Best Practices for Feedback After Evaluations

This performance review season, let's do away with "Start, stop, continue." It's insulting and passive-aggressive on many levels. You know what you MEAN to say, but here's what others hear at each stage: Start - I waited all year to say that you should start doing these good things, which you currently don't do. Stop - Again, I waited all year to tell you to stop doing these things you do now. Continue - You're not a complete idiot. To make you feel better, here are a few things you actually got right. I'll save this part for last. Instead, focus on these more constructive areas: 1️⃣ Don't save it up. Deliver feedback in real time throughout the year. 2️⃣ Give examples. Provide specific anecdotes and share what you'd like to see done differently. 3️⃣ Be actionable. If someone knew how to address their opportunities, they'd have already done it. How do you help them make improvements? 4️⃣ Show support. Your role isn't just to critique — it's to coach. Ask how you can help them grow and reach their goals. 5️⃣ Celebrate growth. Recognize progress and the effort behind it, not just the results. This performance review season let's elevate how we develop and support our teams. What are your go-to feedback strategies? Drop them below! 👇🏾👇🏾👇🏾

Are you worried that the feedback you’re giving might be hitting a little too hard? If you’re feeling that way, it might be true!   Here are some tips to help your feedback land better:  1️⃣ Be Specific; Provide Concrete Examples:     ↳ Focus on specific circumstances or outcomes instead of giving general feedback or vague directives (e.g., statements like “do better” or “try harder” don’t help).  2️⃣ Focus on Behavior, Not the Person: ↳ Use “I” statements, not “you” statements. For example, say, “I observed X action,” instead of “You always.”   ↳ Remember, it’s the behavior you’re addressing, not the whole person.  3️⃣ Use the “Feedback Sandwich” Sparingly:    ↳ Share areas for improvement, but don’t dilute your message by sandwiching it too much. Deliver constructive feedback separately for maximum impact.  4️⃣ Real-Time, In-the-Moment Feedback Is KING: ↳ The sooner you address behavior, the better.   ↳ Waiting too long to provide feedback can be counterproductive.  5️⃣ Ask How They Feel Things Are Going: ↳ Start with a question like, “How do you feel that went?” to encourage dialogue.   ↳ Self-awareness is key to changing behavior—if someone doesn’t know there’s an issue, they can’t address it.  6️⃣ Give Tangible Suggestions for Improvement: ↳ Follow up constructive feedback with one or two actionable suggestions for improvement.   ↳ Ensure they understand why the change is important and how it benefits them.  7️⃣ Inspect What You Expect: ↳ Set a time to check in or schedule a follow-up conversation.   ↳ Track improvement and offer additional guidance as needed.   ↳ Don’t forget to praise good behavior—change is hard, and positive reinforcement helps!  📌 Effective feedback can transform performance, relationships, and results. Often, those who push us the hardest are the ones who help us grow the most.  P.S. - Enjoyed reading this? Repost ♻️ it and follow me (Frederick Churbuck) for more insightful content. #feedback #sales #teams #leader #linkedin

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐢𝐦𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐰𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐧, 𝐛𝐚𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐝 𝐟𝐞𝐞𝐝𝐛𝐚𝐜𝐤. A coach reached out to me for some extra support because she did not pass her coach-training program’s final evaluation. This is a common “niche” that I tend to support, especially when the coach-training program’s support for folks who don’t pass on the first time is quite poor. I asked this coach to send me a copy of what the official evaluator had written. This gives me a starting point to understand her areas of strength and development, at least from one person’s perspective. I was shocked to see that this coach received a feedback form with one (1) area of strength and seven (7) areas for improvement. It is a common and appropriate practice to write 2-3 areas of strength, and 1-3 areas of growth or development per evaluation. This approach is balanced and allows the coach to see their strengths while recognizing what areas need some improvement. In addition, writing feedback needs to include specific examples of why something is a strength and why something needs further development. “I love this” or “this was so great” is not feedback – it’s superficial cheerleading. I felt discouraged reading the assessor’s comments, and it wasn’t even my evaluation. Only one sentence was written as a strength: “Coach established the coaching agreement.” Between three to five sentences were included for each area of development. In other words, the coach received a superficial “you did a good job” comment and seven “there are detailed things you did wrong” comments. Folks, this just doesn’t work. This is not how anyone should give feedback. It is unbelievably discouraging, no matter how much “thick skin” a coach says they have. If you are an evaluator or assessor for a coach training program, or give written feedback to coaches (or any human) in general, please be sure you provide balanced, objective, and evidence-based feedback. A ratio of 1:7 is ugly and reflects a very lazy approach. If you own or lead a coach training program, please offer your assessors appropriate training (and maybe occasional spot-checking) so they don’t crush the spirits of coaches who want to learn and improve. I wish I could say this is a one-off instance I just heard about, but it happens a little too often. Photo from Nathan Dumlao on Unsplash.

HOW PRINCIPALS CAN PROVIDE TARGETED FEEDBACK TO TEACHERS: Actionable. Instead of several suggestions, offer one or two pieces of specific feedback that the teacher can implement immediately. Evidence-based. Instead of general statements like “Great job!” provide descriptive and specific observations based on what the teacher is saying and doing and what the students are saying and doing. Part of a larger context. Develop a system within the school where teachers receive a variety of different support. Feedback should be part of a larger context where teachers decide upon an area of focus, and the principal and teacher together engage in a cycle of learning based on this focus.