How can you give timely and relevant feedback?

If you are to give timely and relevant feedback there are two strict rules that must be adhered to…. 1. It must be timely and 2. It must be relevant You’re welcome ??

In my experience feedback can be both constructive feedback or a motivational reward. Never lose sight to make a women cry and laugh at the same time.

As Brene Browne cites - Have courage over comfort. In my experience, feedback is too often considered as "criticism" rather than enabling. Feedback enables a person to succeed in their endeavours. Push past your own level of discomfort, go into the conversations with a lens of being helpful and do it whilst the situation remains relevant. I cant begin to recall the number of times people managers/leaders awkwardly share "I should have said something xx months ago". Too late, not relevant.

Provide feedback as soon as possible after the event or situation, as it is more impactful when the details are fresh in everyone's mind. Avoid waiting for scheduled performance reviews if immediate feedback is necessary.

I trust that successful feedback should be rooted in the challenges, performance outcomes, and trust between the leader and their team. Feedback loses effectiveness when confidence is lacking - often viewed as a procedural checkbox driven by HR. By contrast, authentic leaders provide feedback and engage the team about their performance. They use comprehensive 360-degree feedback, collecting data from peers, management, and clients. This feedback is connected to individual performance and crucial to personal development. They have regular checks in chats to measure progress and solve issues, fostering a continuous learning and development culture that celebrates individual performance.

Do not wait until you see someone doing something that needs correcting. That is often the time that feedback becomes a priority, however, take note of what they are doing well and then offer an approach that sandwiches the feedback. What you have observed that is going really well (a strength), what you see that could use some improvement or correction (area for growth) and conclude with another strength- even if it is just that you appreciate them being open to feedback.

In order to avoid "you messages", which often end up being judgements, use "I messages" instead. Start your feedback with an observation and how you perceived it and how it made you feel. This changes the dynamic of the conversation and gives the feedback receiver the chance to understand you better. It also creates a better relationship as you share things as well: You might explain how the person being late affects you.

I have learned over the years that you should focus on specific behaviors, actions, or situations rather than making general statements. It is also critical to clearly articulate what the person did well or where improvement is needed.

Meaningful feedback is feedback that allows us to explain the situation, behavior, impact, and result. If we can't explain these aspects, even positive statements won't contribute to our development.

When you catch someone doing something RIGHT, it is a natural instinct to immediately praise and applaud them. It is essential to have the same sense of urgency when you catch someone doing something WRONG. The difference is in the when, where and how you deliver the message. It has to be personal for you--the desire to see the individual succeed. With a "success" mindset, the words come easier. Something like, "I saw how the customer reacted to that statement you made. What might you have said differently to have a better and more positive reaction?" Delivered in a private conversation, I have found that people can identifiy their own mistakes and correct them, given the opportunity to do so. When they do, they seldom repeat them.

It’s important to be specific about the impact. Explain how the observed behavior or action affected others or the overall outcome. Help the recipient understand the consequences of their actions and the importance of making changes or continuing with positive behavior. Giving timely feedback is an ongoing process. It is important to be consistent in providing feedback regularly with the aim to promote improvement and not criticism.

Explaining the impact or purpouse of the feedback you are giving is extremely important and is often what separates feedback from opinion. If you recieve feedback without this, asking 'what impact do you think this action will have?" Can be quite powerful. If possible, its helpful to show as broad an impact or purpouse of the feedback as possible. Ideally something that aligns with the broader mission and goals of the team or the organisation.

I believe that feedback should be a balance between positive and constructive feedback. Acknowledge and appreciate positive actions and accomplishments in a supportive manner, emphasizing areas of improvement. Secondly create an environment where individuals feel comfortable receiving feedback and asking for clarification. Be open to receiving feedback as well, fostering a culture of continuous improvement.

In my experience, it is always important that once you have given your feedback and have opened the lines of communication, that you listen to the response and not interrupt.

Giving feedback is also something done as a response to any requestor who is looking to broaden their perspective. But motivation to give feedback varies widely from one person to another, and personalizing the request is not the same as putting it into a useful context for work. The person giving feedback needs to know how the requester considers the feedback to be important, and the person giving feedback needs to feel that reason as being relevant. Comfort levels differ too, per a person's expectations about how others will respond to the feedback, and whether that expectation is about something risky or not. Risks typically include the potential for responses to negatively affect a person’s standing, affiliations, or opportunities.

Small and big wins should be celebrated, it doesn't have to be fancy or over the top. Team members want to feel and be appreciated for their efforts. Often we get wrapped up with what we have to show appreciation and forget that saying and meaning go a long way. Call out a team member/s for something they did outstanding or impressive. Recently we had a team year-end function and each person got a gift that was special to them and who they are, someone always brings their cheerfulness, someone is always deadline driven and of course our perfect coffee brewer if we had an office - It was light and personalised to each team member.

Not all feedback is true or accurate! Think of feedback as a gift. You can either receive it or leave it aside. Just because someone has given you feedback doesn’t mean you need to act upon it. Feedback may be the result of an opinion or even delivered with an intent to manipulate. Consider what value this feedback provides you. Furthermore, not giving feedback is an option. Sometimes no feedback might be the better option. If someone needs encouragement or finds work very challenging, the best thing to do may be to say, “Well done, keep going.” Feedback can wait until both of you are in a psychologically suitable place to receive and provide it. Do not feel pressure to give feedback because everyone else is doing it.

Not all feedback has to use the word "feedback". Use language that works for the intent, and with the person that you're providing it to. You may use phrases like "here's some coaching" or "something to consider for next time". And, after you've provided the feedback you may make it a point to ask the person how they typically like to receive feedback so you know for the future.

Feedback is foundational for measurable change. Done well, it informs learning, inspires growth, and creates an environment of mutual trust and respect. Leaders set the tone through their visible and demonstrable actions, establishing a cultural norm that the organization can only operate at peak efficiency and effectiveness if people can practice productive dialogue, which includes sharing feedback on performance (positive and corrective). It has to be embedded as part of how an organization grows and develops its people. This creates a higher degree of openness and expectation for good feedback practices. It also will shine a light on unproductive feedback behavior.

Praise is one of the most powerful & neglected forms of feedback. It means being on the lookout for behaviour that is praise-worthy & acknowledging it publicly when it happens. It is deliberate & the more you praise, the more you shape an individual’s behaviour because you make them feel good about themselves. Be sure to praise only what is praise-worthy! This contributes to a positive team culture that makes the manager’s job so much easier & makes the manager more influential. The best of all is that praise costs nothing!

For Project clients - we get feedback within five (5) days from the client unless they have specifically requested more time. We set up KPIs for the team and then individually, we provide the team with client feedback after the team has completed KPIs. For Monthly clients - we get feedback throughout the month from the client, we do weekly training if need be, and do KPI's after one (1) month and three (3) months the team member/s has worked with the client, this happen on six (6) months and one (1) year.