How can you create a safe environment for leaders to share feedback?

1 Establish trust and rapport

Before you can share feedback effectively, you need to build trust and rapport with your peers, subordinates, and superiors. This means showing genuine interest, appreciation, and empathy for their work, achievements, and challenges. It also means being transparent, honest, and consistent in your communication and actions. Trust and rapport create a foundation for feedback that is based on mutual respect and understanding, not on judgment or criticism.

2 Use a feedback model

A feedback model is a structured and systematic way of delivering feedback that helps you avoid ambiguity, confusion, or misinterpretation. There are many feedback models available, such as the Situation-Behavior-Impact (SBI) model, the STAR (Situation-Task-Action-Result) model, or the COIN (Context-Observation-Impact-Next steps) model. The key is to choose a model that suits your purpose, context, and audience, and to use it consistently and clearly. A feedback model helps you focus on the facts, behaviors, and outcomes, rather than on the personalities, opinions, or emotions.

3 Encourage dialogue and feedback loops

Feedback should not be a one-way street, but a two-way conversation that allows both parties to share their views, feelings, and suggestions. You should encourage dialogue and feedback loops by asking open-ended questions, listening actively and attentively, acknowledging and validating the other person's perspective, and seeking clarification and confirmation. You should also invite feedback on your own performance and behavior, and show willingness to act on it. Dialogue and feedback loops create a culture of learning and improvement that benefits everyone.

4 Be mindful of diversity and inclusion

Diversity and inclusion are not only about respecting and valuing differences, but also about leveraging and celebrating them. When you share feedback in a diverse and inclusive environment, you should be mindful of how your feedback may be perceived, interpreted, and received by people from different backgrounds, experiences, and identities. You should also be open to learning from their feedback and perspectives, and to adapting your style and approach accordingly. Being mindful of diversity and inclusion means being culturally aware, sensitive, and responsive.

5 Follow up and follow through

Feedback is not a one-time event, but an ongoing process that requires follow up and follow through. You should follow up with the person you gave feedback to, or received feedback from, to check on their progress, challenges, and needs. You should also follow through on your own commitments, actions, and goals that resulted from the feedback. Following up and following through show that you care about the feedback, the person, and the outcome, and that you are accountable and supportive.

6 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?