The Power of Feedback

In my first year as a manager I alienated one of my reports by giving him too much feedback in a direct and pointed way. The feedback was "right" but delivered to bluntly and thus unwelcome. Just because you “can” give feedback doesn’t mean you should. The power of your feedback comes from the trust you build with your reports. Here is how you can build it: The most important thing to understand is that even if you have the institutional authority to deliver this feedback (your title), you need the relational authority before you can deliver it effectively. Read this line again please - doing so will help you avoid either giving pain or making problems for yourself (I did both). This means that your reports need to trust and respect you before they will listen to any feedback you give. You can build this trust and respect by: 0) Being Empathetic I was too blunt. I thought that only being right or wrong mattered, not how I said things or the judgment in my tone and words. I lacked Emotional Intelligence (EQ). How you say things matters, and this means not just the words you say but the real intent behind them. My intention in that early review was not truly focused on helping the person, but rather on scolding him into better behavior. I'm not surprised he reacted poorly to it. 1) Being Consistent Good managers are consistently giving feedback—both bad and good—to their reports. Make sure you are recognizing and acknowledging your employees’ strengths as much (or more) than you are pointing out their areas for improvement. This will make them feel comfortable with you pointing out room for improvement because they know you see them for more than their flaws. 2) Never surprise someone with a review. This is related to point 1. If you are consistently giving small pieces of feedback, a more serious piece of negative feedback should not blindside your employee. They should know that it is coming and understand what the issue is. 3) Deliver corrective feedback ASAP, and use clear examples. As soon as you see a pattern of behavior that needs to be addressed, address it using clear evidence. This gives the employee the chance to reflect on the behavior while it is still fresh in their minds, not months later when their review comes around. 4) Check in to confirm that you are being heard correctly Ask the employee if they understand the feedback you are giving and why you are giving it. 5) Be specific enough to drive change The more specific behaviors and examples you can use to support your feedback, the better your employee can understand that you aren’t speaking from a place of dislike or bias. This also gives them more concrete references to inform their behavior change. Readers—What other ways do you build a relationship before giving feedback? (Or, how have you messed this up?)

If your feedback isn't changing behavior, you're not giving feedback—you're just complaining. After 25 years of coaching leaders through difficult conversations, I've learned that most feedback fails because it focuses on making the giver feel better rather than making the receiver better. Why most feedback doesn't work: ↳ It's delivered months after the fact ↳ It attacks personality instead of addressing behavior ↳ It assumes the person knows what to do differently ↳ It's given when emotions are high ↳ It lacks specific examples or clear direction The feedback framework that actually changes behavior: TIMING: Soon, not eventually. Give feedback within 48 hours when possible Don't save it all for annual reviews. Address issues while they're still relevant. INTENT: Lead with purpose and use statements like - "I'm sharing this because I want to see you succeed" or "This feedback comes from a place of support." Make your positive intent explicit. STRUCTURE: Use the SBI Model. ↳Situation: When and where it happened ↳Behavior: What you observed (facts, not interpretations) ↳Impact: The effect on results, relationships, or culture COLLABORATION: Solve together by using statements such as - ↳"What's your perspective on this?" ↳"What would help you succeed in this area?" ↳"How can I better support you moving forward?" Great feedback is a gift that keeps giving. When people trust your feedback, they seek it out. When they implement it successfully, they become advocates for your leadership. Your feedback skills significantly impact your leadership effectiveness. Coaching can help; let's chat. | Joshua Miller What's the best feedback tip/advice, and what made it effective? #executivecoaching #communication #leadership #performance

