Managers tend to have a complicated relationship with giving feedback. Good feedback is easy, negative feedback, not so much. Yet, feedback is an essential part of employee engagement. Why? Because employees want to know how they’re doing. They also want guidance as to how they can do better in their work and grow personally and professionally. Feedback helps them to do so.
Although some employees may feel that no news is good news, it’s easy for people to feel directionless and unmotivated without regular feedback. A recent study found that 65% of workers would like more feedback than they are currently getting, even if the feedback is challenging.
Here are three reasons to let your employees know how they’re doing on a regular basis.
They make stuff up. If employees are not receiving concrete feedback, their minds may work to fill in the gaps and create a story of what’s happening around them. In many cases, the stories created are negative, and then the employee will look for the “proof” they need to support their theory, thus negatively impacting their performance.
It reinforces good behavior. Positive feedback helps keep employees motivated in achieving their targets and goals. It also helps them feel more confident and able to face challenges. Bonus! Positive reinforcement helps build strong relationships between the person providing feedback and the person receiving it.
It’s essential for growth. Managers who regularly offer feedback, whether positive or negative, support a workplace culture of ongoing talent development. When employees are offered advice and support to improve their skills, they become more self-assured. The focus of challenging feedback should be to improve, tweak, or adjust a behavior, rather than just telling someone they’re not doing a good job.
A manager’s validation can be incredibly useful when focusing on enhancing employee performance. The key is to provide feedback that is objective and accurate and focus on both positive and developmental feedback.
Feedback Matters in Employee Engagement
