Your employees are great, but no one is perfect. Regularly giving constructive feedback puts them on the path toward constant improvement. It also keeps the lines of communication open so you’re always on the same page.
Giving feedback in a constructive manner is a must because it keeps people’s feeling from getting hurt and provides them with the tools needed to make a change. Before delivering your next round of advice, learn how to make it stick.
Time It Right
To make feedback most effective, choose an appropriate time to deliver it. For example, if the employee is already having a rough day, adding constructive criticism to the mix can appear mean, instead of helpful. With that said, it is best to offer feedback promptly after witnessing a certain behavior, while it’s still fresh in the both employee’s mind and yours.
Use Positive Language
Constructive criticism is given to help employees learn and grow, so be kind with your delivery. If you put them down and make them feel small, they won’t take your words to heart and they’ll dread future feedback sessions. Be kind with your delivery and balance it out by praising things the person is doing well.
Be Specific
Employees aren’t mind-readers, so if you want your comments to invoke change, say exactly what you mean. Highlight the specific actions you’d like to see changed, and explain the need for improvement. Vague feedback is essentially useless, because if the person doesn’t know what they’re doing wrong, they can’t make a change for the better.
Don’t Make It Personal
Attacking an employee’s character is mean, and will get you nowhere. Keep the conversation strictly focused on behaviors, because anything else is inappropriate. Understandably, the person will feel attacked if your delivery includes insults or judgements of their character. For example, telling an employee they need to proofread their work a little better is a lot different than calling them lazy.
Offer Tips to Improve
Help the person exhibit the kind of behaviors you’d like to see by sharing specific advice for improvement. Sometimes the change will be easy to make, but in other cases it will take time. Be patient and offer encouragement when you see the employee making a concerted effort to improve.
Barrington Staffing has been helping companies in Los Angeles and Ventura counties hire better since 1982, and we’d be honored to assist your team! Whether you need temporary, temporary-to-staff or direct hire workers, we’re here to deliver the very best. Let’s team up to make your organization stronger than ever!
