What does it entail?
Constructive feedback is supportive feedback designed to help identify blind spots and make the other person better. This feedback focuses on information, problems or observations. It helps as a supportive tool to address specific problems or concerns. It is always given with positive intentions. Its purpose is to lead to improvement that allows employees to experience personal or professional growth. For example, through constructive feedback you can offer a new perspective or insights to the other person, positively change behavior or clarify expectations.
What is the difference between constructive and destructive feedback?
It is important to be able to distinguish between constructive and destructive feedback. Destructive feedback focuses on mistakes and is often a direct attack on the recipient. Unlike constructive feedback, destructive feedback does not give advice that the other person can use. In addition, constructive feedback focuses on the future and how something can be done even better.
Why do you give constructive feedback?
As a manager, giving constructive feedback is one of the best things you can do for your employees. Through this feedback, employees can perform better, improve a situation, solve a problem and identify their strengths and weaknesses that allow them to improve. In addition, feedback creates more transparency and increases employee engagement.
How do you give this feedback?
Providing good feedback is one of the most important parts of a good manager's job. However, providing employees with constructive feedback is not always easy. We would like to give you some tips:
Focus on areas of improvement In practice, we find that many managers focus mainly on the positive. That sounds very good, but many managers try to cover up the less good with all the praise they give their employees. They hope that if they give enough positive feedback and compliments, the less good points will disappear like snow in the sun. But nothing could be further from the truth. Employees never know how to improve that way, and so they can't reach their full potential. Of course, that doesn't mean you shouldn't give compliments, certainly not! Find the right balance between constructive feedback and compliments. Constructive feedback is a two-way street It is important to remember that feedback is always a two-way street. Just giving constructive feedback is not enough. Receiving feedback from employees is just as important. It is up to the manager to lead by example and ask ( 360 degree) feedback . These can be simple questions such as "how can I make your job easier?" or "what do you need from me to grow?" Make your constructive feedback specific Get straight to the point and don't skirt around what you actually want to say. Giving feedback that is too general will not cause people to change their behavior. Make sure the feedback is specific and give specific examples. This allows the other person to be able to act on it.
Want more tips for giving this feedback? We wrote an article on the 10 golden rules for effective feedback .
Giving constructive feedback through a tool?
A feedback app like Treams makes giving and asking for feedback a lot easier and approachable. Via a feedback app, employees can ask for feedback from wherever they want at any time of the day. So even on the road on the train or at home on the couch. In addition, employees have all the feedback they have given and received collected in one place making it very easy to review. Finally, using a feedback tool, employees can very easily ask for feedback on the goals they have set. This allows colleagues to provide targeted feedback. Wondering what a feedback app can do for your organization? Then watch the demo video now!