Using Feedback Effectively to Build a Successful Organization

Feedback. A buzzword these days throughout organizations. As leaders and managers of people we are expected to provide it - as employees to accept it. But what does effective feedback sound and feel like? When is it useful and when is it simply paying lip-service to the idea that we should give or receive it?

Among other things, to be effective, feedback should be Specific, Timely, Challenging, and Supportive.

Specific – It is important that the feedback you give be tied to a specific idea, situation, or conversation you had with your colleague. Broad statements such as “Great job today” doesn’t tell someone very much about what they actually did well or ways they can improve. It can be far more effective to say things like “You did this well today…” or “That was a great question you asked your customer.”

Feedback should be as objective as possible and not emotionally driven either. Keep it about what was actually said or done and the risk of it coming across as a personal attack will be a lot lower.

Timely – Provide coaching to the people you work with after a conversation, presentation, or sales call as soon as possible. Doing so ensures that important details are not lost and that the situation is fresh in everyone’s mind. This also gives the person receiving the feedback the opportunity to incorporate it while it is top of mind and to avoid going back to their original or natural approach.

Timing as much as timely can be important too. Try to judge the other person’s openness to coaching or feedback and offer it when it will be received well. Giving someone feedback when they are emotionally charged won’t yield the intended result, regardless of how it is presented. Instead it may be met with defensiveness or arguments, or the person you are offering it to may simply shut down and close off.

Challenging – Feedback should be meaningful to the person receiving it and challenge them think about how they can be more effective next time. Asking questions such as “How can you do this differently?” or “Is there a different approach you could take that will help you get past this obstacle?” will help them reflect on what they just did and come up with a solution that they are a part of.

While the questions you ask should challenge your employee or teammate to stretch themselves and grow it also needs to be consistent with their personality or style. Encourage them to step outside their comfort zone and experiment with a different approach but not so far that they lose their authenticity and are trying to be something they clearly are not comfortable with.

Supportive – Feedback should be given in a constructive way. It should help the person receiving it to improve in areas where you have identified a gap or where they can take their skills to the next level. The opposite of this is simply criticism, and generally not given with good intent but meant to highlight perceived shortcomings – a hallmark of the fixed-mindset boss rather than a growth-mindset leader.

Coaching doesn’t simply mean you highlight the negative, things they need to work on, or to improve for next time. Positive reinforcement goes a long way to motivating your team and helping them build on their strengths. If they did something well in one customer visit, encourage them to do it again with others where it may also be effective. Catch them doing something good, not just “bad”.

How can you use the feedback you provide to your sales team or colleagues in a way that motivates them and helps them grow?