Feedback has traditionally been delivered from manager to employee and focused on performance. But with today's tight labor market and tools like Glassdoor giving employees a voice like never before, the collection of feedback directly from employees is more important than ever.
Most managers recognize this: 57% wish their employees were more open with them. However, a meaningful two-way flow of feedback doesn’t happen overnight. It takes work to create an environment that supports this level of critical communication.
A good place to start is with one-to-one meetings. While these standing meetings are an important touch point, they are rarely used to their full potential. Managers can — and should — transform these from information delivery sessions to listening sessions run by the employee. By doing so, they can uncover valuable feedback to address barriers to employees’ engagement and success. Here’s how.
Change The One-To-One Agenda
It’s on ongoing workplace joke: Why have a meeting that can be an email? I’ve observed that one-to-ones often lapse into tactical discussions because they lack a clear purpose. As a result, valuable time is spent reviewing project details and status updates, or with managers filling the void by providing top-down performance feedback.
That’s why managers need to set or overhaul one-to-one expectations to instead focus on collecting meaningful feedback. Starting with a simple, effective and standing agenda is critical. It ensures everyone knows what to expect and can prepare accordingly.
The agenda should be straightforward, focus on employee objectives and support, and put the onus of talking points on the employee. It could be as simple as two examples of what’s working and what’s not.
Prompt A Meaningful, Tailored Conversation
It’s common for managers to shy away from asking their employees the tough questions. So, as HR and business leaders, we need to train managers on how to start effective conversations with their employees.
Having a set agenda is a great jumping-off point, but one-to-ones need to bring value to an employee’s day. To do so, managers need a script or conversation prompts that help them dive deeper into feedback around deficiencies, issues and roadblocks. Only by understanding the “why” behind challenges can managers address and help solve them.
An essential component in this discussion is the incorporation of an employee’s own personality and motivators. That’s why it’s time to teach managers to reconsider the golden rule: “Treat people how you want to be treated.” That outdated rule needs to be restated as “Treat your employees how they want to be treated.” For example, someone who is structured and likes to focus on objectives and deliverables will thrive in discussions that focus on how their responsibilities funnel up into the bigger corporate mission. But the same doesn’t go for everyone, which is why it’s critical for a manager to ask questions and follow up in a way that maps back to an individuals’ own wiring and objectives.
Create The Right Environment To Remove Angst
Employees who feel they are heard are 4.6 times as likely to perform their best work. Even though there’s often a desire for richer communication on both sides of the manager-employee relationship, it doesn’t exist as much as most would like. That’s often due to fear of repercussion or the belief that feedback discussed won’t be met with action.
A manager’s role is to create a space built on honesty, support and trust where employees feel safe to share any and all input. Granting “permission” for employees to provide negative feedback isn’t enough. Managers need to make it clear that constructive feedback is what they want and need. This will help lessen any employee reluctance or angst.
Managers must then put that promise into practice. Negative feedback is not easy to receive no matter what level you’re at within an organization, but it’s critical that negative feedback can be received without being taken personally. Much of this feedback is expressed due to frustration and often stems from systemic issues that can be addressed. However, managers can’t solve problems if they’re not checking in with employees and benefitting from their feedback regularly.
A final but important facet of building an environment rooted in trust is the extent to which managers respond honestly to their direct reports. This is a much-needed practice, considering 64% of employees trust a robot more than their manager. Transparency is an important step in building said trust. It can be achieved through the acknowledgment of a manager’s own gaps, or by openly stating that an immediate solution or answer to a problem does not yet exist. The loop must then be closed by the manager going the extra mile to get answers, or by the manager and employee working on implementing changes together. This level of transparency and action proves to employees that their managers are on their side.
“Big-ticket” engagement problems often stem from smaller issues that aren’t addressed, causing a negative employee experience snowball effect. One-to-one meetings are a critical mechanism in eliminating employee engagement barriers and helping employees be successful. This new year represents a great opportunity to set the stage for more effective employee-manager discussions for greater employee engagement today and in the years to come.
