Techniques for Encouraging Peer-to-Peer Feedback

Being smart doesn't matter if people don't like collaborating with you. In my commitment to continuous improvement, I value constructive feedback. As part of this process, I regularly posed four questions to my colleagues to enhance our working relationships. How did I use these? - Approximately every six months, I reach out to team members with the four questions listed below. I express that responses are entirely voluntary, with no set timeframe for replies. - Recognizing that not everyone may be comfortable providing direct feedback, I offer an alternative option. Team members can share their thoughts with my manager, who can then incorporate the feedback into a performance review or discuss it anonymously during our 1x1. - I use a spreadsheet to organize the insights. Each question gets its own column, and I fill in the rows with the feedback I get. This enables me to identify recurring themes, helping us focus on areas that contribute positively or require adjustment. The outcomes of this feedback loop have been instrumental in shaping my working relationships but also come through in my performance reviews: 🌟 2023 “Phyllis’ greatest strength is her constant drive to make things better – the product, processes, and relationships with those around her. Phyllis is always open to asking for feedback and incorporating the feedback quickly.” 🌟 2022 “A very consistent theme in your peer feedback is your constant focus on seeking feedback and improving upon it.” 🌟 2021 “You continue to be a culture add to the team and care about making the team better through sharing information, feedback, and creating an environment where everyone feels welcome.” The four questions I asked are: 1. What are things I’ve done that you’ve found helpful? 2. What are things I’ve done that you’ve found frustrating or confusing? 3. What do I need to know about you or how you work that could help our working relationship? 4. What are some challenges you’re facing at the moment? Please let me know: how do you navigate the world of peer feedback? Share your wisdom or give it a shot and let me know how it goes! I’m sure those around you will appreciate it.

Want to build trust & transparency in your team? Start with 360-degree feedback: At work, nothing matters more than trust & honesty. 360-degree feedback is a (fantastic) way to do this. I’ve seen it: -Boost performance -Increase collaboration -Improve team dynamics -Create a happy work culture 360-degree feedback lets everyone share their thoughts. It makes employees feel important & brings teams closer together. Here’s a step-by-step blueprint to start using 360-degree feedback: 1. 𝗗𝗲𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝗖𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗿 𝗚𝗼𝗮𝗹𝘀 What do you want to achieve? Better Communication? -360-degree feedback helps employees talk about hard topics. -This increases happiness & reduces the chances of exit. Find Skill Gaps? -When you locate skill gaps you can help employees improve at their jobs. -Getting feedback helps you locate missing skills. Boost Morale? -Employees are happier & more engaged when they see changes from THEIR feedback. 2. 𝗖𝗵𝗼𝗼𝘀𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗥𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝗧𝗼𝗼𝗹𝘀 Pick a feedback tool that’s easy to use! Choose tools that are simple & match your needs. Options include: - Interviews - Focus groups - Online surveys Make sure the tools cover what you want to assess & are reliable. 3. 𝗧𝗿𝗮𝗶𝗻 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗧𝗲𝗮𝗺 Teach your team how to give (& receive) feedback. -This includes learning how to give & receive feedback the right way. -You should stress honesty & respect via feedback to build trust. -Training helps ensure feedback is useful. 4. 𝗘𝗻𝘀𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗔𝗻𝗼𝗻𝘆𝗺𝗶𝘁𝘆 Make the process anonymous to get honest feedback. - Find what works best for your team. - Anonymity fosters (honest) feedback without fear of trouble. - Anonymity encourages honesty, but being open can build trust. 5. 𝗖𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗰𝘁 & 𝗔𝗻𝗮𝗹𝘆𝘇𝗲 𝗙𝗲𝗲𝗱𝗯𝗮𝗰𝗸 Get feedback from different sources & look for patterns. -Gather feedback from coworkers, team members, & bosses for a complete picture. Looking at feedback helps find patterns & areas to improve. 6. 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝘃𝗶𝗱𝗲 𝗛𝗲𝗹𝗽𝗳𝘂𝗹 𝗙𝗲𝗲𝗱𝗯𝗮𝗰𝗸 Share feedback in a way that helps. -Highlight both strengths & areas to improve so employees understand their performance completely. -Give feedback that helps people grow, don't point out mistakes. -Encourage improvement. 7. 𝗙𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗼𝘄 𝗨𝗽 Have a plan to follow up on the feedback. -Regular follow-ups show your company cares about feedback (this builds trust & engagement). -Create & track plans based on feedback to ensure it leads to (real) improvements. 𝗧𝗟𝗗𝗥 360-degree feedback builds trust & honesty. Follow these steps: 1. Set clear goals 2. Choose the right tools 3. Train your team 4. Ensure anonymity 5. Collect & analyze feedback 6. Provide helpful feedback 7. Follow up Are you ready to use 360-degree feedback to build trust & honesty?

