Careful criticism brings better performance - includes related article on how to conduct performance improvement discussions

HR Magazine, April, 1997 by Kathryn Tyler

Communicating clear, specific expectations and giving both positive and negative feedback will help get the best from employees.

Giving feedback is easy when it's positive. But, when the feedback is negative, most managers shy away from delivering what they believe to be bad news. Criticism, however, is a crucial element in improving employee performance.

"If you don't identify the areas in which employees need improvement, you can't expect them to improve. The behavior that is hindering performance isn't going to change unless it's addressed," says Bridget Hett, HR manager at pmh caramanning inc., a marketing firm in Farmington Hills, Mich. "Maybe the employee doesn't know what's wrong or doesn't know how to fix it. Identification is a positive thing because it results in teaching, coaching and growing."

Deborah Bright, speaker and author of The Official Criticism Manual, agrees: "Criticism helps people get back on track and stay on track. Like praise, it's very motivational when it's done effectively."

Discussing poor job performance not only motivates employees, it also defuses problematic termination situations. "If you don't tell people the truth, or you dilly-dally around, a couple of evil things will happen," says Dick Grote, author of Discipline Without Punishment and The Complete Guide To Performance Appraisals. "People are going to believe they are doing OK because no one has the guts to tell them otherwise. They won't know why they're being turned down for promotions."

In addition, Grote says, a day of reckoning may come when a company wishes to dismiss an employee, but cannot because it lacks documentation of poor performance. Or the company may fire the employee, although all along no one said anything, or gave the employee a chance to improve. The person will think, "Maybe it's something else, maybe it's because I'm over 50 [or female or minority]." And a wrongful termination suit will be the result.

It doesn't have to be that way. "Everyone expects to be criticized," says Bright. "Most employees realize they aren't perfect. Part of the excitement of a job is to learn and grow."

What's difficult for employees to swallow, she says, is criticism that's presented offensively. But what can managers do to ensure that criticism will be graciously accepted and acted on?

GIVE TIMELY FEEDBACK

A performance improvement discussion should be held in private as quickly as possible after the incident the manager is concerned about occurs. "Too often we err on the side of waiting too long," says Grote.

Don't wait until employees' annual performance appraisals to let them know they're not measuring up. Giving feedback should be ongoing. By addressing problems immediately, you give employees the opportunity to correct them before it's too late - before the project is finished or the account has been lost. Hett suggests regular meetings to touch base. "It doesn't have to be formal," she says. It could be a monthly chat with each staff member over a cup of coffee.

Be selective in the behaviors you target for change. Focus on skills that are vital to the individual's job. I'd Like A Word With You: The Performance Improvement Interview, a training program from Video Arts Inc., recommends managers concern themselves with problems that illustrate a pattern of poor performance, rather than minor one-time mistakes.

ADDRESS THE PROBLEM DIRECTLY

"Don't dance around the issue," advises Hett. "Say exactly what you're thinking." If you call an employee into your office and start talking about the weather, the person will wonder what could be so bad that you can't be straightforward.

Managers also need to avoid what Bright calls sandwiching criticism between praise. Starting and ending with positive feedback can have harmful consequences. Employees may be so delighted with the praise that they don't hear the criticism. Or they may discount the praise altogether because it's coupled with negative feedback.

Make sure you explain what you expect clearly. "People cannot meet your expectations if they don't know what they are," says Hett. Jim Hackett, president of Bunker Hill Consulting Group in Peabody, Mass., agrees: "If you say to employees, 'Do a good job.' What does that mean? You're leaving it up to the employees. Then when they fail to live up to your expectations, you say they didn't do the job."

Bright recommends showing employees why they should meet expectations: "Put it in a context that matches the individual's goals." For example, if you know the employee is interested in moving into management, discuss why giving good presentations is a crucial managerial skill.

Discuss how your expectations differ from the employee's performance. "If all you do is point out the desired behavior, you minimize learning," explains Bright. "If I say, 'I want you to listen more at the next meeting,' you have no idea where that's coming from. A better approach is to say, "I noticed you missed some things the customer said at the last meeting. In the next meeting, listen closely to her questions and answer them."