by Ashley Smith

Created on: January 28, 2010   Last Updated: January 30, 2010

If you are a manager of a group of people you must be able to approach them and talk with them correctly. You need to be able to talk them with the authority of your position but with the respect that they need in order to respect you back. You have to get the balance right as you won't get far if you are hated and similarly you wont get far if you are seen as a push over. So if someone needs feedback about their work you have to get the tone and balance of what you say exactly right in order to get the required results.

Firstly you need to balance negative and positive feedback, it has to be given out when needed, whichever sort it is. You will not get positive responses if you only deal in negative feedback, even if you consider people are simply doing their work as they should there is still room to praise. This can be done individually or collectively depends on the work structure you have. The collective approach may work best if you have a small group of staff,.this means you are less likely to alienate people who may work well but not stand out.

Constructive feedback is essential every time though, if criticizing don't just say whats wrong. Say whats wrong but also add whats the correct way or the better way to do the task. Also question the method used that you believe wrong, its possible they were better then the official ones. Also have a suggestion system in place so that if someone thinks they have a better way of working they can suggest it anonymously if they prefer. This means they don't have to feel like they are arguing, in fact if you say something is done wrong ask them to see if they have an idea for improvement.

When being constructive, it  is important that you don't demean the person you are giving it to, they have to understand the problem but not feel so that they are being victimised. Make them understand any underlying problems such as breach of laws or health and safety issues. They must feel as though they shouldn't bother trying if the think you will criticise every time they must feel valued by you. So plan what you say in advance and then try to speak in an even and natural tone without shouting or massive hand movements. Also beware of the location when delivering the feedback, don't be negative in front of others and don't alienate others if being positive.

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