The Power of Feedback - Enhancing Performance Management in HR

Feedback is an important aspect of a human-centric performance management process. It encourages a growth mindset and fosters positive emotions.

1. Specificity

Even children playing the popular “Hot or Cold” game know that people need to be told how they’re doing to perform well. Without feedback, people will work blindly, hoping that they’ll somehow reach their destination.

One of the ways that feedback can be powerful is when it is tied to specific learning goals. In other words, a student receiving a score on a quiz or a project is more likely to learn from the feedback when it is based on a set of criteria that has been established by their teachers as the most important points to focus on in their assessment. Similarly, performance measurement systems for business processes are more effective when the criteria is predetermined rather than leaving it up to managers to decide what to measure and how often to do so.

Other types of feedback can be powerful when they are designed to be self-evident and provided regularly. Additionally, a 360-degree feedback system that allows employees to receive feedback from their managers, peers, and themselves is an effective method of providing regular feedback.

Providing this type of ongoing constructive feedback throughout the year is much more effective than relying on an annual review to provide performance management feedback, and will ensure that any emerging issues can be addressed promptly. It also provides more accurate assessments of an employee’s performance, which can be helpful in managing underperforming workers.

2. Timing

Whether it's praise for good work or criticism for improvement, feedback must be delivered in the right way to be most effective. This means that it should be timely, specific, and not personal. Using constructive language is also key as it helps disassociate an employee's personal attributes from their professional behaviors and makes them more likely to be able to accept feedback without feeling criticized or defensive.

Feedback can come from a variety of sources such as managers and supervisors, peer groups, performance appraisal systems, or even customers. However, the best source of feedback is often a one-on-one conversation between an employee and manager that takes place during a regular meeting. This allows both parties to devote more time to the discussion and ensures that the feedback is as accurate as possible.

The goal of a feedback conversation should be to help the employee understand their strengths and weaknesses so that they can make informed decisions about how to improve their performance. Frequent and accurate feedback promotes open communication, encouraging employees to actively participate in their professional growth. The specificity of the feedback enables employees to better understand what they need to change and provides clear direction so that they don't get lost. The timing of the feedback is crucial as it allows employees to take action immediately upon receiving the information, increasing its impact.

eTimesheets is a simple, easy-to-use project tracking tool that automatically records and submits team members' time to help them keep on track of deadlines. It also gives managers a clear overview of the activities that their teams are working on so they can be confident that their projects are on schedule and that everyone is doing their share of work.

3. Empathy

Providing feedback with empathy makes employees feel valued, which in turn encourages them to work harder. Whether your employees are struggling with work-related challenges or personal ones, it is important to understand and support them. This is especially true for managers, who must show that they are empathetic to their teams in order to promote a positive culture and boost employee performance.

Many companies spend a lot of time and energy on activities that focus on increasing empathy in the workplace. One example is having frontline workers read literature on company time in an effort to improve their empathy skills. While these activities can have a positive impact, it is crucial for leaders and managers to build empathy with small, everyday gestures.

A lack of empathy from management can have a significant negative effect on the productivity of a team. Those who believe that their management team cares about them tend to work harder, report less stress-related illnesses, and have a higher intent to stay at the company.

Modern teams bring together people from diverse backgrounds to create a richer, more creative environment. However, these differences also pose a challenge when it comes to conflict resolution. Managers should use empathy to help their teams resolve these conflicts and reach a mutually beneficial solution.

While it is important to demonstrate empathy to your team members, it is also necessary to maintain a level of emotional detachment from the work itself. Otherwise, you may be prone to falling victim to confirmation bias, wherein you retain the information that supports your prior beliefs. It is also important to follow up with constructive solutions and continue checking in on your employees.

4. Collaboration

Collaboration is a critical component of performance management, as it can help improve employee satisfaction and boost business results. Whether it’s through face-to-face meetings, team projects or online conversations, collaboration encourages employees to work together and communicate effectively with each other. This also ensures that each employee is getting the information and perspectives they need to complete their work, which can reduce stress levels and frustration. Studies show that when teams work collaboratively, they are 50% more effective at meeting their goals.

This type of collaborative feedback also allows for quick problem solving and can avoid major mistakes from miscommunication. For example, if an employee isn’t comfortable accepting criticism, their manager can provide feedback on that specific behavior in a way that makes the person feel safe to grow and evolve.

Additionally, collaboration promotes a sense of community and psychological safety among team members, which can help decrease employee turnover and increase retention. According to research from the Harvard Business Review, employees are more likely to leave their job due to a bad relationship with their manager or coworkers than because of poor productivity. This is why it’s important to build a culture of continuous feedback and collaborate with managers to create a positive employee-employer relationship.

HR can do a few things to foster a more collaborative performance management process, including surveying employees and managers on the current system to see what works and what doesn’t, providing training on best practices for collaboration, and encouraging employees to use a tool to share casual feedback with each other. Other ways to build a more collaborative culture include creating a centralized place where employees can drop feedback, allowing employees to choose whether the feedback is public or private, and making sure that managers are supportive of this approach.