Giving Feedback Notes

Giving Feedback

Introduction

The lecture focuses on how feedback can go wrong from the giver's perspective and outlines strategies for effective feedback delivery. The session will cover common pitfalls in giving feedback, four key practices of great feedback givers, and introduce the SBI (Situation, Behavior, Impact) model for structuring feedback.

The Standard Feedback Process

According to studies, the typical feedback process should involve:

  1. Focus on Business Outcomes: Tie feedback to specific, measurable goals.
  2. Give Feedback Often: Frequent feedback is preferred over infrequent reviews.
  3. Be Specific: Provide detailed observations of what worked or didn't work.
  4. Get the Full Picture: Ask clarifying questions to understand the context fully.
  5. Follow Through: Document and follow up on agreed-upon changes.
  6. Provide Resources and Support: Offer necessary assistance for improvement.
  7. Gather Feedback on Your Feedback: Ask the recipient how you could be more helpful.

Pitfalls in Giving Feedback

The Feedback Sandwich

The "feedback sandwich" (positive-critical-positive) is ineffective due to several reasons:

  • The recipient may be anxious about the impending criticism and not fully hear the positive feedback.
  • Primacy and recency effects may cause the recipient to remember only the positive feedback, overshadowing the critical message.
  • Humans only retain about 50% of what is said to them. Over the long term, retention decreases even further; after a week or a month, individuals may only remember approximately 25% of the conversation.
Being Too Indirect

Indirect feedback, characterized by excessive wording without a clear point, can confuse the recipient.

Being Too Direct

Overly direct feedback can make the recipient defensive and less receptive to the message.

Four Things Great Feedback Givers Do

Based on research by cognitive psychologist Leanne Ruder, effective feedback givers:

  1. Start with a Micro Yes: Obtain buy-in by asking if the recipient is willing to receive feedback.
  2. Move Away from Blurb Words: Avoid vague language and provide specific details.
  3. Describe Behavior: Instead of saying "You were so unreliable," provide specific instances like, "You said that you would get the deliverable to me by 11 o'clock this morning and I did not receive it at 11 o'clock this morning."
  4. Detail the Impact: Explain how the behavior affected you.
  5. End on a Question: Encourage a collaborative atmosphere by asking for the recipient's perspective and input on potential solutions.

The SBI (Situation, Behavior, Impact) Feedback Model

The SBI model provides a structured approach to giving feedback:

  1. Clarify Your Intent: Begin by stating the purpose of giving the feedback.
  2. Situation: Describe the context (when and where the event occurred).
  3. Behavior: Describe the specific behavior without interpretation.
  4. Impact: Explain how the behavior affected you, focusing on your feelings.
Examples of SBI Model

Bad (Not Following SBI Model): "You're completely incompetent."

Better (But Not Best): "Yesterday afternoon in our budget meeting, I tried to make a few comments about next year's budget. When I did, you interrupted and spoke over me. As a result, I do not get a chance to get my point of view across. It led me to believe that you don't respect my opinion, I stopped contributing."

Best (Following SBI Model): "Yesterday afternoon in our budget meeting, I tried to make a few comments about next year's budget. When I did, you interrupted and spoke over me. As a result, I didn't have a chance to get my point of view across. I stopped contributing."

Using SBI for Positive Feedback

The SBI model can also be used for positive feedback. Instead of saying "She is so hardworking," provide specific examples:

Bad (Not Following SBI Model): "She's so hard working."

Better (Following SBI Model): "Yesterday, when we were working on our group project, you took a lot of notes and did a lot of research to pull articles for our proposal. As a result, I felt inspired."

Assignment Details

Participants will provide three pieces of positive and three pieces of critical feedback to their team members using a Survey Monkey link.

  • Feedback will be kept anonymous and aggregated.
  • Remember to be sensitive and tactful in your feedback.

Key Takeaways

  • Avoid the feedback sandwich.
  • Be direct but not too direct or indirect.
  • Incorporate the four key practices of great feedback givers.
  • Utilize the SBI feedback model.