Posted by Jamie Resker on Sat, Jun 12, 2010 @ 03:53 PM
The traditional method of providing constructive criticism/feedback would sound something like this:
"John, we need to talk about how things are going. You made some careless errors on the last several reports you handed in. You factored in the production labor costs incorrectly. I had to get other staff to rerun the numbers and as a result Tammy had to drop her own work to fix the mistakes you made. Now I feel I need to go through your month end reports with a fine tooth comb before I pass them onto the CFO, etc....".
Or
"Ann, we need to have a discussion to clarify your role and responsibilities. I've noticed the following issues: You are missing deadlines, not keeping people in the loop when deadlines are not going to be met and not demonstrating a sense of urgency to get the press releases out on time. From my perspective it appears that you don't have good time management skills based on not accomplishing key tasks within specified timeframes. On top of all this your attitude seems really lax when you do miss deadlines. What is going on with you?..."
What the manager has said in the examples above seems accurate. Most managers have been taught to create a bullet-proof case revolving around a list of the employee's shortcomings. After all, you have to prove to the employee that they are underperforming. Is it any wonder that most feedback recipients get defensive and feedback providers find difficultly in achieving anything remotely resembling a productive outcome, never mind gaining agreement on what needs to change?
THROUGH THE EYES OF THE EMPLOYEE
Can you think back to a time when a manager talked to you about a performance issue and did so without any finesse at all? From the employee's perspective when their manager does initiate a performance discussion it can come across as finger pointing, fault finding and disciplinary. Poorly crafted and delivered messages can trigger feelings of self-doubt and worthlessness for the employee. This is particularly true if this is the first time the employee is hearing the information. The traditional approach to giving feedback often comes across in a harsh, "this is what is wrong with you" tone.
Expect a Defensive Reaction
Once employees are confronted with this type of information the natural response is to blame others, fixate on the details, make excuses, try to explain why the feedback is incorrect, etc. All of this adds up to an uncomfortable and often confrontational exchange between the manager and employee. Once a manager has been through this process once or twice it becomes easier to just avoid addressing employee performance issues altogether. Let's just say there is no real mystery for why managers tend to steer clear of giving feedback and why employees don't like being on the receiving end! The fact of the matter is that there is a better way to introduce feedback to employees.
The key is to use words to describe what you want to have happen.
I'm not sure where this quote originates so I cannot provide the proper credit, but I thought it was impactful: "A good leader can describe what successful performance looks like". If you are familiar with Marshall Goldsmith's work you're likely familiar with the term "feedforward", which means describing what you want to see for future. See this short video, How to Begin a Performance Conversation (and how not to), for specific language to introduce feedback in a helpful coaching type style.
Posted by Jamie Resker on Mon, Jul 21, 2008 @ 01:33 PM
Most of us would rather have a root canal than give an employee feedback about poor performance. Yet, we will eagerly discuss - or is it complain - about these issues with colleagues or loved ones. What stops us from providing feedback?
Clearly, identifying the performance issue isn't the roadblock. Ask any group of co-workers what the problem is with a difficult employee and they usually can name it without hesitation:
- You, mean Mr. Know-It-All? If he would ask for help instead of pretending he knows how to do everything maybe he would meet his deadlines.
- She stresses about everything. I just want to slip a valium in her diet coke.
- He's mastered the art of looking busy.
- She's an excuse expert.
- Oh, he will promise you anything, just don't hold your breath waiting.
So, why do we all steer clear of challenging performance conversations?
Why People Avoid Giving Difficult Feedback
Over the years we have heard many reasons for why people avoid or delay providing feedback. Here are some of the more common reasons:
- I don't know what to say
- The employee is due to retire in two years anyway
- I'm worried about the employee's reaction
- What if I make things worse?
- This person has been here a long time and who am I to bring up the performance issue?
- What about legal ramifications?
- It will demotivate the employee
- I hate conflict
- Maybe the problem will fix itself
- I don't think the employee is capable of changing
- I don't know what the solution to this performance issue is.
Even the most seasoned managers can come up with a million excuses for avoiding or delaying a difficult performance conversation. We believe the problem lies more with the method we traditionally use to provide feedback rather than with some shortcoming of the individual responsible for orchestrating the performance conversation.
The Traditional Method of Performance Feedback and Why it Doesn't Work
The traditional method in which managers provide performance information to employees, usually referred to as constructive criticism, is often the very reason we avoid or delay giving feedback in the first place.
Most of us believe we need to create a bullet-proof case revolving around a list of the employee's shortcomings. Is it any wonder that most feedback recipients gets defensive and we find it difficult to achieve anything remotely resembling a productive outcome, never mind gaining agreement on what needs to change.
Once you have been through this process once or twice it becomes easier just to avoid addressing performance issues altogether. Let's just say there is no real mystery for why we tend to steer clear of giving feedback about poor performance!
Read the blog on How to Have a Difficult Performance Conversation