L1 - Giving & Receiving Feedback

Giving & Receiving Feedback

Why give feedback?

Positive

Constructive

Clarify

Video

Watch the video and make some notes on how you can make giving feedback a positive experience for you and your team member.

How are you giving feedback at the moment?

Bigger conversations

Are you sending an email or chatting face to face?

Is it at the desk, or are you moving away?

Styles

Are you taking into account their style?

Get yourself ready

Statements

Emotions

Easier

Prepare

Plan

control them

Expectations

Rehearse

focus

What?

Receiving Feedback yourself

Listen to the feedback given

Be aware of your responses

Be open

Understand the message

Reflect and make a plan

Feedback is an opportunity

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Be aware of your triggers. Your body language and tone of voice often speak louder than words. Try to avoid putting up barriers. If you look distracted and bored, that sends a negative message as well. Attentiveness, on the other hand, indicates that you value what someone has to say and puts both of you at ease.

Look over these statements to help you with your conversation:

• How do you feel about that? • Talk to me more about that. • I can see you are frustrated. • I can see this is hard for you. • I understand this is difficult. • I want to make sure you understand. • It is ok to be upset. • What do you think is the way forward? • How does that sound to you? • Thank you for being open.

Follow the steps below to help keep emotions under control

• Be rational and factual rather than defensive or angry. You are having this conversation to help them improve.
• Be aware of your body language, crossing your arms or frowning. You don't want to appear closed off.
• Think about your tone, stay calm and measured.
• Take deep breaths if you feel yourself getting upset.
• Be transparent and don't make false promises.
• Genuinely listen, show an interest, ask questions and care about the answers.
• Express support and reassurance.

Listening means not interrupting. Hear the person out, and listen to what they are really saying, not what you assume they will say. You can absorb more information if you are concentrating on listening and understanding rather than being defensive and focusing on your response

Plan what will happen

What is the subject or issue you want to discuss? Focus on the PAs actions rather than their personality, keep your personal feelings to one side.What evidence do you have? Stick to facts around the issue at hand rather than past problems/discusssions. What is the impact on the team/individual and business? These are the reasons why you giving the feedback. What would be your ideal solution or outcome? Have a goal in mind but be flexible.

This means being receptive to new ideas and different opinions. Often, there is more than one way of doing something and others may have a completely different viewpoint on a given topic. Ask more questions if needed. You may learn something worthwhile.

Feedback helps to give a clear picture of expectations and goals. It should be a conversation where there is an opportunity for questions and understanding to help change or improve going forward.

Make sure you understand what is being said to you, especially before responding to the feedback. Ask questions for clarification if necessary. Listen actively by repeating key points so that you know you have interpreted the feedback correctly.

Feedback clarifies expectations and goals. It gives the chance to ask questions, understand and learn. It creates a clear picture to avoid repeated mistakes.

Prepare yourself

• Rather than thinking this will be a difficult conversation, think of it as a constructive conversation with clear outcomes. After all your aim is to move things forward.
• Rehearse using simple language and sticking to the facts.
• Be prepared to listen and hear the PA, this will give them a chance to ask questions and for you to know they understand.
• Keep focused on the issues or behaviour, not the person or past events.

Surroundings

Where you do your feedback will depend on what you are feeding back. If it's something you can discuss in the moment, you should do this at your or their desk. This could be a call you have heard, behaviour or time keeping e.g. This means it will be timely, the context of the feedback will be fresh. You wouldn't want to wait a week to give feedback about a PA eating at their desk. However, if there is more of a conversation to be had, you might think about stepping away and finding a more appropriate or private area. It could be feedback about a dashboard e.g. where you can really take the time to discuss, allow time for questions and guide them on the best way to move forward.

Improves engagement: Feedback about what people are doing right can result in increased engagement both with their work and their colleagues. A more engaged workplace culture makes people feel comfortable highlighting issues that need addressing and sharing new ideas. Strengthens culture: Positive feedback creates a more supportive workplace, which can lead to happier, more skilled employees and stronger teams. Supports a certain standard of work: Every organisation has its level of standards expected at work, and positive feedback helps support those standards. Providing feedback can also increase motivation, which can improve the standard of work and make new standards even higher. Develops performance: Feedback helps people recognise what they do well and get even better, which promotes skill-building and personal improvement. Improving performance can increase productivity, which benefits both individuals and the business.

Negative feedback, sometimes referred to as constructive feedback, is feedback given to an employee that is focused on pinpointing behaviors that need to be changed to prevent issues or low performance.

The goal of negative feedback is to help an employee change their behavior to increase productivity and performance in the workplace. To be effective, negative feedback should focus on specific behavior and be given quickly after the behavior has occurred.

On the clock

There may be occasions where you need to have a bigger conversation. Consider who the person is your feeding back to, what the feedback is, what is going on in the work environment, and even what mental state you are in – this will all depend on when to give feedback. E.g. If the PA you want to speak to has arrived late again for the 3rd time this week, you may be feeling annoyed if you have already spoken to them. You will need time to calm down and give feedback constructively, or change the way you have given feedback previously.

You make the conversation easier if you think about the following:

• Don't over-do small talk but get to the point quickly.
• Remember your preparation and keep the conversation clear and neutral.
• If you are faced with an emotional outburst, just listen. This is usually all people want and if you don't react they will calm again.
• Anticipate questions so you are ready with clear, factual answers.
• Confirm they understand the reason for the conversation so there is no misunderstanding.
• Stay patient and calm and show understanding and empathy.
• Give them time to take on board what you have discussed and arrange to catch up again.

Assess the value of the feedback, the consequences of using it or ignoring it, and then decide what to do because of it. Follow up and check in to see if you are implementing what you agreed.

Words or letters?

The best kind of feedback is the one where the receiver has the opportunity to ask questions and understand the feedback they are having. So you should aim to do face to face feedback as much as possible. For you to know they have taken on board what you have said, and are clear about what changes need to be made, a conversation is the only way. Although an email will serve as documentation for your records and is a good way of confirming your conversation and actions after it has happened, it can be misunderstood if used as a platform for feedback.

• It lacks a personal touch.
• Can be read in a way it wasn't meant.
• Doesn't provide a voice or emotion in the response, so you may not get a true reflection.
• Can be timely if the email goes back and too.

Styles

Think about what style your team member is when you communicate with them, you will have been sent this when they joined your team. Do they like facts and figures, goals, compliments or a more direct approach? There is more about this on the 'style' icon.