# Managing Groups and Teams/Feedback in Teams

# Introduction

Feedback is an evaluative response about an action or process given to
the original source. There are many situations in which feedback is
appropriate and necessary. Working in teams provides a variety of
opportunities to give feedback to any number of recipients. It also
provides an opportunity to receive feedback from others. Before giving
feedback there are a variety of factors that must be considered,
including:

• The goal of giving feedback

• When to give feedback

• The recipient(s) of feedback

• Techniques & tools to ensure effective feedback

• Response to feedback

In the case of groups, roles and hierarchies may make peer to peer
feedback more difficult. In this case, it is even more important to make
sure feedback is given in the most effective manner.

## Common Goals of Giving Feedback

The first step in giving feedback is to determine the goal or the reason
for the feedback. This will vary depending upon the situation. Defining
the goal will help shape the process. Feedback is an educational
opportunity for both the sender and the receiver.

Feedback can be used to praise or show appreciation. For example, it is
a chance to tell the recipient that an idea he had was exceptional, that
he did well in a meeting, or that his hard work has been noticed. But
feedback is not always positive. It can be a tool to educate the
receiver about his negative behavior or performance, such as habitual
lateness or that he has gone over budget on a project. Negative feedback
is also called corrective feedback.

Improving communication is another common goal of feedback which can
lead to several great benefits such as building, maintaining and testing
relationships, gathering information, and keeping one's perceptions in
check.

One of the most common goals of feedback is to influence others'
behavior. However, feedback is not a good tool for getting a person to
change. Edith Whitfield Seashore noted that "even though \[interpersonal
behavior\] may influence future behavior, \[it\] doesn't necessarily
control anything. We often receive the same feedback over and over,
without anything changing significantly. And we often give feedback
without anyone else changing" \[1\]. Feedback should be used to
influence others to want to start, stop, or modify a behavior. Precisely
given feedback can help a person to see the effects of a behavior and
empower the receiver to want to change the behavior for the better.

## When to give feedback

Determining when to give feedback can be difficult, but it is usually
best to give feedback in a timely manner. This is especially true of
behavior or performance feedback. If a person or team completed a
project as asked it is important to let them know that their effort is
noticed in order to encourage the behavior to continue. On the flip
side, if a person or team is exhibiting poor behavior or performance it
is important to inform them of the disapproval and encourage them to
improve the behavior. This is especially important in teams as the
behavior and performance of one can snowball into a larger problem if it
is not addressed early on.

## Recipients of feedback

Feedback is appropriate for many different audiences such as team leader
to group, team member to peer, and group to team leader. The feedback
approach will differ depending upon the audience.

Working in teams provides additional opportunities to talk with the team
about its behavior, performance or goals. However, not all team feedback
should be given in the audience of the team. On occasion it may be
appropriate to pull a team member aside to give one on one feedback,
especially if the feedback is related to that person's negative behavior
or performance. However, feedback as is relates to the group's
performance, accomplishment of goals, or cohesion should be brought up
to the entire group. This ensures that all team members receive the same
message, and the group can work toward solutions to the problem if
necessary.

Providing performance feedback is effective in improving team
performance. But is the most effective way to administer feedback on an
individual level, group level, or both? DeShon, Kozlowski,Schmidt,
Milner & Wiechmann studied this issue in 2003 \[3\]. The groups that
were given feedback aimed at the individual showed an increased
individual performance within the team. Likewise, the groups which were
given feedback targeted at the team showed more successful team
performance. A third type of group was given both individual and team
feedback. The study predicted that this third group would benefit from
the multilevel multiple-goal feedback and would outperform the other two
types of groups. Surprisingly, this was not the case. Results found that
both groups that received a single focused type of feedback outperformed
this third group type on both individual and team performance measures.
However, the study found that if the goal is to improve team
performance, team feedback produces the best results.

