Welcoming the Gift of Feedback

FountainBlue’s November 6 Front Line Managers’ Online meeting was on the topic of ‘Welcoming the Gift of Feedback’. My thanks also to our panelists for their participation. 

• The Gift of Feedback – Maranda Dziekonski, Swiftly
• Explain the Why – Maranda Dziekonski, Swiftly
• The Customer as King – Kavita Shah, Nova
• Performance Review Feedback – Colm Lysaght, Micron
• Facilitating Awkward Feedback Conversations – Thenu Kittappa, Nutanix
• Best Practice for Providing Feedback as a Gift – All

Below are notes from the discussion. Our panelists agree that Feedback is not a choice, but a reality, a natural part of learning and growing. In fact, you should worry if you’re not getting feedback, as you may be getting complacent or you may be isolated or others might be afraid to provide you with input.

Thoughts on Welcoming Feedback

• Giving or receiving feedback means that you’re invested in the success in the person or project or initiative – invested enough to provide input with the objective of improvement.
• A good way to get positive feedback is to be proactive about managing yourself, and communicating what you’re doing, what you need to succeed, what success looks like, etc., 
• Provide the data and information to back up the feedback you’re giving. Have the same expectation when others give feedback to you.
• Feedback should be given continuously and productively. There should be no surprises at annual performance reviews for example.
• Feedback is a team sport. Share feedback across teams and organizations.

Thoughts on How to Better Communicate Feedback

• Treat feedback as a gift, an opportunity to learn and grow and level-up! Be open enough so that you can understand and integrate that feedback so that you can grow and learn.
• Give feedback with sensitivity and humility and curiosity. Give feedback because you care about the person or project.
• Use feedback to help your team feel empowered and engaged. A happy team makes for a happy customer!
• When feedback is painful, be open and curious, but also give yourself time for self-reflection and integration. Keep being courageous and open, but don’t make deadlines for when feedback must be adopted.
• Remember that feedback about the quality of work done can be a very sensitive discussion – it’s a tough conversation whether the quality is too good (not efficiently produced) or not so good…
• Manage and communicate feedback so that the other party takes ownership, adopts strategies for improving, and invests in making a necessary change.
• Second-hand feedback must be dealt with directly, so feedback doesn’t become gossipy and petty.
• Provide feedback which is SMART – specific, measurable, achievable, relevant and time-bound. 
• Be clear on expectations and the metrics for success. 
• When you’re giving feedback on somebody’s communication style, be clear whether you’re addressing the performance, the communication pattern or both. 

The Role of Customer Feedback

• Listen to the feedback that customers provide, and leverage that feedback to drive the product roadmap.
• With that said, understanding the market feedback and the input of multiple customers helps you in turn give insights and input to customers.
• It’s critical to then provide feedback to the team, about the input of customers, as this would help the team implement the solutions in demand.
• Let market and customer feedback define the time, the effort and the commitment to products and solutions.
• Respect the transactional aspects of relationships, but focus on the partnerships developed and long-term commitments made.

The bottom line is that feedback is a critical part of the growth of an individual, a team, a product, an organization. Creating a culture of empathy and trust can lead to more productive and constructive feedback, raising the bar for all makes everyone better and stronger. 

Resources:

6 Ways To Build A Feedback Driven Culture That Inspires8 Examples of Constructive Feedback With Sample ScenariosHow to Ask Your Customers Questions to Get Feedback (Tips)

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