An excellent tip for giving feedback

by Clinton Tedeschi
(USA)

When I give negative feedback to my employees I of course follow our company policy and write up an official letter. Then, when I meet with the problematic employee I present him or her with the letter and discus the content in details giving some specific examples of what are the issue (s) and I make sure he/she understands why this is an issue.

Once he/she agrees with my observations, I make him/her sign the letter and here is the magic tip....I put the letter in my drawer and tell him/her that if I see some major improvements within the time line previously discussed, I will simply destroy the letter in front of him/her in our follow-up meeting and therefore the "incident" will not be filled within his/her personnel file.

This type of tip usually increases my objective of minimizing/eliminating the un-approved behavior and I also get the added bonus of gaining some respect from the individual. It’s a win win situation! As it is said in the article, the feedback as served its purpose.