and
skill, and is essential to building good relationships with and motivating peak
performance from your team.
Here are four tips for how to do right:
Be proactive. Nip issues in the bud and avoid the messy interpersonal
tangles that result from neglected communication. Meeting with employees on a
monthly or quarterly basis instead of annually, for example, conveys, "Your
success is important to me, so I want to be accessible to you."
Be specific. It’s never easy to provide negative feedback regarding
someone’s work, but as a leader you can’t avoid it. Be as clear as possible when
providing feedback (both positive and negative). Give specific examples that
illustrate your points.
For example…Instead of saying, "Your attitude is bad" or "That didn’t work,"
you might say something like, "When you miss deadlines, then cross your arms and
look away when I discuss it with you, it gives me the impression that you don’t
care about the quality of your work. I’d like to believe this isn’t true. Can
you help me explain this better?"
Develop a progress plan. Be clear about the specific changes in behavior
that you expect in a specific period of time, and follow up as scheduled.
Link employees’ performance to organizational goals. Reinforce the value of
your employees’ contributions by giving specific examples of how their work and
positive behaviors serve the organization and its customers.
If you are not doing these things, why would anyone else in your organization
do them? Craft a performance appraisal process that encourages truth or
consequences.
Judith Lindenberger MBA has a distinguished career in human
resources consulting and is recognized for her innovation and excellence. The
Lindenberger Group, LLC provides results-oriented human resources consulting,
organization development, customized training workshops and personal career
training to help individuals and organizations improve their productivity and
performance. Contact them at 609.730.1049 or
info@lindenbergergroup.com or
www.lindenbergergroup.com
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