Feedback is your ally, not your enemy. It's tough to hear; tougher to ask for. But you should do it, whether you’re the leader of an organization or an individual contributor. How to solicit it effectively? Here are five steps. Embrace discomfort as growth. It's hard to hear we’re not perfect. But let’s be honest, we know we’re not. Getting feedback can help us see our blindspots and make us better.  Ask a focused, but open-ended question. Instead of asking, “Any feedback?”, ask questions that invite specific insights, like “What’s one thing I could stop doing or do differently to better  ___?” Fill in the blank with an area you’re hoping to excel in.  Give the feedback-giver time to think. If you’re asking it in-person, it can be as uncomfortable for the feedback giver as it is for you. If you’re asking through a survey, consider making it anonymous so people can give open, honest feedback. Listen with the intent to understand, not to defend. Acknowledge the feedback without judgment. Look for the kernel of truth in it.  Act on feedback and communicate back. Show you value their input by taking visible action. Close the feedback loop by sharing how you’ve implemented the suggestions or why certain advice couldn’t be acted upon at this time. This shows your commitment to improvement and encourages continued honest dialogue. I’ve observed leaders engage in “feedback theater” – soliciting feedback to appear to care about their team or organization, but dismissing it and moving on. In contrast, some leaders genuinely want feedback, but then ignore it, even when it’s specific and consistent. These behaviors effectively erode trust, disengage teams, and undermine commitment. Embracing feedback with courage, humility and a commitment to growth not only elevates your leadership but also builds a foundation of trust and transparency.

Employee feedback is broken. Here's your blueprint for conversations that count: Only 14% of companies conduct reviews more than once a year. It's time to shift towards more frequent performance feedback. Here's how to make it happen: 🔄 Implement Continuous Feedback: • Move away from annual reviews • Adopt monthly or quarterly check-ins • Use digital tools for real-time feedback 📊 Leverage Data-Driven Insights: • Track key performance metrics consistently • Use AI-powered analytics for personalized insights • Share data transparently with employees 🗣️ Encourage Two-Way Communication: • Train managers in active listening • Create safe spaces for honest dialogue • Act on employee suggestions visibly 🎯 Set Clear, Evolving Goals: • Align individual objectives with company vision • Adjust goals as priorities shift • Celebrate milestones and progress 🧠 Focus on Growth Mindset: • Frame feedback as opportunity for improvement • Provide resources for skill development • Recognize effort and learning, not just results 👥 Peer-to-Peer Recognition: • Implement a digital kudos system • Encourage cross-departmental feedback • Highlight collaborative successes 📈 Measure Feedback Effectiveness: • Survey employees on feedback quality • Track changes in performance post-feedback • Adjust your approach based on results These strategies aren't just about better feedback. They're about building a culture of continuous improvement. By making every conversation count, you're not only boosting performance. You're nurturing a more engaged, responsive, and dynamic team.

