In one of my engagements with a client, we asked managers and leaders how comfortable they were with giving candid, constructive and honest feedback. Turns out 80%+ leaders and managers were not comfortable giving candid, straight, constructive, and tough feedback. Infact, there was one senior leader who was proud of the fact that he didn’t like to get into tough conversations and that he wanted to be nice to everyone.
So, when it came to performance linked reward, he used his own math to give roughly same salary increases to all his team members and felt it was fair. Unfortunately, at the company level this was accepted.
No one likes to have tough conversation, let alone share specific feedback on where an employee needs to do better. It doesn’t come naturally to most managers. There is ample research and material out there that confirms this. We also know from research why not giving honest feedback actually holds employees back from doing well. If you care about your company performing better and employee maximizing their potential then you must give them regular, honest feedback.
One of the best ways to see improvement in performance and to help build skills, is to let employees know when you see gaps, areas of improvement and how they can do better.
Just like coaching which is a skill you build over time, giving honest, to the point, constructive feedback is a skill, managers must build over time. In wanting to give tough feedback, either they try to sandwich the feedback between too many nice things or trying to give tough feedback becomes insulting and downright degrading.
Companies must help leaders and managers upskill in this area. They must put up frameworks that allow managers to build this over time. Employees must be given regular feedback with examples. Share observations and scenarios so that they understand where they need to do better.
If you care about your employee and their career give them honest feedback, no matter how difficult it is.