## Positive and Negative Feedback for Teams

Every team has members which possess unique abilities, talents and
skills. If a team is fully functional, meaning that they have several
team members who are able to take what they know and make their
knowledge mesh together to accomplish a task or goal, they have a
greater probability of success. According to Webster's Dictionary,
positive feedback is defined as, "feedback that tends to magnify a
process or increase its output."\[4\] Positive feedback creates positive
results, however there is a need at times to balance out positive and
negative feedback. Poor feedback can cause mutiny, feelings of low
self-worth, anger or even hatred towards the task or that person.

---The absence of feedback can cause problems among a team because of
the perceived lack of recognition of hard work or special talents by the
one who is supposed to give the feedback.

---Negative feedback at least has a direction if said in the right tone
and the right way.

---Positive feedback has power to exponentially build a team, make it
work with fluidity and create a synergy that other methods cannot
duplicate.

However, solely giving positive feedback can be detrimental. In a
journal article titled The Negatives of Only Focusing on Positive
Feedback, it states that, "We agree that it is important for managers to
appreciate their strengths and understand how to leverage those
strengths. If they don't, they could waste time and effort attempting to
get better at leadership skills they have already mastered. They could
fail to leverage core skills that would help them be more successful.
But CCL's data suggest that if managers pay attention only to their
strengths, their leadership development efforts may not address what
their organizations need most. This in turn could be harmful not only to
individual managers but to entire organizations."\[5\]

Negative feedback, or coaching, as many companies like to call it, is a
necessary evil. Constructive criticism is the only way to build
character, otherwise the team members might not think that they are
doing anything wrong and can only do everything right. As a leader, this
comes into play and is desired.

However, it is vital that that one remain objective when giving negative
feedback. Aim feedback at the behavior, not the person. It is important
to look past the differences of the recipient in order to have an honest
and sincere interaction. Do not judge the person receiving the feedback.
Each person is experiencing each situation differently, and it is
impossible for the giver to understand each person's situation. Present
the feedback honestly, sticking to the facts, rather than judging the
person upon your perception.

It is important to consider the matrix of the team when giving feedback.
It is also important not to point out specific members of the group when
giving negative feedback. That is more appropriate for an individual
conversation. Focus on the behavior of the group and the changes that
need to be made within the group.

Finally, when giving negative feedback, one must have good intentions on
helping the person to improve. Feedback given with mal intent will not
have a positive outcome. If one is unable to give feedback in a sincere
manner it may be beneficial to have another respected member of the team
give the feedback.

## Feedback Techniques

Each team member should have a working knowledge of feedback techniques
that can be implemented with the group in order to reach the team goals
and to be productive. The following are a sample of techniques that can
be used to enhance the feedback experience.

**Serve the feedback like a meal**
^**Serve\ the\ feedback\ like\ a\ meal**^ How the message is delivered
can often determine if the message is received properly and if it will
be acted upon. Kind words shouted at someone do not have the same
positive impact as when they are spoken gently. Ed Sykes of The Sykes
Group \[6\] has suggested that feedback should be served to the team or
individual like a great meal. He offers five techniques for making the
feedback meal more appetizing:

a\. Mentally prepare to give feedback just as you would prepare ahead of
time to serve a banquet. Review questions such as "Is the feedback
important? What do I hope to accomplish through this feedback? Who are
the persons I will be giving the feedback to? How have they taken
feedback in the past? Etc.

b\. Serve each course at the appropriate time- waiting too long to serve
the criticism or serving it too early can result in a lack of hunger for
the team or individual receiving the meal.

c\. Start with quality ingredients like fairness, candor, and
consistency. Set positive expectations and be direct in the
communication.

d\. Ask for a meal review. Get feedback on the feedback session.

e\. Use appropriate table manners. Be gracious, respectful, and kind.
Always end on a positive note.

**Stay Positive** According to the UK management training firm Templeton
Finn \[7\], there is a three step technique to giving feedback that
significantly improves performance and motivation:

1\. Start the process with a few genuine, specific compliments.

a\. Be sure to use very specific and direct terms and remember that
whatever you comment on you will get more of.

