Management Tips - Give Feedback

Part of your job as a new manager is to give helpful feedback to employees, but it doesn't stop there. The feedback process isn't over when you reel off what you think the employee should do to improve performance. It ends when the worker understands your input and applies it successfully.

Most managers dislike giving negative feedback. They may fear that workers will perceive their well intentioned comments as personal criticism, and because it's common for rookie managers to want to be liked by their troops, they may shy away from pointing out work related defects or concerns about an individual"s effort or attitude.

Get over it!

Effective managers must give feedback every day. It can range from glowing praise to neutral observation to serious alarm. Ideally, positive input should far outweigh everything else. Employees crave compliments from their supervisor - they remember them, treasure them and share them with friends and family.

Look for opportunities to point out what workers are doing right. Don't feel you must ration praise only for rare flashes of brilliance or exceptional results. Letting people know that you admire how they handle a customer, organise their workspace or analyse a problem is in itself a form of feedback that straightens your relationship with your team.

When your goal is to provide constructive feedback that helps employees improve, set the stage. Get a two-way conversation going. Discuss the high standards you set for yourself and your crew -and find out what the worker thinks of these standards. That's better than coming tight out and saying, "Here's something you are doing wrong at that you need to work on..."

Remember that almost all workers thirst for input. One of the employees' biggest complaints is "I don't get enough feedback from my boss." Remove the mystery. Freely share your ideas, suggestions and reservations. Make individuals aware of their performance and guide them to improve.

Use this three step method to deliver feedback that sinks in:

Invite employees to evaluate their performance

Let them rate a specific aspect pf their work based on, say a 1 to 10 scale or an A to F grade. Many people grade themselves more harshly than you would. Even if they inflate their ratings, it gives you a baseline to respond with your input.

Ask follow up questions

Dig for more information. get employees to share dtails or examples that justify their self rating. Notice what criteria they use to evaluate themselves and how they track their performance.

Align your analysis with their comments

Now that you have given employees a chance to cime in, it's your turn. Begin by thanking them for explaining how they view their performance, then add..."I'd like to piggyback on what you have just said." Then endorse positive input that you heard earlier (as long as you agree) and add some fresh praise so you end on a high note.

"The good ones among managers.....do not talk to their subordinates about their problems, but they know how to make the subordinates talk about theirs." - Peter Drucker...

So you are now a MANAGER (intro)

Now that you have earned your reward: you are a manager and now a staff to manage. Onwards, your success no longer depends on just your technical know how and specialised knowledge. You will only prosper if other people do their jobs well.

Sheesh, you say - why do I have to depend on others for job approval. I am sure that if I do my work well, the rest will automatically follow. Well, hello - it doesn't work that way. You are a team leader now and what the rest of the team does will reflect on you and will ultimately determine the size of that money package at the end of the year.

Hei, you are a manager now, so buckle up and enjoy the ride. Hopefully with my ramblings here, you could get a few pointers on how to be a successful manager.

Funny isn't it? You were promoted because of your ability and yet, the Company does not provide any training for you to be an effective and succesfull manager. Your are expected to do your job, lead your team, manage your team and still produce the excellent results that you have been consistently producing year in and year out.

Just because you did not go to any managerial school to learn to be a manager doesn't mean that there isn't any. All you need to do is read, learn and have an open mind about things that may affect you.

I said an open mind not an empty open mind.

So till the next posting i will leave you with the words from Lee Iacocca,

"In the end, all management can be reduced to three words: people, product and profits. People come first"