The 'Secret Source' of successful feedback
/Wouldn’t it make life easier as a manager if there was a secret ingredient that could make a massive positive difference when giving people difficult feedback.
One that significantly increases the likelihood of the person receiving the feedback responding in a constructive way and taking action to address the issue raised.
Well, good news…there is!
It is not the feedback model used…
It is not the skill of the person in applying the model…
It is not even the diligence and quality of the follow up.
So what is it?
In simple terms it is the quality of the relationship between the feedback giver and feedback receiver. In other words, ‘trust’ or even more precisely, the level to which the feedback receiver trusts the motives, intentions and actions of the feedback giver.
People trust managers who:
Regularly spend time with them and who they believe know them and understand them.
Tell them when they are doing something well as well as when they are doing something not so well.
Give feedback based on something they have observed for themselves rather than relying on opinion or comments from a third party.
Have a good understanding of their capabilities so they give feedback based on the existence of an observed, genuine gap.
They believe are acting with their best intentions in mind and who are not going to use feedback as a justification to fire them or give them a lower performance score at some point in the future.
So if you want to build the foundations that ensure your people trust and act on your feedback, the message is clear - get to know them, spend time with them, understand what they are good at and not so good at, say what needs to be said when it needs to be said and do these things consistently over time.