Getting the right feedback will transform your job as a PM. More scalability, better user engagement, and growth. But most PMs don’t know how to do it right. Here’s the Feedback Engine I’ve used to ship highly engaging products at unicorns & large organizations: — Right feedback can literally transform your product and company. At Apollo, we launched a contact enrichment feature. Feedback showed users loved its accuracy, but... They needed bulk processing. We shipped it and had a 40% increase in user engagement. Here’s how to get it right: — 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝟭: 𝗖𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗰𝘁 𝗙𝗲𝗲𝗱𝗯𝗮𝗰𝗸 Most PMs get this wrong. They collect feedback randomly with no system or strategy. But remember: your output is only as good as your input. And if your input is messy, it will only lead you astray. Here’s how to collect feedback strategically: → Diversify your sources: customer interviews, support tickets, sales calls, social media & community forums, etc. → Be systematic: track feedback across channels consistently. → Close the loop: confirm your understanding with users to avoid misinterpretation. — 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝟮: 𝗔𝗻𝗮𝗹𝘆𝘇𝗲 𝗜𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘀 Analyzing feedback is like building the foundation of a skyscraper. If it’s shaky, your decisions will crumble. So don’t rush through it. Dive deep to identify patterns that will guide your actions in the right direction. Here’s how: Aggregate feedback → pull data from all sources into one place. Spot themes → look for recurring pain points, feature requests, or frustrations. Quantify impact → how often does an issue occur? Map risks → classify issues by severity and potential business impact. — 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝟯: 𝗔𝗰𝘁 𝗼𝗻 𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲𝘀 Now comes the exciting part: turning insights into action. Execution here can make or break everything. Do it right, and you’ll ship features users love. Mess it up, and you’ll waste time, effort, and resources. Here’s how to execute effectively: Prioritize ruthlessly → focus on high-impact, low-effort changes first. Assign ownership → make sure every action has a responsible owner. Set validation loops → build mechanisms to test and validate changes. Stay agile → be ready to pivot if feedback reveals new priorities. — 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝟰: 𝗠𝗲𝗮𝘀𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗜𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗰𝘁 What can’t be measured, can’t be improved. If your metrics don’t move, something went wrong. Either the feedback was flawed, or your solution didn’t land. Here’s how to measure: → Set KPIs for success, like user engagement, adoption rates, or risk reduction. → Track metrics post-launch to catch issues early. → Iterate quickly and keep on improving on feedback. — In a nutshell... It creates a cycle that drives growth and reduces risk: → Collect feedback strategically. → Analyze it deeply for actionable insights. → Act on it with precision. → Measure its impact and iterate. — P.S. How do you collect and implement feedback?

Most leaders don’t struggle to give feedback because they lack good intentions, they struggle because they lack the right frameworks. We say things like: 🗣 “This wasn’t good enough.” 🗣 “You need to speak up more.” 🗣 “That project could’ve been tighter.” But vague feedback isn’t helpful, it’s confusing. And often, it demoralizes more than it motivates. That’s why I love this visual from Rachel Turner (VC Talent Lab). It lays out four highly actionable, research-backed frameworks for giving better feedback: → The 3 Ps Model: Praise → Problem → Potential. Start by recognizing what worked. Then gently raise what didn’t. End with a suggestion for how things could improve. → The SBI Model: Situation → Behavior → Impact. This strips out judgment and makes feedback objective. Instead of “You’re too aggressive in meetings,” it becomes: “In yesterday’s meeting (Situation), you spoke over colleagues multiple times (Behavior), which made some feel unable to share (Impact).” → Harvard’s HEAR Framework: A powerful structure for disagreement. Hedge claims. Emphasize agreement. Acknowledge their point. Reframe to solutions. → General Feedback Tips: – Be timely. – Be specific. – Focus on behavior, not identity. – Reinforce the positive (and remember the 5:1 rule). Here’s what I tell senior FMCG leaders all the time: Good feedback builds performance. Great feedback builds culture. The best feedback builds trust, and that’s what retains your best people. So next time you hesitate before giving hard feedback? Remember this: → You’re not there to criticize. → You’re there to build capacity. Save this as your cheat sheet. Share it with your teams. Let’s make feedback a tool for growth, not fear. #Leadership #FMCG #TalentDevelopment #PerformanceCulture #FeedbackMatters #ExecutiveDevelop

🤔 Why does giving feedback feel so uncomfortable, and why do we often perceive it as being "mean"? Feedback is one of the most powerful tools for growth—yet it’s also one of the hardest to give. Why? The answer lies in both our psychology and neurology. 🧠When we prepare to give feedback, our brain's amygdala kicks into overdrive, triggering a fear response. We worry about damaging relationships, being perceived as critical, or hurting someone's feelings. This is compounded by the way we’re wired for empathy through mirror neurons, which make us deeply uncomfortable when we anticipate someone else’s distress. But here’s the catch: avoiding feedback doesn’t help anyone grow. In fact, it denies the recipient an opportunity to learn and improve. So, how do we change the perception of feedback from "mean" to "meaningful"? ✅ Reframe Feedback as a Gift: Feedback is about helping others succeed, not about pointing out flaws. ✅Focus on Specificity and Impact: Use tools like the SBI Model (Situation-Behavior-Impact) to keep the conversation constructive and actionable. ✅Lead with Empathy: Start by recognizing strengths and expressing genuine belief in the person’s potential. ✅Normalize a Feedback Culture: Make feedback part of everyday conversations rather than rare, high-stakes moments. ❤️Remember, feedback isn’t a criticism—it’s an act of care. When done thoughtfully, it builds trust, fosters growth, and strengthens relationships. Let’s rethink feedback. How do you approach giving or receiving feedback in your personal or professional life? I'd love to hear your thoughts in the comments! #Leadership #GrowthMindset #FeedbackCulture #PsychologyOfFeedback

