Feedback - Future Growth

	Hi there,	View Online
	Welcome to the November edition of mind-set, a newsletter designed to provide you with practical tips on influencing others. This month I would like to invite you to think about the concept of feedback.
	We look to our Managers to show leadership. Many Managers are just good technicians that have been promoted into a position of people management without people skills. Some are so egotistical that they manage their teams in the way they profess they would like to be managed. (I would love to see some of these Managers operate with a boss like themselves.)
	When surveyed most employees say that their Managers are very quick to provide feedback on issues with their perfomance but seldom acknowledge achievements.
	At the beginning of our Outcome Focused Coaching program candidates are asked to provide their meaning of the word “Feedback”. It is no surprise that most people think of feedback as criticism.


	*Feedback;* The return of information about the result of a process or activity.
	Feedback is what tells us whether or not we have achieved our outcome. Many Managers overlook the opportunity to identify when an outcome has been achieved and also neglect to reinforce the processes and behaviours that were instrumental in that achievement. This pattern can produce some adverse consequences; Desired behaviours are not rewarded. Performance benchmarks are not set. The individual does not feel valued. Poor motivation. Productivity drops.
	When a Manager neglects to provide positive feedback and then proceeds to provide negative feedback, the problem worsens. Constant negative feedback promotes poor performance and leads to more negative feedback. Unless the cycle is broken no positive change is possible.

You may be familiar with the following statements (or similar) made by Managers;

I will provide positive feedback when my expectations are exceeded.
They are paid to do a job, why should I have to give them positive feedback as well.
I don't like giving too much positive feedback because employees become too confident.


	One of the organisations that adopted Outcome Focused Coaching for Managers found that not only had productivity increased beyond their expectations but the overall impact on the organisational culture was profound.
	Managers were equipped with the ability to identify areas of great performance and most importantly had the skills to coach team members where performance improvement was required.
	The Managers quickly understood the appropriate ratio between positive feedback and tips for improvement. It is important to separate positive feedback from tips for improvement otherwise the message is confusing and unclear. (e.g. I think that you do a great job BUT....)
	Using the skills that the Managers had learned about 'how to' and 'when to' provide feedback made implementing the coaching program seamless.
	This program resulted in a productivity increase of 23% (we had conservatively predicted a 15% improvement). Interestingly, Managers participating in this program and their team members would argue that the biggest change has been in morale.
	If you would like to see improvements like these in your workplace please feel free to contact The Emerging Mind for more details on Outcome Focused Coaching.

I hope this provides you with some assistance and if you have any questions please contact us on 02 8969 6600 or e-mail paul@emergingmind.com.au If you wish to forward this edition to anybody that you think may find it useful, please do so.

Kind regards,

Paul

NB - If you have any topics that you would like addressed in this newsletter please send your suggestions to mind-set@emergingmind.com.au

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