There are many ways to give positive feedback in the workplace, but the way in which you give it matters. Employees are more likely to respond well when the feedback is sincere, easy to understand, and based on a real example. Timing can also make a difference.
What Are the Benefits of Giving Positive Feedback in the Workplace?
Positive feedback in the workplace has many benefits, in that it can help employees:
- Feel more valued
- Be open to learning new skills
- Improve work performance
- Improve morale
- Build employee engagement
Overall, giving feedback in a positive and constructive manner as a manager can have the effect of creating a positive work culture for the whole team.
If you are training managers on how to balance the two, try our 10-minute positive and constructive feedback activity.
Get it wrong, and feedback can be seen as criticism and create more problems than it solves.
How Can Managers Give Positive Feedback in the Workplace?
1. Encourage the Employee
It is such a delicate balance to give feedback that the employee will take on board and see as guidance with a positive connotation.
What can greatly help is to include positive words of encouragement when providing guidance.
Let them know, for example, that you know that they are very capable, that you believe in them, and that this feedback is aimed at helping them grow further.
2. Focus on Growth
The way you provide feedback is important, as you want to make it clear that you are focused on their growth and that this guidance you are providing them with will benefit them personally too.
By taking on board the feedback you provide them, you want the employee to see that they are also building their own skills and that it is an opportunity for career development and growth.
3. Adapt Feedback to the Individual
Not every employee takes on board feedback in the same manner.
In fact, as a manager, you will find that they take advice very differently because we are all individuals, and each of us has a different way of accepting ideas.
For this reason, it can help to adapt the way you give feedback to the individual. An employee who is particularly sensitive to criticism, for example, might respond better to an encouraging approach and clear, practical suggestions.
4. Actively Listen to Your Employees
While giving suggestions, also listen to your employees.
There may be reasons you were previously unaware of that explain why the employee perhaps did something a certain way.
This insight can be valuable for you, as it also acts as feedback for you as a manager and gives you a better chance to manage well.
As a leader, active listening skills can be extremely worthwhile, and you might want to learn how to be a good listener.
Active listening means being someone who not only talks but also is able to listen intently and to truly take in what the other person is saying.
5. Explain the Impact
Explaining the impact of their actions or behavior when providing feedback can help to give a sense of ownership to the person.
Provided you give the guidance in a sensitive enough manner, explaining the impact of their actions can be a powerful way to give feedback that leads to improved results.
In other words, you can turn what might have been an issue into positive feedback in the workplace.
6. Recognition
When we talk in terms of positive feedback in the workplace, feedback is a wonderful opportunity to give recognition for any achievements your employees or team have made.
Giving recognition, even if only a few simple words of acknowledgment, can be an incredibly powerful way to keep hard-working employees on board.
This is feedback that is justified and positive, and many employees just want to be acknowledged when they do good work.
When positive feedback reinforces successful behavior and encourages more of it, this can become part of a positive feedback loop.
Feedback examples of positive recognition might include:
- Saying thank you to the whole team because they worked hard to complete a recent project on time successfully.
- “Thank you, Denzel, for mentoring three members of the team. I know everyone involved is very grateful.”
- “Great job, Sarah, handling the large number of customer service issues that came up last week. We’ve now solved the issue, and because of your hard work, the customers who raised the issue are happy.”
If you are training managers in how to give recognition, these free feedback activities might be useful.
7. Be Sincere
It is important to be sincere when providing feedback to your team in order for it to be taken on board and accepted. The employee needs to feel a level of trust and that the advice and guidance are fair.
As a manager or team leader, you need to be emotionally intelligent, and this is a skill you need when managing others effectively.
To be sincere, being able to put yourself in the other’s position and being able to understand their motivations and reasons for doing things will greatly help you as a leader.
8. Give Specific Examples
The idea of feedback is really to create positive change and a positive outcome, be it to increase productivity, help an employee upskill, or keep a good team atmosphere and a happy workplace.
One key way to achieve this is to ensure that when giving feedback, you give clear and easy-to-understand examples.
Let me give you some examples of bad feedback and how it can be turned positive using specific examples.
Examples of Positive Feedback
Collaboration Skills Example:
- Communicated Badly: “I’ve noticed that you’re not a team player. You need to work better with others.”
- Communicated Well: “I’ve noticed that you often work independently, even on team projects. Collaboration really helps us as a team to move forward. How can we better support you in getting involved with the team effort and sharing your ideas?”
Productivity Example
- Communicated Badly: “Your productivity record is poor. You need to start working faster.”
