Do You Give Good Performance Feedback? Your Cardio Machine Does!
 
By Paul Plotczyk
 
I was in the gym recently, working out on a piece of cardio equipment and lost in thought when a sign on the control panel flashed, “Climb faster”!
 
The machine was telling me very specifically what behavior it wanted to see from me, without any judgment, name calling, personal opinion or assumption about why I was not moving at a particular speed. It just wanted me to climb faster.
 
I thought “That’s good feedback!” A bit more detail – such as the specific speed I was expected to attain, would have made it excellent feedback.
 
You vs. Cardio Machine
In my mind I was contrasting this programmed, mechanical feedback to some of the examples of feedback we have heard from our clients, which they have received - or given.
 
In their simplest form, the examples they shared were vague complaints, formed in a statement, such as: “Your presentation was not robust enough” or, “”You need to be more upbeat” or one that a manager recently heard from her boss, “You need to be a better coach.”
 
At least with the machine I know what, “climb faster” means. I’m not sure what a more “robust presentation” is, or what being “more upbeat” means, or being a “better coach.”
 
Surely each statement could be more useful if it had been followed up with more specific explanation, such as “let me tell you what that looks like/what I mean…”
 
Giving performance feedback is an excellent opportunity to reinforce solid performers and redirect the underperforming ones. But that is not always the case.
 
Same Ole, Same Ole!
My thoughts went to how to structure feedback when I was on the machine because I recently had a conversation with a manager who is preparing for end of the quarter performance feedback conversations. Her company has decided to move from doing annual performance reviews for everyone, to spacing them out, and conducting performance feedback conversations without discussing compensation, at the end of different quarters.
 
However, she said other than giving performance feedback on a different schedule, not much else has changed. It's pretty much the same drill: She brings each of her direct reports into a vacant conference room, hands them an official-looking document and then has the same old conversation.
 
She tries to say something positive about what the employee is good at, then some unpleasant things about what they are not so good at. And after some defensive and self-protective comments from the employee, the employee is supposed to improve on the “not so good at” stuff AND feel motivated.  But more often than not, even her best employees leave feeling disappointed.
 
Discussing areas an employee needs improvement in is often called “constructive criticism” unfortunately most managers - and employees! -  focus on the criticism rather than how constructive it may be. And not surprising, the feedback is typically about something the employee did not do. That is, the feedback is a complaint or criticism about some performance that was missing in the past – as if any amount of talking could change it.
 
A conversation about past performance can have a useful function if the employee is asking for specific examples or is in denial.
 
Learning from the Machine
Performance feedback discussions are opportunities for a manager to outline what is expected of an employee on a go-forward basis. Many managers have forgotten that the primary purpose of conversations about performance is to improve performance!
 
In a performance appraisal discussion, many managers go through a list of examples of past performance that did not measure up – the “not so good at” stuff - as if listening to a litany of complaints ever helped anyone change their performance for the better!
 
To avoid going through a list of “wrongs” many managers “water down” their comments, in the mistaken hope that the poor performance will correct itself. Or they give “drive-by” feedback –“Good job!” – that is not targeted to specific behavior and is of little value to the employee.
 
Like the cardio machine, the most value and possibility of behavior change will come out of a statement of what you expect from the employee that they are not displaying.  And the best place to discover expectations is in the source of the complaint!
 
Don’t Complain – Say What You Expect, Like the Machine           
If the cardio machine could think, the control panel may have flashed the complaint, “You’re climbing too slowly!” Instead it flashed the expectation of climbing faster. The program indicated what was expected of me, without criticism or judgment.
 
The technique of reframing can help you “think” like the machine. We outlined reframing in an article that we previously published in our Newsletter Performance Appraisals are Worthless!
 
Reframing has been used for some time in the field of psychology, especially in the study and teachings of positive thinking.  In its simplest form, reframing is a technique for turning a negative or harmful thought into a positive statement.
 
