Let's Talk

A game-changing model for giving great feedback that employees hear and take to heart.

Recent studies have revealed 44% of managers dread giving feedback, and 65% of employees wish their managers gave more feedback. But fear of hurt feelings leads managers to bite back valuable insights. Or they rehearse feedback conversations obsessively in advance--only to find the interchange still doesn't go as planned. However, critical feedback, delivered skillfully and frequently, can be a game-changer. For managers, feedback can turn average performers into the hardest workers and stars into superstars.

Dr. Therese Huston, the founding director of the Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning at Seattle University, argues that the key to being listened to is to listen. First, find out what kind of feedback an employee wants most: do they want to be appreciated, coached, or evaluated? All three are vital, but if an employee craves one, they'll listen better once they've been heard. Then Huston lays out counterintuitive strategies for delivering each type of feedback successfully:

• Start by saying your good intentions out loud: it may feel unnecessary, but it makes all the difference.
• Side with the person, not the problem: a bad habit or behavior probably is probably less entrenched than you think.
• Give reports a chance to correct inaccurate feedback: they want a good listener more than they want a good talker.

This handbook will make a once-awkward chore feel natural, and, by greasing the wheels of regular feedback conversations, help managers improve performance, trust, and mutual understanding.