Want to be a better boss? Learn to give effective feedback.
The first time I provided feedback to an employee was nerve-racking. I was working as a private chef; and finding qualified assistants to work with me was difficult. Not only could I not offer full-time work, the hours I did offer were erratic, and the nature of the work was so varied – from prep cook to dishwasher to server. The pool of qualified applicants who wanted this kind of work was limited: cooks felt overqualified to wash dishes; and dishwashers often didn’t have the finesse to serve. And most wanted a more consistent schedule. When I found someone to work with me, I didn’t want to be too demanding lest they quit on me. But in order to have employees to complete the job as I wanted, I had to train them. That often meant repeating myself and providing follow-up training until they got it right.
Right now, we’re in a tight labor market. Like my catering business, finding anyone to work is a challenge, much less finding the perfect fit. We often have to compromise our core values (more on that later) just to get a warm body to do the work. As entrepreneurs, we must develop our skills in cultivating employees.
No matter how seemingly straightforward the task, it can take multiple iterations to train employees to do it the right way. Take dishwashing, for example. I had one employee who didn’t rinse the soap completely off the dishes before stacking them to dry. Can you imagine digging into a luscious bowl of lobster risotto, only to get a bitter aftertaste of soap?
It’s tempting to write them off: “Geez, if they don’t even know how to wash dishes, how will they ever learn to do anything else!?”
This, of course, is shortsighted. It can take several weeks and up to 3 months for new employees to find their rhythm. As an entrepreneur, your success depends on your secret sauce; your special way of doing things. What you do in the field, office or kitchen, may not be the same way others do it. We need to learn to communicate what we want. And in a tight labor pool, we want to give people a chance to prove themselves. We can’t squander away potentially solid talent.
Taking time to cultivate employees, and reduce turnover, can boost your bottom line too!
Well managed employees are more productive.
- People who enjoy coming to work, work harder. They spend less time procrastinating, talking to co-workers or just grousing. Further, experienced employees develop systems and rhythms to get the job done more efficiently.
- Consider an employee who is 25% more efficient for having worked in your business for a year. They can complete work in 6 hours that would take a new employee 8. Now let’s say your new employees make $12 per hour, and your experienced employee makes $16. For the same amount of labor cost ($96) you now have 2 extra hours each day to produce more.
A lower turnover rate means less time recruiting, hiring and training.
- All the time you spend recruiting and hiring, could be better spent building sales, or analyzing your business financials. You may also have to pay someone else to do your work.
- If you consider it takes 20 hours to recruit and hire and another 20 hours to train (which is modest), it costs you $800 just to hire one new employee. You likely also have out-of-pocket expenses, like processing fees to your payroll company for the new hire or background checks.
- Be Professional
I often say that the delivery is just as important as the message. Often times, the crux of our comments are lost because our words aren’t clear, or our tone is abrasive. Be careful not to yell. It puts people on edge and they are less likely to hear your message.
On the flip side, you don’t want to be too friendly. Like parenting, you’re the boss and not your employee’s friend. And trying to be the friend can get in the way of providing constructive feedback.
- Be specific
Address the problem and not your frustration about the problem. Let’s say your field crew picks under-ripe and fully ripe tomatoes in the same bin. A frustrated employer might respond: “I’m so tired of you not sorting tomatoes.”
A more attuned boss would detail the problem and how it negatively impacts the business. She might say, “When the tomatoes aren’t properly sorted during harvest, everyone is affected: I need to pay someone else to sort the tomatoes by ripeness, and we want to ensure our customers get exactly what they expect.”
You can then offer suggestions or additional training to help solve the problem. For the worker who doesn’t sort tomatoes well, you could hang a picture of tomatoes at different levels of ripeness in the packing room.
- Be Direct
No one likes negative feedback (neither the provider nor the recipient). Ignoring problems, while an easy way to avoid awkward conversations, isn’t really an option either and does a disservice to the employee. It deprives them of information they could use to improve (and potentially position themselves for career advancements). The goal is to be tactful yet straightforward. Instead of wishy-washy language (“You’ve been arriving a little bit late every day”), be clear in your comments: “Your continual tardiness is hurting your performance and reputation.”
- Make it a dialogue
Allow employees to explain their side of the story. They may admit to shortcomings and ask for help; or explain a legitimate extenuating circumstance. You may even realize that a particular problem is a symptom of a larger underlying issue that affects other team members.
It could be that an employee who’s always late doesn’t have a car, and the public transportation system doesn’t align well with the work schedule. Readjusting the start and stop times could be an easy fix to a chronic problem.
- Balance negative feedback with praise
Knowing how and when to provide feedback is an important managerial skill. But be careful that you offer positive feed back too. While the feedback sandwich is not necessarily effective, consistent praise offered independently is an excellent way to maintain morale and reinforce positive behavior.
Bottom Line:
Taking the time to train and cultivate your staff isn’t just about having happy employees. It can benefit your bottom line by reducing turnover, improving productivity and improving the quality of your product.
When thinking about feedback, here’s a quick outline for formulating your remarks:
- What is the issue
- Examples of when the issue was a problem
- Impact the issue has on the employee, the business and/or customers
- What change is needed, with additional tips and training as appropriate
- Offer of support to help the employee succeed.
