Making Sure Your Chosen Feedback Delivery Method Is Effective
Earlier in this chapter, we identified three reasons that people resist feedback, and we suggested ways to overcome that resistance: by giving people control over their data, by making sure they do not lose sight of their positive feedback and concentrate wholly on the negative, and by seeing to it that they understand the extent to which the data explain and account for their overall effectiveness. Whatever delivery method you use to present the feedback to recipients and ensure that they receive the key messages from the data, there are four requirements for making the experience successful.
Explain the Underlying Model Being Used
Our 2008 survey revealed that 83 percent of line managers believe that the multi-rater survey should be well-researched. The questions you have asked about people’s behavior should be based on a model that describes the behaviors that are important for effectiveness on the job and why they are effective.3 Whenever possible, this model should be explained to people so they can relate their feedback and the need to modify their behavior to their specific situation, objectives, and priorities. The technical report should be made available to people who are interested in learning more about how the model was developed and what research went into formulating the questions. One caution—a model that is too complex may be worse than no model at all if it confuses people rather than helps them interpret the feedback.
Exhibit 7.1 A Comparison of Feedback Delivery Options
Involve People in Interpreting the Data
In some systems, computer programs provide a narrative interpretation of the feedback and tell people what they must do to improve. Although this might sound like a very efficient approach, people who are responsible for making decisions about millions of dollars of company assets are likely to resent having a computer tell them to change their behavior. Given some assistance, most people are quite capable of evaluating their own feedback and determining its implications; they also know better than anyone else about special circumstances that have affected their results. Moreover, allowing people to interpret their feedback increases the likelihood that they will accept it and do something with it.
In fact, a computerized approach sometimes creates more problems than it solves. We once worked with a manager who had received a report saying she should do more clarifying. Her response was, “My team consists of seasoned professionals with an average of fifteen years experience. The work environment is stable, and the project parameters are clear and well understood. More clarifying on my part would be perceived as a sign that I don’t trust them or am an inveterate micro-manager.” As it turned out, the report was based on a scoring program that told the computer to find items that were rated as very important but that received a low frequency rating and to compile them in a list of developmental needs. It could not take into account the specific environmental and situational factors at work. And the perception that the assessment was inaccurate caused the manager to regard the rest of her report with suspicion.
Have Each Person Develop an Improvement Plan
Feedback is more likely to result in behavior change if the manager develops an improvement plan with specific targets and realistic strategies for achieving them. Such action planning, which focuses on both strengths and weaknesses, encourages people to take control of their lives and to decide for themselves how to become more effective. Moreover, in combination with a theory to guide the process, the action planning will help people learn how to best address their specific needs. Development planning is discussed in greater detail in Chapter Eight.
Choose a Credible Facilitator to Manage the Process
Whether you are using a group method or delivering the feedback one-on-one, the capability of the person selected to run the session is critical. That person sets the tone, serves as the primary resource to help people understand their feedback, and assists them in devising strategies for overcoming any obstacles to meeting their development targets. We will discuss the facilitator’s role in more detail later in this chapter.
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