Improving Productivity and Work Relationships through Communications

FEEDBACK is your opportunity…to surround yourself with talented, resourceful, and receptive employees and team members. Everyone can generally benefit from helpful feedback, if delivered correctly. Understanding the types of feedback and your own motivation will affect work productivity and the quality of your staff and peer relationships.

Types of Feedback

1) Positive Feedback  Sincere, timely compliments reinforce work well done. Considering whether to give them privately or in front of others speaks to your motivation. If the receiver is comfortable with a compliment in the presence of others, then others may take note and strive to earn similar compliments. However, too many compliments shared with everyone can put a star producer in an awkward position with peers. Positive feedback can be a double edge sword, motivating some and de-motivating others, so careful consideration to your motivation and goal is important. Know why you are passing along a compliment and understanding what you expect the outcome to be are both important factors.

We find that performance results reinforced are more likely to continue and even increase. Performance ignored may diminish one’s motivation. Be sure that your nonverbal cues match your verbal communication; a verbal compliment with a negative look or sarcastic tone create a condescending response and only damages the relationship.

Be specific and compliment behavior. I like the way you handle that customer complaint, you were effective with dealing with their anger and defusing it, is much preferable to just saying, Good job!

Positive Nonverbal statements are the messages we get from another person’s behavior in a broad sense. Simply acknowledging a person’s presence with a nod, eye contact or a good morning smile, are inclusive and makes others feel welcome. This type positive nonverbal feedback may not seem very important, however, the risk of not doing it is a lost opportunity to make someone’s day.

Promotions and raises say that you are valued. The organization as a whole makes nonverbal statements to staff in the form of policies enacted and resources provided. Unfair practices and managers communicate a lot about the value of employees.

2) Constructive Feedback  At the heart of constructive feedback is the desire to improve one’s performance. The goal of every manager should be to improve staff performance to a level of mastery. Providing constructive insight is far more valuable then criticism in building rapport and gaining respect. We should be able to agree that we can all improve in some ways that will bring about a higher performance. I have never met anyone that could not find an area in his or her work life that did not need some improvement. If you are managing person that thinks they are perfect…good luck, they probably get bored and leave or worst be bored and stay.

Work relationships as-well-as overall productivity suffers as mistakes go ignored. Providing constructive feedback enables the receiver to understand the expectation of improvement and the need to perform at a higher level.

Constructive feedback must be specific information about behavior. Do not leave the recipient guessing what needs to change. Be very specific in pointing out "How To" make the outcome better and tell them what behavior must stop and what behavior must start. Also tell why; the rationale that is obvious to you may not be for the other person. When behavior changes, or even starts to change, reinforce it. Pay attention to the person’s progress - changing habits is not easy; employees need reinforcement and encouragement.

3) Concerned Communications  The safest place to be when communicating with anyone is coming from a point of concern. How are you doing? How are things going? What is new? How is the project going? Can I expect the project completed on time? How is that new client working out? All concern questions are at their core to get information for use. Asking how you are doing and not waiting for an answer or not caring about the answer are just "unconcerned communications" and is often interpreted as you "could care less" about them. The key to concern communications is to listen for the response. If the answer to your question is "fine," ask a more engaging question…do not settle for a "fine." If the answer you received is not what you expected, continue to probe to learn more. Develop a healthy form of curiosity, without being nosy. Remember a concerned exchange is to learn something of value and to show caring. People do not care what you know, until they know you care and they will not share information of value, if they think you really to do not care.

4) Casual Communication style of Feedback  What seems to be the simplest form of dialog actually starts out as non-work discussions to break the ice. While some casual communication is necessary to establishing common ground, excessive forms of this method wastes valuable time and costs the company a lot in productivity. When a large percentage of time is engaged in this form of communications, it creates a breeding place for rumors, gossip, complaints and serves to undermine the values of the organization.

5) Could Care Less Feedback  The person with this habit appears not to care about people. This most frequently happens when they do not want to be bothered or have a distain for the individual. Such as, when someone steps into your office and you ignore his or her presence. This response is not considerate and comes across as indifferent and uncaring. In addition, if you only give them a cursory glance and go back to what you were doing, the recipient of could care less feedback feels rejected and confused. Their results and your relationship with them suffer, because you did not take the time necessary. Even if one is busy, responding to that you can talk later is at least understandable.

Another situation of could care less is when you see that others are not doing what is expected and you say nothing. However, the audience of everyone else in the company perceives you could care less.

Avoid careless feedback by being present when interacting. Find time away from the office or shut your office door when you must give full attention to paper work or phone calls.

6) Criticism and Critical Feedback  Harsh, accusatory criticism does not make anything better and almost certainly will make the situation worse. Criticism focuses on the person rather than the behaviors that need to change. Being overly meticulous, self-righteous, putting them down, lecturing, name-calling or using labels, such as lazy or dead weight, demean the giver and the receiver of the message. Accompanying nonverbal behaviors to criticism often include a stare, frown, tense voice, stiff posture, and hands on hips or a fake smile. In fact, negative nonverbal statements can turn a positive, objective message into criticism.

Relationships suffer from criticism immediately. Although determined people will try to learn from the criticism and go on, many will give up their effort to do good work and their production suffers. Sometimes they fight back in sabotaging ways and are constantly demeaning towards their manager and the company.

Replace criticism with constructive feedback. Others need to know what is not acceptable and how to learn do it satisfactorily.

Practice preparing and delivering appropriate feedback, and your rewards will include new positive communication habits, improved productivity, and positive relationships.