Feedback Sandwich
The Feedback Sandwich is a great technique for effectively telling someone what you think of their results in a way that is easy for the receiver to hear. If have ever worked in a team of people you’ve probably seen someone doing something that isn’t quite right. Yet, depending on your personality, it is often hard to openly criticize someones work. Criticisms will often impact on morale and if you’re unlucky it can put a strain on your relationship with the other person. The Feedback Sandwich is a way of telling someone they’re doing it wrong in a gentle way that allows them to take your comments on board while staying friends.
The Feedback Sandwich Technique
So, how does it work? Essentially you structure your feedback in three parts like this:
- Tell them something you thought they did well
- Tell them where they could improve
- Tell them something else you thought they did well
Simple, huh?
And to give you a few real world examples:
In an Office Environment
I really admire the hard work you’ve been putting into this project. It would make things easier for the team if you started coming into the office before lunch time. But with your great attention to detail I’m sure the client is going to be really happy with what we deliver.
In the Home Environment
It is really good to see how passionate you are about cooking and how much you enjoy it. Though when you don’t do any of the dishes though it makes it hard for me to use the kitchen. That soufflé last night tasted delightful.
On the Sports Field
Thanks for giving it 110% out there today. It would have been better if you’d managed to catch the ball when it came in your direction. The training really seems to be paying off and your fitness seems to be improving.
In Summary…
This versatile technique is a great for use at any time or place that you need to gently let someone know that they could be doing something better. Embrace it and enjoy the results!
Related posts:
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2 Comments
Darren said:
24 January 2012
Hmmmm feedback sandwich, not a fan. When you consider the principles of primacy and recency, utilising this model you run the chance of the message being lost in the middle, and the person missing a chance to learn something about themselves.
To test this theory, engage your memory and think about the movie “Jaws”, I am sure you can remember the beggining and the end, maybe not what happens at the 47 min mark.
In my experience, the feedback sandwhich is more about the giverer of the feedback, trying to soften the blow so to speak.
At the end of the day, any attempt to give feedback is better than none.
Lloyd Johnson said:
24 January 2012
Thanks for the comment Darren. You’re right, it is possible for the message to be lost in the middle although all learning is state dependent. And the purpose of Feedback is essentially for the other person to learn (unless the person giving it just likes upsetting people or complaining I guess). If the feedback is given to them in a resourceful state then their ability to act upon it in the future will be much greater than if they go into a negative state from the feedback.
An example of this is when I first marked Practitioner Exams I used a red pen. For most students it was fine but for one student the red pen ‘triggered’ a negative state and brought back unpleasant memories from an experience with a teacher at school. That person wasn’t learning from the corrections on the page. By using a green pen I’ve not had a repeat of that experience and I would like to think that the corrections are better received as a result. A green pen isn’t a ‘feedback sandwich’ by any stretch of the imagination but if you think of the feedback sandwich as a way to keep people in a more receptive state to learn then maybe you could adapt it to your needs?