[pullquote align=”normal” cite=”Bill Gates, Founder of Microsoft “]We all need people who will give us feedback. That’s how we improve. [/pullquote]
Everyone from world-class athletes to top-level executives to the leaders of fast growth businesses recognizes that in order for them to do their job well, they need something essential: feedback. Athletes hire coaches, executives higher executive teams, and even political leaders appoint advisors who can give them effective feedback in order to make better decisions. Top performers are constantly looking for ways in which they can do their jobs better, and sometimes it’s difficult to see where there’s room for improvement without external help.
Effective Feedback Makes All the Difference
More importantly, if you want your team to perform at a high level, you also need to give them regular feedback, because feedback guides refinement. If you’ve done your job and chosen your team well, the work they produce is going to be high quality even in the early drafts. But, if you’re looking for that high standard of efficiency and performance, you’ll need to give them regular feedback throughout the process to ensure that the final product is as good as it can be. Point out the good things they’re doing, and make suggestions on how it can be better. Contrary to popular belief, feedback doesn’t just mean criticism.
Setting Milestones
One of the ways to give effective feedback is to establish regular check-in points. Establishing these milestones during a team project with conference calls or meetings, whether virtual or in-person, is crucial for you as the leader to take note of the group progress, as well as giving your team to the opportunity to communicate with you. Plus, these well-defined milestones act as a set of guidelines for your team and will give force them to manage their time and resources to meet these smaller, bite-sized goals.
Keep in mind that although the check-in points should be small, they should be so small that they halt progress. For example, if a task takes just an hour, you shouldn’t force your team to wait for you to be available for feedback before they can progress to the next stage of the product. Be realistic, and set realistic expectations.
Creating SOP’s
Another one of the ways to promote effective communication with your team is to introduce basic standard operating procedures (SOP’s). For example, telling your team to “Never spend more than 15 minutes on something if you feel like you’re not making progress. Ask for help,” lets your team know that you are there to guide them if they get stuck, so they don’t waste time trying to problem solve when they may not have the expertise or the resources readily available.
Cultivating effective communication within your team begins with you, the leader. Finding ways to establish these open lines of discussion can help your team align their work to the guidelines of the project. Also, establishing a rapport where members of your team feel free to report back regularly to you with their progress, and ask questions as needed, gives them the space to problem solve, but not feel too intimidated to ask for help if they get stuck.
About Grow Business Now
At Grow Business Now, we work with senior leaders of privately held companies with scalable business models who want to overcome the 6 big obstacles to growth in record time.