Last night the Founder/CEO of a Series A hyper-growth startup called me and asked why his salespeople aren't getting better. It took 1 minute to diagnose. I don't care how much training your VP Sales or Sales Trainer provide to the team, there's one thing that's always most important, yet often missed. That's Peer-to-Peer training (I call it P2P for short). P2P training should become your greatest knowledge sharing practice on a weekly basis. This makes sense when you get to the point of scale where you have top reps on the team who are crushing it. At a certain point they'll ultimately know more than your VP Sales or even trainer, because they're on the front lines every day. --- Here's how it works (super simple): 1. Schedule weekly team meetings that have only one item on the agenda; Peer-to-Peer training in open dialogue format 2. VP Sales, Director, Manager, or Trainer should host the session but the real magic is coming from the team 3. Everyone prepares in advance by bringing 1-3 scenarios to the table that they either need help with (or) want to teach to the team 4. Each rep shares their scenario (describes it, or plays a video, or shows the email dialogue) and either teaches the team what worked (or) asks the team what they would do in this situation 5. An open dialogue takes place, some debating, and eventually some consensus (if no team consensus, the leader provides it) 6. The VP Sales (or whoever runs the meeting) documents the agreed upon best practices and distributes to the team afterwards by updating scripts, objection playbooks, etc. --- By taking a proactive approach to facilitating P2P conversations each week you enable a massive amount of knowledge sharing that otherwise wouldn't happen. By requiring everyone to bring 1-3 scenarios to the table you push salespeople who would otherwise be less inclined to ask for help (or offer it) and the culture of the team becomes one of growing and learning together. As a sales leader, you'll be absolutely shocked at how productive these sessions become and how much YOU actually learn from your team. Don't just wait for questions to come to you... you have to facilitate these conversations on a regular basis. This is EVEN MORE important for remote teams who don't have the luxury of asking the person sitting next to them for help. How many of you have participated in sessions like this? If not... suggest it to your leader today. It's the one team meeting that's actually worth having on the calendar.

Here’s a counterintuitive career growth tip 👇 You should spar with your colleagues—regularly. 🥊 Why? Because it’s one of the best ways to get feedback and improve your work without making anyone feel uncomfortable or hurt. But “sparring” doesn’t have to be aggressive. Or require boxing gloves. Here are five tips I follow for ✨ effective ✨ sparring in the workplace: 1️⃣ Align your sparring team and create a central collaboration document. (The templates I use are in the comments!) 2️⃣ Your sparring team ≠ your day-to-day team. Invite a mix of people familiar with your work and those who aren’t. Outsiders bring fresh perspectives! 3️⃣ Send prep work & background materials in advance. Sparring sessions are intentionally kept short so you can get a lot of peer feedback quickly. Send over the following ahead of time: 🥊 Anything you want feedback on 🥊 Context for attendees to read up on 🥊 Past examples that illustrate the kind of feedback you’re looking for   4️⃣ Set the spar timer for 10 minutes. This leaves 10 minutes for discussion afterward. Have attendees give feedback on: 🥊 Things they like 🥊 Things they’d change or get rid of 🥊 Questions they have   5️⃣ Make sparring a routine. Setup a weekly sparring session for team members to present their work and foster a culture of continuous feedback. ✨ Remember ✨ The best feedback happens in a two-way conversation, not a one-way lecture. When you make sparring a habit, you create a culture where feedback feels energizing—not intimidating. Have you ever tried a structured sparring session at work? If not, what’s one thing holding you back? Let’s discuss! 👇

Ever been in a meeting where everyone agrees... a little too much? You know the vibe: “Great idea!” “Totally agree!” “Love it!” Meanwhile, someone’s quietly thinking: This is a disaster waiting to happen. Here’s the thing: People don’t stay quiet because they don’t care. They stay quiet because they don’t feel safe to speak. If you want real feedback (not just head nods), try this: • Ask: “What’s one thing about this idea that worries you?” • Model honesty: Share something you’re uncertain about first. • Make it safe: Show people that raising concerns is how we win—not how they get judged. Because the best teams don’t just agree. They challenge, question, and push each other to get it right. How do you make space for people to share dissenting ideas?

Thrilled to share insights from our latest research on high-performing teams. In a time-crunched world, leaders often lack the bandwidth to coach their teams effectively. What's the solution? A shift towards peer-to-peer coaching and accountability. We found two powerful practices for fostering this coaching culture: 1️⃣ Open 360 - where team members provide transparent, oral feedback in a team setting, leading to actions based on the feedback received. 2️⃣ Dial Up/Dial Down - an exercise in self-reflection to identify behaviors to increase or decrease, driving personal and professional growth. Regular team meetings present an ideal venue for these practices, fostering resilience, growth, and a culture of mutual support. Want to dive deeper? I invite you to check out the full article. Link below: https://lnkd.in/dTGfWiWH #Leadership #Coaching #PeerToPeer #Teamwork #Growth