How to give negative or positive feedback to your manager
Team leaders and managers in health and care are making many decisions daily to support their teams to successful outcomes for patients. A lot of those decisions are sometimes difficult ones at the backdrop of a relentless pandemic.
Whether you are one of the team members, a team leader, team manager or middle manager, giving feedback to your line manager can feel uncomfortable. You could be concerned about damaging relationships or worst-case scenario even risk losing your job over speaking up to your manager. However, most good managers will appreciate your input, especially if you have sincere intentions and skilful communication.
“Emotionally intelligent managers know they need feedback from their team members to lead effectively,
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Mostly when many decisions are made quickly without full information collected overtime to feed into the decision-making process. Emotionally intelligent managers will also be sensitive to the power balance in relationships with their subordinates. Regular and daily feedback loops on how decisions are landing with staff and patients is crucial for managers.
If you need to offer upward feedback, I have some tips on how you might go about it, professionally and sensitively.
Do this, before you give your feedback to your manager:
Consult a trusted colleague.
Ask your coworkers about their relevant experiences. Their advice could help with your discussion.
Analyse your workplace culture.
Does your organisation have a hierarchy system, or does it provide psychological safety opportunities for open and honest dialogue between employees at different levels? This will allow you to tell whether upward feedback is likely to be appreciated or not, in which case you may want to consider feeding back to a Speak Up Guardian in your organisation. You can read more about Speak Up Guardians if you work in the NHS.
Mind the context.
Your timing is going to be necessary. For example, if you have just received an unflattering performance review, your manager might feel a little defensive. However, wait for things to calm down before you speak up if your feedback is urgent and directly relating to patient safety. You will need to consider giving your feedback sooner rather than later.
Examine your intentions.
Your feedback is more likely to succeed if you’re trying to be helpful. Think about how you can be of service to your employer rather than advancing your views.
Set priorities.
You’ll usually make more progress if you tighten your agenda. Pick one item at a time to discuss with your manager.
Choose your subject topics.
Be mindful of making any accusations in areas; perhaps where you lack the access to vital information or expertise to evaluate some activities. Stick to areas where you can make a positive difference.
Now you have done your homework, and you are now prepared to give feedback to your manager. Make sure to do the following:
Respect privacy.
Would you rather receive criticism behind closed doors or in the middle of a staff meeting? Your manager feels the same way, so schedule a private session for speaking your mind.
Meet virtually on Microsoft teams if you can’t meet face to face.
Email is quicker, but in-person communications even over on Micro-soft Teams is safer for discussing sensitive subjects. You’ll be able to gauge how your manager is reacting in case you need to clarify any misunderstandings or reframe your message.
Act promptly.
Give feedback as soon as possible so your manager can consider it while the situation is fresh in their mind and make any necessary changes. A direct approach also helps to keep grievances from growing.
Be specific.
Use precise language and concrete examples. It will make it easier for your manager to understand their conduct and their impact.
Stick to facts.
Feedback needs to be based on observations and evidence rather than opinions and interpretations. For example, let your manager know that you need more than 10 minutes notice to prepare a performance report rather than concluding that they’re inconsiderate or unreasonable.
Propose solutions.
Your manager may have their ideas about what to do, or they may be happy to collaborate. Be ready to suggest a reasonable explanation - ideally, something you could do to help remedy the situation.
Stay calm.
Even if you’ve done your homework and your manager is receptive, you might still feel nervous. Make your conversation less stressful by reminding yourself of what you like about them and taking a few deep breaths. You may also want to rehearse with a trusted friend.
“If your manager is wise enough to value other perspectives, offering, upward feedback may benefit you both.
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You’ll be giving your manager helpful information and strengthening your working relationship.
Read more on giving and receiving feedback in my book recommendations, How to Tell Anyone Anything: Breakthrough Techniques for Handling Difficult Conversations at Work by Richard GallagherGallagher and Radical Candor: How to Get What You Want by Saying What You Mean by Kim Scott.
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I hope you find these book recommendations useful to grow your professional workplace skills in giving and receiving feedback.
If you want to learn to be more about being assertive at work you can take my 10 Day Assertiveness at Work Challenge Course and join other professionals who are learning to be more assertive at work.
Beaulah Chizimba is a Career Coach, Leadership Facilitator and Trainer
She writes about career and leadership development strategies for personal professional performance and team performance.