Ask an HR Pro: How Can I Create a Culture of Feedback?

Every business strives for continuous improvement, and that can’t be achieved without continuous feedback from employees of all levels. But how do you create a culture where everyone feels comfortable giving and receiving feedback? Are there right and wrong ways to provide feedback, even when it’s positive?

We asked Lisa Shuster, iHire’s Chief People Officer, for a few tips on how to create a culture of feedback at work.

Commit to Psychological Safety & Transparency

To create a feedback culture, you must start with a psychologically safe culture. Psychological safety in the workplace refers to the notion that staff feel comfortable and secure when raising concerns, ideas, or questions. Employees must feel safe for feedback to be effective, especially when they are the ones providing feedback to their peers or managers.

“Organizational transparency is one of the first keys to building trust and helping employees feel safe,” said Shuster. “Leaders can also make employees feel safe by building trusting relationships and getting to know their staff both professionally and personally. Once a relationship is established, trust can be built, enabling an environment more conducive to feedback.”

Set the Example Yourself & Ask for Feedback First

​If you truly want to create an effective culture of feedback, you should set the golden example. Model the behavior by explicitly asking employees for their feedback first and normalizing the practice.

“Don’t simply ask, ‘What feedback do you have for me? That broad and overwhelming question will likely elicit a ‘Nothing’ response,” Shuster added. “Instead, try asking, ‘If there was one thing I could do to get out of my own way, what would be?’ Or, ‘What’s one thing should I stop doing or start doing to help you in your role?’”

If you’re not open to receiving feedback yourself, or don’t do anything with the feedback you receive from your employees, trying to implement a feedback culture could come off as hypocritical and do more harm than good.

In addition to asking for feedback, it is equally (if not more) important to continually give positive feedback. When there is an opportunity to compliment an employee or team, take it.

“It’s so easy and simple to compliment people on a job well done, yet it’s too often overlooked. Be the leader who remembers to show gratitude for the little things,” Shuster said. “And if you’re giving positive feedback publicly, make sure to spread the wealth so it doesn’t look like you’re playing favorites.”

Embrace Constructive Feedback

Don’t view negative feedback as a bad thing. In fact, employees who receive negative feedback are more engaged than employees who don’t receive any feedback! Just ensure that the feedback is constructive and includes specifics on how the employee can improve for next time.

“When you need to give constructive feedback to an employee, make sure to avoid public confrontation,” cautioned Shuster. “Publicly criticizing an employee is a surefire way to alienate your staff and not reach a psychologically safe or collaborative environment.”

If feedback is handled poorly, people’s feelings will be hurt, grudges will be held, employees will be disgruntled, and performance will suffer.

Have Several Feedback Channels

Finally, make sure that your feedback environment doesn’t focus solely on one channel. 

“Different employees have different preferences, and you want to have multiple channels to support the various styles of engagement,” explained Shuster. “In addition to one-on-one feedback sessions, you may wish to have written sources that solicit anonymous feedback, like pulse or engagement surveys. Also, consider group feedback opportunities, such as focus groups, which may bring out issues that may not arise in individual feedback sessions.”

No culture will change without practice. Create plenty of opportunities for employees to both give and receive both positive and constructive feedback and they will become used to the process. In time, feedback will feel normal, boost morale, and improve company performance as part of your culture.

Explore our Resource Center for more guidance on creating a strong workplace culture, including these six ways to improve company culture and boost engagement.