How to Get Feedback When You’re the Boss
By Alanah Throop on June 20, 2012 in How To...
When it comes to feedback, there’s a huge discrepancy between managers and their teams.
A growing number of organizations are acknowledging the importance from the old traditional performance reviews to real-time, constant feedback. A recent poll explained the feedback gap: 65% of employees said they wanted more feedback, while 58% of managers think they give enough.
There has also been lots of talk about how to get more feedback from your manager… but what if you are the boss? In a recent HBR article, contributing editor Amy Gallo shared why it’s important to get it and how to get feedback when you’re the boss.
The higher up in the organization you get, the less likely you’ll receive constructive feedback on your ideas, performance, or strategy… But without input, your development will suffer, you may become isolated, and you’re likely to miss out on hearing some great ideas.
Here are five more great tips from Gallo about how bosses can encourage their teams to provide honest, meaningful feedback:
1. Acknowledge the fear. Recognize how hard it may be for some people to share their feedback with you and explain to them that to grow as a team it’s important for the manager to receive constructive criticism too. Create a safe environment to rid some of that fear.
2. Ask constantly. Ask for feedback on a regular basis, not just during performance review time. The more you do it, the more of a habit it will become. People do better when they know how they’re doing and what they can do to improve. Set an example by constantly asking; the simple act of asking will change the behavior of your team.
3. Request concrete examples. This should be similar to if you were giving feedback to an employee. Examples help people learn from and improve their behavior. This not only allows a coworker to explain more easily but it also allows you to understand better. The more you understand where they are coming from, the more you can make an effort on that specific instance.
4. Act on it. If an employee takes the time to give you feedback, help them feel appreciated and make a conscious effort to act on their suggestions. Examples make it easier to alter your behavior so take the opportunity, if someone gives you an example, to act on that feedback the next chance you have.
5. Allow it to be anonymous. Anonymity allows people to be honest and open about their criticism. According to Marshall Goldsmith, “You are never going to get any real information by asking for public, personal feedback.” Figure out a way to set up an anonymous feedback tool and trust that what you receive is honest.
Feedback is important for everyone on a team, especially the boss. Create a comfortable and trusting environment that allows for honest feedback for you and your employees.
You can read Amy Gallo’s full article here.
