Today Lesley Worthington posted about giving constructive feedback on LinkedIn as part of a robust Quality culture. If you don’t know Lesley, she is a consultant who helps Quality professionals communicate better. She is definitely worth following.
One of the most amazing things I ever experienced was when one of my bosses was promoted and leaving our site. He had some anger management issues, was not particularly liked by everyone, and did not always apply his vast skill set in the best way. He asked everyone who reported to him to honestly tell him what he should do better to be successful in his new role. He sat, without comment, while people took the opportunity to tell him their honest opinion of his performance. It must have been very difficult, and occasionally painful, to do that. At the end he thanked every one of us. He deserves a lot of credit for going through that to improve. Not everyone would have taken the emotional risk.
As Quality professionals tasked with driving continual improvement, giving constructive feedback is unavoidable. Even if you’re talking about processes and systems, someone built those and there may be sensitivity to change.
Which do you find more difficult? Giving criticism (aka constructive feedback) or receiving it?
What tips do you have for making the process easier?