We’ve used it as a tool to help managers articulate the complaints they have been thinking about the employee, and turn them into forward-focused statements about expectations. That is, the thoughts the manager has been having – their complaints – actually point to the desired performance expected.
 
A simple example is when you are thinking that an employee “The employee does not does not follow through with customer requests.” The reframe is “I expect you to make a plan and follow through with requests from customers.” With the follow up: “Let’s talk about what that would look like with a recent request….”
 
Or, when you have an employee who interrupts people before they finish what they are saying, you can discuss ways for them to listen silently.
 
Stop Complaining Start Expecting!
One of the morals of this story is that many performance feedback comments are really complaints about something that is missing or something that was not done in the way the manager or organization expected it to be done.
 
Using the pragmatic technique of asking for what you want - reframing - and making statements about expectations versus listing complaints, typically results in two noteworthy results:
 
Managers who are more likely to initiate a performance discussion because the wording and overall approach makes it more comfortable to deliver the feedback and have a productive conversation for possibility of specific behavior, in the future
 
The employee learns what performance is expected, as opposed to focusing on what went wrong.
 
Conclusion
If the intent of a performance appraisal discussion is to have the employee change their behavior, then it seems to make sense for the manager to tell the employee what is expected.
 
Having a conversation with an employee about the past certainly gives us information about what the person has done, and some say it is the only proof we have about what they may be capable of. I disagree. The past is not a 100% accurate predictor of the future - if it were, we would all still be in diapers, crawling around eating dirt.
 

As a manager, being clear and specific about your expectations, helps ensure that you and the employee can create a foundation for a future that is different than the past. Stop complaining and start expecting – just like the machine!

 
Is It Time To Create a Succession Crisis?
By Paul Plotczyk
  
Although companies have promoted the idea that employees are their biggest source of competitive advantage, the reality is that most have not acted accordingly. The majority of businesses have little in place to keep their “best and brightest,” and are completely unprepared for the pending departure of key talent. Although there are some people whose departure may be welcomed, the unplanned exodus of the more experienced and knowledgeable workers can create an unwelcomed and costly problem. Is your company ready?
 
Why Are You Not Ready?
 
Putting a plan together now for the smooth transition of leaders and key employees is more important than ever for a variety of reasons. Chief among them include:
·       Management Focus. The attention of management has been elsewhere. During the past several years, out of necessity management has been focused on the financial crisis and its fallout.
·       Shifting Demographics. Since the first of 79 million Baby Boomers began turning 65 in 2010, we have entered a nearly two-decade span in which an unprecedented number of Americans will be retiring – with some sources estimating that over 10,000 Baby Boomers will reach the retirement age of 65 each day this year. That’s a staggering number of individuals leaving the workforce each business day – and it is expected to increase in 2015!
·       Economic Changes. Financial conditions resulting in massive downsizing and increasingly flat and dynamic organizational structures have produced an increase in attrition in executive level positions, as well as a shortfall in the number of potential future leaders. Additionally, with an improving economy retirement has become more of a possibility for aging, knowledgeable, often hard-to-replace employees.
·       Reduced Loyalty. Despite a focus on employee engagement and involvement for many companies, in my conversations with managers’ the majority believe employee loyalty continues to decline.
·       Globalization & Technology. Is there any corner of the world, from Mumbai to Manhattan, where one cannot walk down the street or enter a restaurant without seeing someone talking, texting, or surfing the internet on their smart phones, laptops or tablet? Information technology has become ubiquitous and is changing every aspect of how people all over the world live their lives.
 
And globalization has accelerated the change so that technology is now at the forefront of our world with technological innovations sprouting new jobs. Additionally, social networking allows individuals to connect and rapidly share career opportunities from around the world.
 
As a consequence of the above, most management teams are currently without a strategy to deal with the loss of know-how that will soon be leaving the building!
 
