"Wow, you flubbed it Fred!"
The Art of Giving Constructive Criticism

by Maureen Wild

This article is reprinted from The Stepping Stone, newsletter of the SOA's Management and Personal Development Section.

Sooner or later in our professional lives, we discover ourselves in a corner office waiting to deliver a workplace review. Our workplace "report cards" often give others great advice, and the process does not have to be disagreeable. When the "coaching" is honestly meant to improve performance and success, the changes and growth an evaluee experiences can be a bit like getting the "most improved player" award from the NFL .

Ah, but here’s the problem. Not every supervisor is a candidate for the diplomatic corps. Often employees are recipients of vague, judgmental, caustic or non-specific "suggestions" for improvement. When this kind of dialogue occurs, it’s a net loss for both employee and management.

Productive feedback has several important characteristics. It must be descriptive and free of judgment. It must address modifiable behavior—not unchangeable traits. It must deal with specifics, not broad-spectrum objectives. Finally, as in nearly everything in life, the feedback should be well-timed.

The goal of feedback is to have people reach their full potential AT WORK. It is wildly inappropriate to offer advice about an employee’s personal life unless some aspect of that behavior is affecting job performance. Managers: your evaluation of another party should be descriptive but not judgmental. Choose examples of concrete situations that are impairing job performance. In the same vein, your coaching must focus on modifiable, not unchangeable behavior. You must never suggest or insinuate that a person would be more effective if she/he were taller, ethnic, not ethnic, younger, older, slimmer etc. Not only is this frustrating and insulting to your audience but, depending on what you say, your remarks could be illegal and cause you unthinkable consequences. A tall person cannot shrink and, therefore, may not be qualified to be a jockey in the Trifecta, but in most professions, height is irrelevant and thus, a moot point.

Increasingly, workplaces are moving toward cross functional teams, more departmental interaction and, generally, more group input and decision making. Thus, contributing suggestions and insights for improvement actually can enhance your value to the company that employs you—if—and this is a big if— if you are tactful and wise with your constructive criticism.

Choose the right environment to make your suggestions. Don’t coach someone in front of an audience. Most people would construe this as being scolded in front of a group. Since most people respond to criticism with defensiveness or belligerence, seek a private place to have your conversation. If you are coaching a team of people, pull that small group aside and talk to them privately as well.

Here are some are some general guidelines for offering a workplace evaluation:

Unless you are supervising a dream team, delivering evaluations can be challenging and uncomfortable, but, with a little forethought and finesse, this part of your job does not have to make you reach for the Rolaids. Remember to balance the bad with the good, inject some positive acknowledgement and try to be as tactful and impassive as possible.

Maureen Wild is a certified etiquette and ethics trainer with credentials from The Protocol School of Washington and The Josephson Institute of Ethics. She has led seminars for many Fortune 500 companies and prominent colleges and universities. Wild has also been active in Meeting Professionals International and is a member of the National Speakers Association. She has been quoted in The New York Times Sunday business section "O," the Oprah magazine and Self Magazine and American Baby Magazine. She is certified by the State of NJ to mentor small business owners. Maureen has been interviewed on matters of ethics and etiquette for national television and radio programs. You may reach her at: Maureen@highroadsolutions.com or 908-625-8563.