When I first stepped into a management role, my focus was on maintaining 𝗽𝗼𝘀𝗶𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗶𝘁𝘆 and 𝗿𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗴𝗻𝗶𝘇𝗶𝗻𝗴 my team’s efforts. I believed that since they were professionals, they must already be aware of their own 𝗼𝗽𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝘂𝗻𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗿𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁. I didn’t want to make anyone 𝗳𝗲𝗲𝗹 𝘂𝗻𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗳𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲 or risk being disliked—I was a people pleaser at heart. However, in my eagerness to stay upbeat and 𝗮𝘃𝗼𝗶𝗱 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻, I overlooked crucial opportunities for growth and development. It was a hard lesson to learn, but it taught me that feedback isn’t just about praise—it’s about 𝗴𝘂𝗶𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗺 𝘁𝗼 𝗲𝘅𝗰𝗲𝗹. Research shows that 𝟲𝟱% of employees want more feedback and are eager to learn and grow. Yet, without 𝗺𝗲𝗮𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴𝗳𝘂𝗹 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝗳𝗲𝗲𝗱𝗯𝗮𝗰𝗸, we're missing a key opportunity to develop our teams effectively. It’s not just about being positive; it’s about being 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘀𝘁𝗿𝘂𝗰𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 and setting boundaries that help our team members 𝘁𝗵𝗿𝗶𝘃𝗲. Here are five steps to give feedback like a pro: 𝗕𝗲 𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗰𝗶𝗳𝗶𝗰: Focus on specific behaviors or situations rather than general traits. Clear examples make feedback more actionable. 𝗕𝗲 𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲𝗹𝘆:  Provide feedback as close to the event as possible to ensure it’s relevant and can be immediately applied. 𝗕𝗲 𝗯𝗮𝗹𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲𝗱:  Combine positive feedback with constructive criticism to motivate and guide improvement without demoralizing. 𝗕𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗮𝗯𝗼𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲:  Engage in a two-way conversation where you listen to their perspective and work together on solutions. 𝗕𝗲 𝘀𝘂𝗽𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲:  Offer guidance and resources to help them address the feedback and grow from the experience. Setting boundaries and delivering actionable feedback are skills that can be learned and refined. If you’re struggling to provide the kind of feedback that fuels growth and motivates your team, I’m here to help you navigate that journey. 📈 Ready to transform your feedback approach and help your team grow? Let's connect and unlock the potential within your team together. #Leadership #Feedback #TeamGrowth #Management #EmployeeDevelopment #ConstructiveFeedback #ProfessionalGrowth

💥 Feedback is a gift they say. But only if you trust the messenger. Too many leaders confuse sharing their opinions of your actions as feedback, and when it’s critical, they might remain silent. But silence doesn’t build trust. Accountability does. If you want a practical way to give feedback that builds clarity and connection (not conflict), try the SBI+A Method: Situation, Behavior, Impact — plus Action. It’s my favorite feedback framework and it can be used for affirmative AND constructive feedback for peers, your teams and your leaders. Here’s how it works, with real-life prompts you can use today - 💬 S.B.I.+A : 🟪 SITUATION Anchor the conversation in time and place. Be specific so the context is clear. -“In yesterday’s 1:1 with the client…” -“During our team meeting this morning…” 🟧 BEHAVIOR Describe exactly what was said or done — only what you observed. Keep it neutral, which can help to de-personalize the message. - “…you rolled your eyes when Marcus offered his idea…” - “…you proactively prepared a visual to explain …” 🟨 IMPACT Here’s the heart of the conversation. Focus on the effect, not your assumption about their intent. - “…it shut down the conversation and made it harder to hear different viewpoints.” - “...it strengthened the presentation and built client confidence in our work.” 🟦 ACTION (this optional, but powerful IMO) Suggest what to change — or what to continue if it was positive. This is also an opportunity to invite the recipient of constructive feedback to share what actions they will take in light of this feedback. Sometimes, this is best delivered in a follow-up conversation after the recipient has had time to process the feedback. - “In the future, try pausing before responding so we hold space for full ideas.” - “Keep doing that — your clarity helped move the project forward.” ---------- 💡 I think this model is helpful for people-centered, equity-driven leadership because: *It builds a shared language to talk about harm, even when it’s unintentional. *It helps us shift from blame to growth — perfect for leaders trying to close the gap between intent and impact. *It makes feedback feel actionable instead of personal. And most importantly, when done well: it gets everyone back on the same page!

