We Love Feedback On Everything, All The Time

“The Coffee Machine is awful, the coffee is too dark, it’s too sweet, too this, too that…Who does motivational posters now, seriously! Get them off the wall…Maybe you should look at this and maybe you should implement that…The people have a right to have a say. How can you do this without our feedback, that without our feedback? This is terrible, that is terrible, this is not good enough, do it this way, that way, the other way” and your head spins like a whirling dervish.

Yes, the people in any organization have a right to give their input, but just how much input is too much?

Now before you get ready to blast me in the comment section, let me say upfront that I am all for employee engagement. Having spent most of my career in HR I am abundantly aware that we need to know and understand the pulse of the people. This helps us with retention and overall employee wellbeing.

Studies have shown that employee engagement can improve the mental state of the employee, make them want to work harder and be their best selves on the job. However, there is a dark side to this. “What is the dark side?”, you ask. I am so glad that you did. This word ENTITLEMENT is such as dangerous word in any organization. When employees feel that they must have a say on everything and everything. This word is not your friend. Entitlement has come to steal the joy of the employer and yes, employers matter too.

 When entitlement shows up, employees can get disrespectful, ungrateful and lose their sense of decency to prove a point. Discounting that someone out there, with the best of intentions, sat down and said, “Let’s see how we can make the employees happy. Based on feedback and data compiled, we could implement project X. After carrying out our cost analysis and all the other ‘sis’s’, we may even test it on a small population to get early feedback and then, based on success, we implement project X.” Despite our best effort there is still a problem. Do we care there is a problem? Absolutely and we do our best to please most people but guess what, you cannot please them all.

What is the solution? Is there a solution?

First, we must always remember that no matter what decision you take, there will always be those that are never going to be happy, learn to live with it. Secondly, when the noise comes at you, try to understand where it is coming from. When people say they are speaking on behalf of a group, sometimes they are only speaking on behalf of a group of one, themselves. Once you understand that rest assured you can take the feedback with a pinch of salt. If the feedback comes from a handful of people, take a moment to reassess the situation and see if there is a valid cause for concern.

Communicate, communicate, communicate - an essential piece of the puzzle which ensures that the project is rolled out strategically, keep the people informed, let them ask questions before implementation and this will reduce the risk of negative feedback.

Word to the wise, there is nothing wrong with constructive criticism/feedback, once given in a spirit of wellbeing and communicated with dignity and respect, just be alert to how much feedback is given. We love feedback, but not all the time.