What Can You Do?
So what is a manager to do? The reality of the presence of the above factors and their impact is no surprise. Economic changes, the impact of demographics, the spread of social networking, etc. will continue to advance. They are forces outside the control of managers.
However, there are a few key moves a manager can make that will ensure that management has an impact on traffic flow – the arrivals and departures of talent - regardless of the size and type of business. The activities outlined below form an integrated, disciplined methodology that will drive the success of the enterprise, and generate the performance required of an engaged workforce.  
1. Define the Future
Outlining the planned destination of the business is not only the most important first step it also functions as a framework and a set of guideposts throughout the planning process. It is where management sets strategic context. This step can also force a conversation within the executive team that generates alignment, engenders pledges of commitment and produces the overall discipline that can be quite useful when there are the inevitable unplanned bumps in the talent road.
 
2. Select the Talent
From completing the step above, it should be pretty clear that the strategy and activities that the enterprise used in the past, and was reflected in the talent management activities - the recruitment, retention and development of employees - is most likely not what is required in the future and may require whole scale revamping.
 
A relatively simple exercise that is described below can be a useful tool for this step. It can jump start the whole process by combating denial, get the attention of management and underscore the need to develop a bench for critical positions.  
 
There are various assessment tools that many companies have a preference for. (We are most familiar with the Cloud-based, 360 feedback tool skillrater TM which is focused on measurable changes in behavior and actions over time, and seems to fit very well with today’s more open, transparent and collaborative environments.
View the Video Here...
 
Identifying core competencies and key activities are important elements in this step that are often short-changed in planning. They are enormously useful in moving from a personality-based mindset to a performance based outlook, and can be used to drive a revised talent management process.
 
3. Create Individual Development Plans
Purposeful, deliberate and well-organized IDP’s combat the notion that the skills and competencies required will develop through osmosis – just being on the job! This “natural spontaneous process” may not produce the right results rapidly enough and the skills and competencies will not be aligned with the strategy.
 
4. Guide and Coach
Typically, if each successor and their executive/mentor finalize the IDP, this allows the opportunity to detail specific expectations, assignments, locations, milestones, timelines, and an agreement for coaching. This will help ensure that the developmental experiences lead to a deeper knowledge of the business and the many different cultural environments in which the company may operate.
Not Ready To Do a Plan? Create A Crisis!
 
What will it take for you to be ready? Like most US companies you may need a crisis. A key technical person will give notice. Or an up-and-coming-promising-leader suddenly leaves. But, why wait? You can create your own crisis! The following is an exercise that I have used with a variety of companies – large and small.
 
The most recent situation yielded results typical to the outcome of other companies who have used the technique.
 
This particular situation was with a client that is a 300 plus employee, Massachusetts based company in a rapidly expanding sector of the insurance industry. They have limited HR support personnel, solid employee loyalty, and strong profitability. A major concern is the impact of technology on the enterprise in the future, as well as a projected shift in the skills and competencies required of the workforce.
 
The exercise was preceded by a very preliminary discussion with the President about his perspective on their strategic outlook, especially regarding the technical acumen required by employees for the future. Additionally, he reported that other members of the executive team were not “on board” with the need to create a succession plan.
 
The result of this quick and simple exercise was the realization that they were in danger of losing 30% of their current workforce through retirements as well as planned and unplanned departures – in an expanding market! As the President of the company stated, “This is tomorrow’s crisis that needs to be addressed today!”
  
 
The Planned Crisis Exercise
 
This is a simple, seat-of-the-pants, rudimentary, and easy to do 4 step exercise. It may force a conversation and produce expected results – or it may raise anxiety!
Step 1.  List all of your key management and technical employees, including their role
Step 2. Indicate your assessment of their retention. That is, estimate where you think they will be in 3 – 5 years, based on their age and generally known level of satisfaction/interest in their work. Will they be in the company? Same job? New position?
 
