Giving Employee Feedback: What NOT to do

29 May 2017

Giving Employee Feedback (1)

​It’s a wonderful thing to do when your employee is on top form; the only feedback they need is “Just keep doing what you’re doing”.  But when the time arises for handing out criticism, it can often lead to demotivation or angry individuals if you fail to handle it correctly.

So, what can you do?

Well, first things first – a few things NOT to do:

1) Don’t Overly Criticise

It can be easy to get carried away with mistakes. Ensure you’re balancing the good with the bad. No one likes to feel completely unappreciated, but most people understand they aren’t perfect; there’s always room for improvement.

2) Don’t Forget Everyone is Different

Confidence, attitude and competency can be huge personality factors that will affect how you handle the situation. Knowing how a person will react and how best to interact with them will have a huge impact on the outcome.

3) Don’t Drop Them in the Deep End

If someone genuinely needs help, it’s your responsibility to guide them – you’re the expert after all. Make a plan, set goals, put training in place, whatever you need to do.

Striking the equilibrium between constructive criticism and the threat of demotivation is the ultimate goal. Staff morale is integral but it is also vital that employee issues are addressed. 

One more thing to think about; lead by example. Don’t get individuals a chance to pull you up on making the same mistakes.

You can contact the AustCorp Executiverecruitment team directly by calling +61 (2) 8252 1111.