As a manager one needs to maintain a good working relationship with subordinates to get the work done through them.
At the same time feedback needs to be given, which could mean course corrections to ensure that they perform at the desired levels.
How good is someone at conveying their point without offending the other person? Managers have a well cut out task on hand and that is to extract the best performance from their team.
So whether one praises or criticizes a team member the underlying motive is only to reinforce good performance.
Here are some pointers to skillfully deliver criticism that improves performance and maintains rapport on a high note: Follow the golden rule:It must always be remembered to adhere to the golden rule- praise in public and criticize in private.
It is advisable to appreciate good work in public to have an all-round positive effect.
Public criticism on the other hand results in an all-round negative impact.
It not only offends the receiver but the observers too.
The employee perceives it as a personal insult and succeeds in gaining public sympathy.
You will end up looking an offender for expressing anger in public.
So it is always better to solve issues in a one on one discussion.
Never flare up: Even in private never shout at a person to express one's dissatisfaction with his work or behavior.
When someone bursts out in anger one often fails to make theirperform well.
intentions clear and this leaves the other person confused and frustrated.
Reactionary response to undesirable behavior hampers the relationship with the person concerned.
It pays to maintain your cool even though you are upset by the behavior or poor performance of your team member.
Advise and not admonish to have a positive impact on a person's behavior and avoid hurting his feelings.
Be specific: While giving feedback be as specific as possible.
Vague criticism such as labeling a person as 'careless', 'unfocused' or 'unprofessional' leaves much room for guessing.
The person often fails to understand what exactly to change to become a better performer.
Therefore point out the specific behavior you want your team member to change like coming late to meetings, missed time lines, absenteeism, faulty or poor quality work, or missed commitment.
By being specific you focus on actual problems and suggest improvements if necessary.
This approach results in more gain and less emotional pain.
Explain what you want: Criticism in the form of 'I don't like this', 'This is not what I expect', and 'You got it all wrong' do more harm than good.
These statements only convey your displeasure but hardly explain what you want.
You get what you want only when you ask for what you want.
This is definitely not as simple as it appears.
You need to put in efforts to enhance the clarity of your expectations from the team.
If you can successfully engage and energize team members towards task accomplishment you can almost do away with the unpleasant task of criticism.
Clarify the context: Always be instructive while making course corrections.
Instead of accusing the person of doing something wrong, clarify the context and explain why and how a particular action needs to be done.
This way he gets the point and refrains from repeating the mistake in future.
Replace finger pointing with problem solving and you are sure to get the best results.
Criticism to be effective should consist of clear-cut instructions.
The main purpose of feedback is to build on good work and do away with undesirable behavior.
The key to success therefore lies in communicating your expectations clearly.
Communicating implies not just telling what you want but also finding out if you have been understood correctly.
Criticism that is less accusatory and more instructive spreads respect in the work environment.
It elicits greater sense of commitment, engagement, problem ownership from the team and results in reinforcement of a good deal of positive behavior.
At the same time feedback needs to be given, which could mean course corrections to ensure that they perform at the desired levels.
How good is someone at conveying their point without offending the other person? Managers have a well cut out task on hand and that is to extract the best performance from their team.
So whether one praises or criticizes a team member the underlying motive is only to reinforce good performance.
Here are some pointers to skillfully deliver criticism that improves performance and maintains rapport on a high note: Follow the golden rule:It must always be remembered to adhere to the golden rule- praise in public and criticize in private.
It is advisable to appreciate good work in public to have an all-round positive effect.
Public criticism on the other hand results in an all-round negative impact.
It not only offends the receiver but the observers too.
The employee perceives it as a personal insult and succeeds in gaining public sympathy.
You will end up looking an offender for expressing anger in public.
So it is always better to solve issues in a one on one discussion.
Never flare up: Even in private never shout at a person to express one's dissatisfaction with his work or behavior.
When someone bursts out in anger one often fails to make theirperform well.
intentions clear and this leaves the other person confused and frustrated.
Reactionary response to undesirable behavior hampers the relationship with the person concerned.
It pays to maintain your cool even though you are upset by the behavior or poor performance of your team member.
Advise and not admonish to have a positive impact on a person's behavior and avoid hurting his feelings.
Be specific: While giving feedback be as specific as possible.
Vague criticism such as labeling a person as 'careless', 'unfocused' or 'unprofessional' leaves much room for guessing.
The person often fails to understand what exactly to change to become a better performer.
Therefore point out the specific behavior you want your team member to change like coming late to meetings, missed time lines, absenteeism, faulty or poor quality work, or missed commitment.
By being specific you focus on actual problems and suggest improvements if necessary.
This approach results in more gain and less emotional pain.
Explain what you want: Criticism in the form of 'I don't like this', 'This is not what I expect', and 'You got it all wrong' do more harm than good.
These statements only convey your displeasure but hardly explain what you want.
You get what you want only when you ask for what you want.
This is definitely not as simple as it appears.
You need to put in efforts to enhance the clarity of your expectations from the team.
If you can successfully engage and energize team members towards task accomplishment you can almost do away with the unpleasant task of criticism.
Clarify the context: Always be instructive while making course corrections.
Instead of accusing the person of doing something wrong, clarify the context and explain why and how a particular action needs to be done.
This way he gets the point and refrains from repeating the mistake in future.
Replace finger pointing with problem solving and you are sure to get the best results.
Criticism to be effective should consist of clear-cut instructions.
The main purpose of feedback is to build on good work and do away with undesirable behavior.
The key to success therefore lies in communicating your expectations clearly.
Communicating implies not just telling what you want but also finding out if you have been understood correctly.
Criticism that is less accusatory and more instructive spreads respect in the work environment.
It elicits greater sense of commitment, engagement, problem ownership from the team and results in reinforcement of a good deal of positive behavior.
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