How to Provide Effective Feedback to Your Team

Providing feedback to members of your team can be difficult, especially if what you have to say isn’t positive. However, coaching an individual on their work performance is one of the most important responsibilities of any leader.

In my own career journey, one-on-one sessions have helped me the most. They developed my ability to see blind spots, find coping mechanisms, and change my behavior. I vividly recall a conversation I had with my manager after my first public speaking engagement, which had caused me considerable anxiety!

I had no interest in speaking in front of large crowds; however, my manager was adamant that communication skills were crucial to my ongoing success. He called me after the speech to ask me how I felt it went. We then had a very honest conversation in a safe one-on-one environment where he walked me through what went well, what didn’t and how I could improve going forward.

It would have been easy for him to pat me on the back and reassure me in light of my fear and anxiety without going into areas for improvement. Instead, he acknowledged where I felt I was under-delivering, I was! At the same time, he helped me map a path to addressing issues and improving. That’s not to say I didn’t beat myself up quite a bit after the speech.

But after a few days I was able to be more objective and work on improving. To this day, I feel he was my most demanding manager. But he also helped me grow past multiple blind spots and set me up for success into the future. And while we no longer work together daily, he is one of my first calls when I am struggling, because I know he will always tell me the truth and has my best interests at heart.

Honest feedback presents an opportunity for growth and can help employees reach their career goals.

The most effective feedback is constructive, actionable, and macro, not micro.

Constructive

A good conversation starter is to ask, “How do you think it’s going?” It opens the door to discuss what's going well and what can be improved.

t's important to listen carefully and avoid judgment or become defensive about what your employee is saying.

When possible, be open to compromise or reevaluate certain policies if it makes sense.

Actionable

Be direct and clear with constructive and actionable feedback. If your feedback isn’t constructive and actionable, the only message you may pass along is that you’re upset or indifferent.

People can be coached to work well within a given work culture — if that culture is built on a foundation of open communication, honesty, and trust. Actionable advice is straightforward and will build morale. Give the employee something to work towards.

Instead of saying, “I can’t believe you’re behind on those reports,” you might say, “How about we focus on catching up on reports by finishing two per week until we’re caught up?”

Macro, Not Micro

We’ve all heard the dreaded label ‘micromanager’.

Approach sharing feedback on a macro level, versus micromanaging and calling out every mistake.

For example, one of your team members continually submits reports with typos. Rather than calling out every typo, every time, you could sit down with the individual and ask how you can support them so that they have time to thoroughly proof documents before submitting them. Explain your expectation that reports submitted to you should be error free. Share that it creates extra work for you when you have to correct the work of others. End the conversation on a positive note by saying something along the lines of “I know you take pride in your work and I'm glad we could discuss this. If you need support or guidance on this, my door is always open.”

Staying positive is the best way to move your team forward in a cohesive way. Stick to these tips, and your team will appreciate your support and coaching.