And why it’s so important
If communication in the enterprise goes in only one direction (that is, from the the top/center out and down) it won’t be fully effective. For everyone to understand how the company is doing workers need to have channels to send communication back, in the form of questions, assessment, and suggestions.
Feedback helps determine if workers are meeting their goals and the company is meeting its own. It is a way to monitor how effectively the go-to-market strategy is being implemented, whether operational models are meeting the needs of the workplace, if work-life balance is out of whack (and thus what level of well-being exists in the company.)
Employee feedback will also provide insights into cross-team collaboration and the dissemination of information and knowledge throughout the organization, both horizontally and vertically.
If workers see no feedback channels open to them they get the message that their opinions have no value, their hard-won experience and insights automatically ignored. Morale will plummet and worker engagement will be tepid. Productivity will drop. Absenteeism will rise.
Not only does leadership need to encourage and receive feedback, it is important that they act on it. Surveys and discussion boards are useless if they are ignored. The goal of gathering feedback is to use it for adjusting things going forward, to improve both operational quality and market position.
“Treat feedback as a gift rather than a slap in the face.” – Frank Sonnenberg
Make submitting feedback as easy as possible, and genuinely anonymous. Soliciting and submitting feedback should be embedded in the company’s communication platforms as well as its culture. Don’t bury feedback in an awkward application, or make it a once-a-year focus group.
“We all need people who will give us feedback. That’s how we improve.” – Bill Gates
Leadership attitude and behavior around feedback is an important communication element. If done right it tells the workforce they are valued collaborators in the business, and their contributions and perspectives are valued.