Benefits of having weekly feedback sessions
Feedback can be an important way to aid an employee’s continuous development and advance your organization. Not only is it one of the most powerful tools at your company’s disposal but it costs nothing! If implemented in the right way, it is a valuable asset to support growth in all areas of the business. Feedback can refocus or align employees, state expectations and increase motivation.
Incorporating a feedback culture into an organization can be tricky. Most people find it easy to give positive feedback. It’s no problem to tell someone ‘good job’ or praise them when targets are reached. Constructive feedback on the other hand, telling people how to improve their work and delivering it in the right way is particularly difficult and something most people have trouble with.
It is easy as an organization to become complacent and continue using outdated business practices and ways of working. However not being flexible in the business’s structure can lead to problems not being discussed or addressed in the right way, causing a bigger issue in the long run. Feedback is a great way to avoid this and is something that is desired by most employees. A study by PwC showed that 92% of employees believe constructive feedback delivered in the appropriate way would be extremely beneficial.
Weekly feedback sessions can benefit both individuals in the organization and the organization itself. The goal is to make feedback become commonplace in the workplace. Regularly giving feedback can help to overcome the fear of hurting people’s feelings and expressing it in a better way. Although this comes with time and practice. Nearly 60% of employees stated that they would like feedback on a daily or weekly basis. Holding weekly feedback sessions can be very worthwhile but it is important that the information you give is relevant, specific and constructive otherwise it could be a waste of time.
So, what are the benefits of weekly feedback sessions:
Drive change and improvement
Help each other grow, both personally and professionally. By establishing open two-way communication and giving your opinion, you can get insights into what others think and how you can improve. In turn it will make your employees more effective and improve business performance and vice versa, with employees giving management feedback. Having direct and regular contact and communication channels with those doing the work and creating it enables businesses to stay adaptable to anything that may crop up.
Stay informed and aligned
Giving and receiving feedback opens up conversations between employees and creates a feeling of honesty at all levels of the organization. In doing so, employees feel more comfortable to approach you, which is a great way to build a solid foundation between you and your employees. Weekly feedback guarantees that everyone stays abreast with the latest information and make sure that everyone has the same expectations and knows what is expected of them. This avoids any potential miscommunication, allows the business to make improvements in the quickest time possible and give praise when some good work has been done.
Feedback Session
Reinforce a strong company culture
A great way to build a strong company culture is to encourage frequent and less formal feedback. Continuous feedback can reduce the feeling of being unaware of what your managers think of you and people feel more at ease, as they won’t be caught off guard at annual reviews. Enforcing an open culture and creating a transparent workplace can make the organization become more team oriented and encourage everyone to work together to achieve goals. It provides clarity and can increase the company’s agility to learn and adjust to any changes in the industry or business environment to stay competitive.
Reduce workplace stress
Frequent conversations about how to improve is a great way to reduce employees stress. Not only this, but it can iron out any confusion, resolve issues and make sure that expectations are clear. Regular communication and transparency throughout the organization can help to alleviate stress and in turn make happier and more efficient employees.
Talk about stress
Build employee confidence
By giving constructive feedback it can help to make employees more confident in their work and in turn more motivated. They can find out what needs improving, how they can do it and aim to accomplish bigger and better things. On the flip side, positive feedback is always appreciated. Getting praise about wins no matter how big or small is always nice and encourages hard work. It also makes employees feel valued, appreciated and more likely to engage at work.
Large organizations may think, there isn’t time to hold weekly feedback sessions. But it doesn’t have to be one-on-one sessions or a boring mass form send out. There are many different creative ways to give and receive feedback. Using technology is a great way to save time, share ideas and connect with all in the organization no matter where they are located. For example, by sending a link to your work, colleagues can instantly like the post or tell you what they think you should change in a few words.
