How leaders can explore the challenges of navigating tough conversations and deliver constructive feedback with clarity and empathy
As the end of the year approaches and performance reviews are conducted, leaders face challenging conversations with their employees. For managers, mastering the art of delivering constructive, honest feedback is essential to driving performance and keeping teams motivated through difficult times. The experts at Hogan Assessments, the global leader in workplace personality assessment and leadership consulting, have identified three essential tips to help leaders navigate these hard discussions with empathy, clarity, and resilience.
Tip 1: Active Listening
Performance reviews are linked to promotions and pay raises or even as justification for termination. These annual discussions are sometimes the only opportunity for employees to receive feedback on their work all year. Therefore, empathy, clarity and resilience from managers are critical to effectively communicate. The first step towards ensuring these skills are used is to undertake an active listening approach.
Active listening is a communication skill that involves more than hearing the words that another person speaks. It's about conscientiously processing and seeking to understand the meaning and intent behind them. It requires being mindful and focused in the communication process. “Active listening is the key to understanding. Leaders who genuinely listen to their employees show they value their team’s input and concerns, creating a foundation of trust. When that foundation of trust is established, managers can effectively identify any issues affecting performance and easily uncover solutions to address them,” explains Hogan Assessments Chief Science Officer Ryne Sherman, PhD.
Tip 2: Focus on the Message
While undertaking difficult conversations or delivering negative feedback, managers must avoid derailments and focus on delivering their feedback concisely. To lessen the possibility of getting off track, managers should establish an atmosphere of openness and eliminate potential distractions that could shift the focus or create an unpleasant environment. In order for managers to effectively deliver a message, they should consider being direct but also offer praise, if it is warranted. In order to avoid an employee shutting down after receiving constructive criticism, managers can highlight their strengths and then look to what can be improved to create a well-rounded employee.
“When employees receive critical feedback from their managers, resistance is a natural, human response,” says Sherman. “This likely reflects a gap between the employee’s identity, which is how they view themselves, and their reputation, which is how others view them. Managers who can help their employees bridge this gap through the development of strategic self-awareness are more likely to see positive outcomes.” Feedback resistance can also be significantly reduced when managers demonstrate care and compassion consistently throughout these conversations.
Tip 3: Forge a Clear Path
After undertaking the difficult conversation and delivering the necessary feedback, the final step in the process is to close the conversation with a solution that gives employees a sense of purpose and direction. Creating a plan for the person to leverage their strengths and respond to their manager’s feedback is essential, if improvement is the goal.
Managers must help employees anticipate potential barriers preventing change and offer the resources to execute the plan. “Change is more easily experienced in a safe, listening atmosphere,” noted the Hogan Assessments Chief Science Officer. “When team members can review a new process and experience gradual improvements, adjustments are easier to enact. By doing so, leaders make their employees feel more supported, motivated and empowered. This can ultimately help to establish trust and boost engagement.”
About Hogan Assessments: The international leader in personality insights, Hogan Assessments produces valid, reliable personality assessments grounded in decades’ worth of research. More than 75% of the Fortune 500 use Hogan’s talent acquisition and development solutions to hire the right people without bias, boost productivity, reduce turnover, and promote diversity and inclusion. For more information, visit hoganassessments.com.