- Communicated Well: “I’ve noticed that your output has been lower than usual. Is there any training or support that might help, so that we can find a way to help you? Let’s try to find a solution together.”
Meeting Participation Example
- Communicated Badly: “You rarely, if ever, contribute anything useful in meetings.”
- Communicated Well: “It’s been noticeable that you’ve been quiet in the last few meetings. We value your input and would love for you to be more involved. Is there anything we can do to encourage you to get more involved and share your thoughts more during meetings?”
9. Timely Feedback
It is worth remembering that providing feedback in a timely manner can make a definite impact.
There are two key considerations in terms of making feedback timely, so consider these positive feedback examples:
- Try to provide feedback as soon as possible – if there was a problem in a meeting, for example, try to approach and give feedback soon after the meeting to the person or people concerned. Wait a few weeks, and the person might have forgotten about what they said or did in the meeting, and the impact of your feedback is thus lost.
- Time it for maximum effect, emotionally speaking – Do also be careful to wait until emotions have died down as needed. You want the person to be in an emotional state where they are likely to take in the feedback you provide. Learn more about ineffective vs effective feedback.
10. Employee Engagement
Gallup reports that 80% of employees who said they had received meaningful feedback in the previous week felt fully engaged in their work.
When feedback is used effectively, it results in a happier and more skilled workforce.
For this reason, it is essential that managers are fully trained in feedback skills, given that the manner in which they communicate with employees they manage has a direct impact on their business or company.
In simple terms, if you are interested in improving employee engagement, upskill your managers to improve their feedback management skills.
11. Use Positive Body Language
As a manager giving feedback to your team, you should always be aware of your own body language and the way you communicate to them non-verbally.
When giving them advice, try to have an open posture (i.e., avoid crossed arms), and do not, for example, stand over the person. If they are sitting down, you might, for example, want to pull up another chair so that you are at the same eye level.
12. Match to Their Personal Goals
Tying in any feedback, both positive and negative, with the goals of the person in question is a great way to give more meaning to the recommendations you are making.
Think beforehand, for example, about the career path that you know an employee is on (from your one-on-one meetings) and see if you can use the feedback as a way to motivate or help them on their own journey.
13. Lead by Example
You will find it much easier to give feedback that has an impact if you are someone who leads by example.
Being a leader whom your team respects and whose advice they value means that feedback will often be taken much more positively when given.
14. Create a Positive Work Environment
For employees who are happy in their work and where they work in a team, in a positive environment, receiving feedback will often feel less personal and more natural.
If you are a manager, work to create an overall positive team atmosphere, including showing strong emotional intelligence as a leader.
15. Structure Feedback
If you manage a team, you most likely already hold annual performance reviews and regular one-on-ones.
Some feedback should be given as soon as possible after an event, while other guidance can wait until a regular monthly check-in.
Monthly one-on-one check-ins can be a wonderful way to give (and also receive) feedback.
They give a more structured format and make the guidance you give seem more positive and expected.
16. Give Direct Feedback
Make sure also to give feedback directly to the person who needs to receive it.
While this might seem obvious, do ensure that you communicate directly with the person for whom the guidance is intended in order to maintain trust, clarity, and transparency.
17. Highlight Specific Strengths
You can make sure that feedback comes across positively by highlighting the specific strengths of the person you are talking to.
They might benefit from certain advice, but why not first highlight the positive things they have contributed to the team and create a positive atmosphere?
18. Invite Feedback From Employees
It is worth remembering that feedback should be a two-way process.
Some of the best ideas and information you can get as a manager come from your team, particularly given the range of skills they are likely to have in their areas of expertise.
Encourage employees to openly share their suggestions and ideas with the team.
19. Embrace Innovative Thinking
It is also important to embrace innovative thinking and be willing to guide and, if necessary, mentor any employees who are willing to think outside the box.
Embrace the idea of a growth mindset and be willing to guide anyone who can bring innovative thinking and solutions to your team.
20. Remain Objective
If you decide that you need to give feedback to someone, in order for it to be positive, make sure that you:
- Do not allow any personal biases to come into it
- Focus on the behavior or situation that needs to be addressed, rather than the person’s personality.
- Keep your own personal feelings separate from the professional ones
21. Offer Solutions
It is also important to ensure that you offer solutions to create a positive scenario moving forward.
What is the way forward? Can you yourself do anything to also help, and what has already been done well that can be built upon?
Further Resources
If you found these positive feedback tips and examples helpful, you might also be interested in our editable training materials for teaching giving and receiving feedback.
See the Effective Feedback Training Materials
For more advice, examples, and training resources, see our Feedback in the Workplace guides hub.
