Effective Feedback Strategies and the SBI Model

Giving Feedback

Introduction

This lecture discusses how feedback can go wrong from the perspective of the giver and outlines strategies for effective feedback delivery, including the SBI (Situation, Behavior, Impact) model.

The Traditional (but Flawed) Approach

Straightforward Steps (That Often Fail)

  1. Focus on business outcomes/goals: Align feedback with organizational objectives.
  2. Give feedback often: Regular feedback is preferred over infrequent reviews.
  3. Be specific: Provide concrete details about behaviors and their consequences.
  4. Get the full picture: Seek clarification and ask questions to understand the context.
  5. Follow through: Document and follow up on agreed-upon actions and provide support.
  6. Gather feedback on your feedback: Ask the receiver how you can improve your feedback delivery.

Despite seeming straightforward, feedback is challenging due to human emotions.

The Feedback Sandwich: A Pitfall

The "feedback sandwich" (positive-critical-positive) is often ineffective for several reasons:

  • The receiver may be anxious about the impending critical feedback and not fully process the positive comments.
  • Primacy and recency effects cause people to remember the first and last parts (positive feedback), overshadowing the critical feedback.
  • People only retain about 50% of what they hear, and this diminishes further over time (25% after a week or month), making it less likely that the critical feedback will be remembered.

Ways Feedback Goes Awry

  1. Being Too Indirect: Using many words without getting to the point can confuse the receiver.
  2. Being Too Direct: Being overly direct can put the receiver on the defensive.

What Great Feedback Givers Do

According to cognitive psychologist Leanne Rudiger, great feedback givers do four things:

  1. Start with a Micro Yes: Obtain buy-in by asking permission to give feedback (e.g., "Can I talk with you for five minutes and give you some feedback?"). This prepares the receiver and gains their commitment to listen.
  2. Move Away from Blurb Words: Avoid vague language and instead provide specific details. For example, instead of saying "You were so unreliable," describe the behavior: "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."
  3. Impact: Explain how the behavior affected you.
  4. End on a Question: Encourage a collaborative atmosphere by asking for the receiver's perspective and input (e.g., "How do you see things?", "What do you think we might want to do?").

The SBI Feedback Model

The Situation, Behavior, Impact (SBI) model provides a structured approach to giving feedback.

  1. Clarify Your Intent: Similar to the "micro yes," state the purpose of the feedback.
  2. Situation (Context): Describe when and where the situation occurred.
  3. Behavior (Description): Describe the specific behavior without interpretation (e.g., "The deliverable that you said you would give to me at 11 in the morning? I still don't have that.").
  4. Impact (Reaction): Explain how the behavior affected you, focusing on your feelings (e.g., "I felt unheard."). Use feeling words like angry, annoyed, bored, captivated, intimidated, or left out.

SBI Model Example

Bad Feedback (Not Following SBI)
  • "You're completely incompetent."
Better Feedback (Following SBI but with Interpretation)
  • "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 did 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 Feedback (Following SBI without Interpretation)
  • "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."

Applying SBI to Positive Feedback

The SBI model can also be used for positive feedback.

Bad Feedback (Not Following SBI)
  • "She's so hardworking."
Better Feedback (Following SBI)
  • "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: SBI Feedback on Team Members

Provide three pieces of positive and three pieces of critical feedback to your leader, group case analysis, and team members via a Survey Monkey link. The feedback will be aggregated and anonymized. Remember to be tactful and sensitive in your feedback.

Takeaways

  • The pros and cons of the feedback sandwich were discussed.
  • The pitfalls of being too direct or indirect were highlighted.
  • Four key behaviors of great feedback givers were identified.
  • The SBI feedback model was presented as a structured approach to providing effective feedback.