Driving an organization towards growth while simultaneously developing talent can be a challenge for the most organized executives and managers. Time is limited and when you are forced to prioritize, it’s only natural to want to focus on actions that will directly have the greatest impact on revenue. Projects that can lead to measurable outcomes are easier to justify. Consequently, we see employee development take a back seat far too often.
When managers fail to develop talent through direct feedback and one-on-one time with employees, it can have lasting long-term impacts on the organization. A broken feedback loop will not only lead to misalignment and dissatisfaction amongst your direct reports, but it can also have a rippling effect throughout your entire organization. This creates a dysfunctional company culture.
Giving feedback is critical for employee development, so how do you find the time? While improving time management skills can help the situation, there’s also another way to tackle the problem: Learning how to give feedback more efficiently.
Providing feedback can be hard, but it doesn’t have to take a lot of time. Learning to provide quick and efficient feedback is one of the most crucial focus areas in leadership development. When training leaders on how to deliver feedback, we always encourage the following tips:
1. Be Direct In Your Speech
Delivering direct, blunt feedback is often one of the hardest things for managers to do in a business environment. As consultants, our firm spends a great deal of time working with managers on this particular aspect of leadership development. Direct speech is difficult because you generally don’t want to hurt feelings, offend anyone, or come off as abrasive. As a result, we accompany feedback with unnecessary language to soften our delivery or sandwich it between compliments. This can create a lack of clarity, leave important points open to interpretation, and ultimately makes your feedback less effective.
While being sensitive to others’ feelings is important, not providing clear feedback can be a disservice to both the employee and the business. Therefore, it’s best to be as direct as possible in your speech. Don’t leave things open to interpretation, make sure you deliver your message effectively. Be candid and say what you mean. This doesn’t mean you have to be rude or insensitive, you can deliver the feedback in a direct, yet positive, tone.
While it might be hard for an employee to hear, it’s much more likely to stick and help them develop in the long term if you say it clearly. In the New One Minute Manager, Ken Blanchard recommends mixing a little positive feedback in after any negative to ensure the employee feels valued for their contributions, but that the messages don’t get muddled.
2. Make Sure It’s A Dialogue
If you’re short on time, it’s natural to want to keep the conversation quick and to the point. However, it’s still critically important to listen to your employee’s perspective. Talking without listening will not only lead to misunderstandings, but it will also result in you missing critical pieces of information that you may need to factor into future decisions. Your employees are valuable sources of information, so make sure you’re taking advantage of it.
Is there something preventing the employee from performing? Is there a serious problem within your organization? Whatever the details are, you need to make sure you fully understand them. The key is to obtain information by asking the right questions and steering the conversation. Focus on getting the most important information from your employee in the shortest amount of time.
Dialogue is important, but that doesn’t mean it needs to be a lengthy conversation. Ask direct, thoughtful questions to ensure you understand the entire situation.
3. Give The Feedback Right Away
Many managers delay giving feedback until they feel like it’s the right time to bring it up. Perhaps you don’t want to catch an employee off guard, or maybe you’d like to ease into the conversation. This is the wrong approach, especially when you’re short on time.
If you’re spinning your wheels thinking about how you’re going to deliver the feedback, you’re already wasting too much time. Instead, create a standard approach for how you deliver feedback directly. Maybe it’s calling an employee into your office privately or simply announcing that you’re going to provide some feedback. Whatever it is, it’ll be easier to do once you’ve standardized the approach and started to make it a habit. The more often you give feedback, the easier it is to do.
Prioritizing development is hard, but it’s also important that you provide employees with feedback promptly. If you wait too long, your feedback is not going to have the same effect. Additionally, you and/or the employee will likely forget key details. If you have feedback to deliver, make sure to get it out while it’s fresh in your mind.
4. Don’t Go Overboard
Sometimes managers can let emotions get the best of them when delivering feedback, but reinforcing the point one too many times can frustrate your employee and also be a waste of your own time. Once you’ve stated your point, move on. If you’re unsure if your employee heard or understood the feedback, ask them to repeat it back to you. It’s important to not get carried away, and practice emotional intelligence when delivering feedback. Keep the conversation short and to the point.
As a manager, you’re responsible for driving your organization towards its mission while simultaneously developing talent to support your goals. Don’t lose sight of the second piece. While prioritization is important, you can’t afford not to provide your employees with feedback they need to improve.
Quick and effective feedback is a leadership development area that so many managers struggle with. As business consultants, we work with organizations of all sizes to teach leaders how to be more organized, manage their time, and effectively deliver feedback while developing talent.
If you’re looking to improve the way your organization delivers quick and efficient feedback, our team at Lilly Consulting Group can help. Contact us today.