Step 3. Specify who their immediate internal successor could be, or who the internal candidate would be with additional development. Or, if an external hire may be required.
Step 4. Answer two questions:
-  How will this impact our business?
- Are we ready?

Conclusion
 
Organizations and marketplaces are dynamic, evolving systems. Succession plans shouldn't be static. The key to ensuring an organization has a viable, active process, and one that has the right people at the right time to maintain it’s competitive advantage is clear: succession is not a stand-alone process. Nor is it the sole responsibility of HR. Top leaders from across the enterprise need to be involved.  All too often succession plans are viewed as just another task for Human Resources, leaving executives and other key personnel completely out of the mix.
 
Viewing succession planning as an integrated approach often requires a shift in mindset as well as major reform to the tools, practices and procedures used to source, recruit, onboard and manage talent. The resulting changes will also necessitate a widespread discipline in order to ensure that the follow through, thoughtful execution and coaching outlined in the approach above is consistently integrated across the enterprise.  
 
So, are you ready? Or, do you want to struggle each time there is an unplanned change in a key position?

 

Paul Plotczyk ,WSA
Too often we consider coaching only in terms of its effectiveness in addressing performance issues or resolving performance problems. In fact, at its best, coaching helps us to accomplish three critical objectives at once:
 Enhancing Performance. Through a variety of means, including performance feedback, modeling, and instruction, coaching helps increase an individuals’ ability to take effective action.

Building Relationships. Coaching reinforces and enhances our sense of partnership and solidifies our working commitment to one another. As a result of effective coaching interactions, we gain a greater willingness to work productively together in the future.
Promoting Learning and Development. The best coaching includes a reflective loop that heightens learning, generates new insights and can lead to breakthrough thinking. Effective coaches pay attention not only to the immediate need to assist performance, but also to the need to develop capability for future effectiveness.

The coach’s work might be viewed as analogous to that of juggler’s, a complex skill that requires keeping one’s eye on all three balls simultaneously!

Ready-to-Wear Feedback: See Something, Say Something
Having an easy to implement and useful model for giving good feedback can make any manager the star juggler! You may have heard the old saying, “Feedback delayed is feedback denied.” And feedback is a key ingredient of good coaching. Well, See Something, Say Something is the newer, updated, easy to remember, post 911 equivalent saying.
An executive who was working for one our clients at the time, the New York's Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), came up with the slogan shortly after 9/11, “If You See Something, Say Something™” that they used in their subways and other transportation areas, to remind people to be on alert. This refrain was picked up by another one of our former clients, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) for use in their public awareness campaign to for anti-terrorism and anti-crime efforts.  
Not being people to let a good saying go to waste and to keep the momentum going for a tried-and-true catchphrase we have found it to be a useful, short-hand mantra of sorts that can serve to remind people to give more feedback – especially positive – more frequently.
Whether the feedback is positive or negative, if the information can be provided close to the event as possible, the value of the feedback is substantially increased.
2 Critical Coaching Tips
Also, it is well known by managers that not only is effective feedback well timed feedback, and hopefully, requested. So, two cautions:

There's a difference between timely feedback and rushed feedback. If you're providing feedback around an emotionally charged event, it may make sense to wait a day or two. This will let your emotions settle. Schedule an appointment time and have a one-on-one meeting in private. Don't give important and/or sensitive feedback in the hallway.
Feedback that is requested is more powerful. Ask permission to provide feedback. “I'd like to give you some feedback about the presentation that you made today. Please let me know when you are available for a discussion.”

A single principle lies at the heart of all these suggestions: As managers, we can truly make a difference daily.
Coaching in the “culture of urgency” that is the contemporary workplace does not mean that we should abandon our attention to people’s development needs. When we as managers learn to identify and use the considerable leverage afforded by “coachable moments,” we can boost performance and accelerate learning and development. These targeted doses of coaching can have as much or more effect than lengthy, formal coaching sessions.
So when you see something, say something – and don’t drop the ball!