One day as I was doing some industry reading on leadership
development, I came across a couple of statistics that stuck out to me
about how ineffective many managers were when communicating with their
team members, ie:
Following are three things you should do to ensure that not only is the feedback you give constructive and empowering for your team members, but that it's insightful for you.
1. Turn the floor over to the employee. Oftentimes, when managers evaluate team members, it turns out to be a mostly one-way conversation. The manager will give their insights on the employee's performance, with very little input from the employee.
To turn this around, make your role as a manager a secondary one and do less of the talking and more of the listening. To facilitate this, ask open-ended questions - not ones that require a simple yes or no answer. This will go a long way towards encouraging the employee to open up.
2. Make them comfortable. Sometimes, subordinates don't open up to managers because they don't feel comfortable doing so. They may fear reprisal on some level and/or are just uncomfortable being open with higher-ups.
One of the traits of effective leaders is that they foster an environment where team members feel free to be open and honest. So make the employee comfortable. Ensure them that you're there to help them learn and grow professionally and that it's impossible to do this without honesty.
Just FYI, making an employee comfortable happens long before they ever step into your office for an "employee evaluation;" it should be an ongoing part of your management style.
3. Gain insight into how effective your communication skills are. One of the things that stood out to me about this study is just how many employees (33%) reported that their managers don't effectively communicate with them.
I thought, "Surely if a manager was aware of this, they'd want to change it."
One of the best ways to improve your communication skills as a leader/manager is to find out where you may be going wrong. And, who better to ask than those you are supposed to be communicating with?
So ask your team members if they're clear about the goals and objectives they're supposed to be working towards. Seek input on what they may be unclear about, and constantly check in (ie, give/get regular feedback) on how things can be improved.
Conclusion
As you can probably deduce, giving constructive feedback to employees is a two-way street. This happens to be true in every harmonious relationship - business is no different.
According to one Hay Group survey, approximately one-third of employees report that their managers don't effectively communicate the organization's overall goals and objectives to them. And, more than 40% said that they don't receive "clear" and regular feedback from their managers on how well they perform their duties.These stats stuck out to me, mainly because one of the main traits of an effective leader is that they empower people. But if you're not giving constructive, clear feedback, how can you build the skills and confidence of your team members?
Following are three things you should do to ensure that not only is the feedback you give constructive and empowering for your team members, but that it's insightful for you.
1. Turn the floor over to the employee. Oftentimes, when managers evaluate team members, it turns out to be a mostly one-way conversation. The manager will give their insights on the employee's performance, with very little input from the employee.
To turn this around, make your role as a manager a secondary one and do less of the talking and more of the listening. To facilitate this, ask open-ended questions - not ones that require a simple yes or no answer. This will go a long way towards encouraging the employee to open up.
2. Make them comfortable. Sometimes, subordinates don't open up to managers because they don't feel comfortable doing so. They may fear reprisal on some level and/or are just uncomfortable being open with higher-ups.
One of the traits of effective leaders is that they foster an environment where team members feel free to be open and honest. So make the employee comfortable. Ensure them that you're there to help them learn and grow professionally and that it's impossible to do this without honesty.
Just FYI, making an employee comfortable happens long before they ever step into your office for an "employee evaluation;" it should be an ongoing part of your management style.
3. Gain insight into how effective your communication skills are. One of the things that stood out to me about this study is just how many employees (33%) reported that their managers don't effectively communicate with them.
I thought, "Surely if a manager was aware of this, they'd want to change it."
One of the best ways to improve your communication skills as a leader/manager is to find out where you may be going wrong. And, who better to ask than those you are supposed to be communicating with?
So ask your team members if they're clear about the goals and objectives they're supposed to be working towards. Seek input on what they may be unclear about, and constantly check in (ie, give/get regular feedback) on how things can be improved.
Conclusion
As you can probably deduce, giving constructive feedback to employees is a two-way street. This happens to be true in every harmonious relationship - business is no different.
About the Author: Shari Strong is a success coach and self-development expert. Her program, Success in 4D! Define it, Decide It, Design It, Do, It!(TM),
helps corporate professionals combine their strengths with their
talents to become super achievers. This is accomplished via her Leveraged Success System, which participants are introduced to during Shari's corporate leadership skills training class. To contact Shari and/or receive a free copy of her first two ebooks on leadership development, go to StrongFreeBook.com.