Early in my career as a leader, I knew in my head that I would have to learn to give critical feedback, but my heart just couldn't take it when the moments arose to deliver the news. As more complaints came in, I finally had to address the situation, which was now a bigger issue than if I would have addressed it right away. ➡️ Avoiding difficult feedback eased my discomfort in the short term, but created more uncomfortable problems to remedy in the long term. There are many reasons why we avoid giving difficult feedback, and they are well-intentioned. ✖️We don't want to hurt feelings ✖️We want to avoid experiencing others' emotions like sadness and anger ✖️We don't want others to be upset with us ✖️We want to avoid our OWN uncomfortable emotions and awkwardness And yet, nearly every leader I've talked to shares this sentiment: Some of the best feedback I've ever received was hard to hear. Also, it gave us tremendous respect for that leader. Try this reframe in the moment as you are preparing to deliver constructive feedback: 1️⃣ First, name the emotions you are feeling. 2️⃣ Second, remember that feeling discomfort, worry and nerves doesn't mean you are doing it wrong, those normal, healthy human emotions likely mean you care about the person in front of you. 3️⃣ Remebring that it's normal for discomfort to be present, share a short piece of feedback you’ve been withholding. 🔥 As you advance from a high achiever to an influential leader, part of being this influential leader is your ability to grow and develop others by giving them the feedback they need to be successful while also feeling uncomfortable when doing so. #womenleaders #confidence #careers #leadershipdevelopment

Giving feedback is one of the most important jobs of a leader, but doing it in a way that’s both direct and constructive takes some finesse. It’s not just about telling the truth—it’s about doing so in a way that uplifts rather than discourages. Here are a few principles I’ve relied on that can help you give feedback that truly supports growth: ✅Start with care: People are more open to feedback when they know it’s coming from a place of genuine support. Show that you’re invested in their success. ✅Be specific and actionable: Vague feedback doesn’t help anyone. Focus on specific behaviors and offer concrete ways to improve. This helps the recipient know exactly what they can work on, instead of wondering if what you shared was actually feedback or not! ✅Stay future-focused: Feedback should always look forward. Instead of dwelling on past mistakes, keep the conversation centered on what the person can do to improve going forward. Think of it like driving a car: your windshield is bigger than your rearview mirror because there’s more opportunity ahead than behind. ✅Balance challenge with support: Feedback shouldn’t just point out areas for improvement—it should also highlight strengths and superpowers. Striking that balance helps people see what’s working while understanding where there’s room to grow. How do you ensure the feedback you give supports growth? #LeadershipDevelopment #FeedbackCulture #EffectiveCommunication

Have you ever wondered how to give associates more effective feedback? Having practiced law for 15 years, I received and gave a lot of feedback. Much of it was ineffective. Here’s why. Attorneys who are delegating work are busy. They often think the most efficient way to give feedback is to tell the associate what they did wrong and how to fix it. But research shows that telling people what they did wrong triggers stress, shame and fear. It raises defenses and lowers confidence. People on the receiving end typically become resistant or compliant. Neither response helps the attorney develop. Harvard Law professors Sheila Heen and Douglas Stone found that even when the person giving feedback is well-intentioned, telling someone what they should do can “spark an emotional reaction, inject tension into the relationship, and bring communication to a halt.” Research shows that using a coaching approach to feedback is most effective. Here are 3 steps senior attorneys can take to give more effective feedback: 1️⃣ Create an atmosphere of trust and acceptance so the associate feels the senior attorney genuinely cares about their professional development. Psychological safety is a prerequisite for the associate’s brain to be open to learning. 2️⃣ Engage in a conversation with open-ended questions, based in non-judgmental curiosity, to explore the associate’s thinking, planning, and execution of the project you’re discussing. Draw out the associate’s own ideas for improvement. 3️⃣ If the associate lacks the experience or knowledge of how to improve, ask, “may I share some tips?” and then share. Asking permission helps the associate feel respected. This further lowers their defenses and opens their brain to learning. If you’ve received or given effective feedback that led to genuine growth, what worked well? Please share in the comments. #AttorneyDevelopment #ProfessionalDevelopment #EffectiveFeedback