Everyone needs honest, constructive feedback to grow. For organisations, this comes from building an engaging feedback mechanism of active listening, two-way communication, transparency and ultimately – practical implementation.
The internet is full of directives on how to create such a system, from tools to platforms and processes. But what it really comes down to is two key aspects: the need for HR/managers to ask the right questions and the importance of employee participation in answering them.
By adopting a robust feedback mechanism, organisations can understand their people better, build higher levels of trust and belongingness, and foster a sense of purpose. The Art of Asking the Right Questions
For HR and people-managers, the primary goal is to build a positive workplace environment where employees are valued, empowered, and productive. For it to happen, you need to ask the right questions. Most surveys fail to reach their goal because they are too generic and do not give due weightage to the employee issues that truly matter.
Before crafting a feedback or survey form, your goal needs to be clear and well-defined. Are you looking to gauge employee satisfaction, identify training needs, or improve operations? While you can choose to cover all of these, it’s advisable to either roll out different surveys or categorise questions so that analysis for each target pain-point becomes easier later.
1. Understanding Employee Sentiment: Getting to the bottom of how people ‘feel’ about something requires intelligent questioning. For example, replace a simplistic question like, “Are you happy with your job?” with more relevant questions like, “What aspect of your job do you find most fulfilling?” or “What changes would you make to improve your work experience?”. These are the kinds of questions that help employees articulate more nuanced insights, thereby providing a well-rounded understanding of their workplace experiences.
2. Adopting Open Dialogue: Employees feel valued when they are allowed to express their concerns and opinions freely. Open-ended questions like, “What was a recent challenge you faced and how did you overcome it?” ─ can shed light on unseen problems that may not have been noticed through simple multiple choice questions.
3. Encouraging Honest Feedback: Create a safe and favourable workplace environment where an employee feels comfortable sharing their thoughts without being reprimanded. Maintaining employee anonymity while giving feedback paves the way for unfiltered truth and leaves no room for the fear of judgment. Encouraging Active Employee Participation
Filling up tedious feedback forms and surveys can be a mundane task and can often even feel futile. However, employees must understand the perks of an effective feedback process.
1. Stressing the Importance of Feedback: It is vital to communicate to the employees why their feedback matters. Share examples of past changes adopted based on feedback received. When employees see tangible outcomes, it improves the overall workplace experience and helps build a strong workforce.
2. Fostering an Open Feedback Culture: Encourage a workplace culture where feedback is a continual dialogue rather than a periodic event. One-on-one meetings, coffee with HR (informal discussions), mentoring programs, ‘town hall’ style meetings, and open-door policies can complement formal surveys. Regular feedback helps build an atmosphere that is conducive to productivity and happiness.
3. Crafting a User-Friendly Feedback Process: For the feedback process to be engaging and user-friendly, consider using a mix of questions ─ rating scales, multiple choice, and open-ended questions. Feedback forms and surveys should be easily accessible, simple, and relevant. A useful rule of thumb ─ general employee surveys should take no longer than 30 minutes to complete. Feedback, A Two-way Pact
Feedback is a two-way agreement. It requires commitment from both management and employees. HR/managers must ask correct, relevant questions, whereas employees must actively participate in providing their feedback. Additionally, HR/managers must share the feedback responses with their employees and strive to show on-ground action that reaffirms the organisation’s commitment to utilising feedback effectively.
A transparent, interactive feedback process boosts employee trust ─ with their voices heard, documented, and valued.
1. Prompt Follow-up: The HR/managers must analyse the feedback data, discover key improvement areas, outline corrective steps, and share the insights with the team.
2. Actionable Changes: Mere data collection is a job half-done. Converting feedback data into actionable insights is the way forward.
3. Continuous Improvement: Feedback cannot be a one-off event. Regular check-ins and surveys will help maintain an ongoing dialogue between management and employees.
HR teams must focus on asking the right questions to unearth suggestive insights, while employees need to realize the value of their participation. After all, feedback fortifies company culture, mirrors employee sentiments, and is an invaluable but often under-recognised path to better retention.
Psst! This blog was made with💚 and created after some thought by a real person.#NoGenerativeAI
