I first expressed this idea in 2015 during a webinar I conducted for the Harvard Business Review [1], and apparently it continues to resonate with people. [2] The slide above from my webinar is based on a passage in the HBR article that preceded it:
We should strive to create a culture in which feedback conversations are less stressful for all members of the organization. Among other steps, this involves giving and receiving feedback more frequently so that it becomes a normal aspect of organizational life, making it OK to both postpone feedback conversations until a better time, and ensuring that senior leaders walk the talk by offering and inviting direct feedback on a regular basis. [3]
One reason why this concept struck a chord is our continued reliance on traditional performance reviews, despite a growing body of research suggesting that such practices not only fail to have the desired effect, but may even be counter-productive. [4]
I don’t think reviews are going to disappear, in part because they serve a number of purposes other than motivating learning and growth, such as creating a predictable calendar for discussions about compensation and career progression, or documenting poor performance as prelude to a termination. In this regard they are similar to interviews, which are deeply flawed as predictors of a successful hire and yet will undoubtedly continue to play a role in the hiring process. [5]
But the persistence of performance reviews need not prevent you from “making feedback normal” in your organization. What might that look like in practice? It’s a topic I’ve explored numerous times over the years:
- When delivering feedback, be mindful of subtle steps that might inadvertently trigger a sense of threat in the recipient.
- When receiving feedback, note that how your perceive or frame the experience will affect your stress level.
- Over time, build stronger relationships with the people who’ll provide and receive feedback in your organization.
Build a feedback-rich culture as a leader:
- Foster an increased sense of safety and trust.
- Balance critical feedback with heartfelt appreciation.
- Seek out opportunities to give–and receive–feedback in public.
- Ask for feedback from your employees.
Build a feedback-rich culture from the middle:
- Cultivate support among senior leadership.
- Make a case that better feedback supports better business results.
- Ask for feedback from leadership.
Deliver more effective critical feedback:
- Clarify your motivation and intentions.
- Acknowledge and question your need for control.
- Be behaviorally–and emotionally–specific.
- Ask how you’re contributing to the problem.
Footnotes
[1] Making Feedback Less Stressful (Harvard Business Review Webinar)
- HBR webinar (1-hour video)
- HBR’s summary of my remarks (8-page PDF)
- Webinar slide deck
[2] “Make feedback normal. Not a performance review.” on Twitter.
[3] Make Getting Feedback Less Stressful (Originally published at Harvard Business Review)
[4] David Rock and his colleagues at the NeuroLeadership Institute have been making thoughtful critiques of traditional performance review practices for nearly a decade:
- Give Your Performance Management System a Review (David Rock, Harvard Business Review, 2013)
- Kill Your Performance Ratings (David Rock, Josh David and Beth Jones, strategy+business, 2014)
- Why More and More Companies Are Ditching Performance Ratings (David Rock and Beth Jones, Harvard Business Review, 2015)
- Why Performance Management Needs to Become Feedback Management (David Rock, Your Brain at Work, 2019)
[5] Daniel Kahneman on Conducting Better Interviews
For Further Reading
Coaching and Feedback Tools for Leaders