2\. Give the person or group one or two things they could do differently
next time to make it even better.

a\. Be sure to give them the correct way to do it. If you only tell them
what they did wrong, then there is still a chance that they will do it
wrong again, just in a different way.

3\. Make an overall positive comment about the person's abilities or
progress.

In general, stay positive and use positive terms. There are an infinite
number of wrong ways to do something so it's much better to know how to
do something the right way than to know how not to do it. People
generally feel more confident about their abilities to improve upon
mistakes through positive feedback. On the other hand people generally
feel nervous and insecure when they receive feedback in a negative
manner, which often leads to more mistakes.

  Non-recommended feedback techniques                     Recommended feedback techniques
  ------------------------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------------------
  creating a closed, disrespectful environment            creating an open, respectful environment
  not eliciting thoughts and feelings prior to feedback   eliciting thoughts and feelings prior to feedback
  being judgmental                                        being nonjudgmental
  focusing on personality                                 focusing on behaviors
  basing feedback on hearsay                              basing feedback on observed facts
  basing feedback on generalizations                      basing feedback on specifics
  giving too much/little feedback                         giving the right amount of feedback
  not suggesting ideas for improvements                   suggesting ideas for improvements
  basing feedback on unknown,non-negotiated goals         basing feedback on well known negotiated goals

**CONNECT Model** The Connect Model \[8\] is a communication process
used between two members of a group that promotes a collaborative team
environment by allowing discussion of conflicts in a psychologically
safe environment. Through this process each member should gain a deeper
understanding of the other through giving and receiving feedback. The
method uses the following steps:

C -- Commit to the relationship. Tell why you think this is worth doing
and that you think the relationship is important enough to work on. O --
Optimize safety. Let the other person know that you will do your best
not to put him on the defensive. N -- Narrow the discussion to one
issue. N -- Neutralize defensiveness. Ask the person to let you know if
you make them defensive. E -- Explain and echo each perspective. Tell
what you notice and the effects that you perceive. Have the person echo
what you have said and then have him tell you his perspective. C --
Change one behavior each. T -- Track it. Pick a date to check back in
with each other to see how things are going.

**Red Paper / Green Paper** This activity will shed light upon your
group's strengths and weaknesses. Give each group member three red slips
of papers and three green slips of paper. Have them write three things
that the group is good at on the green papers and three things that the
group could improve upon on the red papers. These are written
anonymously. When finished, each member puts his papers in two piles
sorted by color. Shuffle the deck and read the negative results first.
Then read the positive results. Only after all papers are read should
the discussion start. It is interesting to note the common themes that
team members mention.

**Survey** Often this technique works well when a team leader finds it
beneficial to solicit feedback from the group in an effort to improve
performance. The team leader can create a survey form with specific
pertinent questions. The group will feel safer if the survey is
anonymous. The team leader should also fill out the survey and compare
his results to the group to see how "in tune" he is with his real
performance. It is common for one to think that he performs better than
he actually does. Feedback is a good reality check.

## Tools for Team members

In the book When Teams Work Best, it states, "Good feedback is
associated with a heightened sense of personal accountability, a wide
range of worker satisfaction factors, and enhanced performance,
especially in groups whose goals demand extensive interpersonal
relationships. Because feedback is the lifeblood of growth in a team
relationship, we need a set of tools that will move us closer at the end
of an attempted relationship adjustment, not farther apart."\[9\] The
following is a sample of tools that can help improve the feedback
process.

**FeedForward** One new trend in the positive feedback realm is that of
feedforward. "Asking for feedforward means asking for two suggestions
for the future that might help the team achieve a positive change in
their selected behavior. If participants have worked together in the
past, they are not allowed to give any feedback about the past. They are
only allowed to give ideas for the future...feedforward helps people
envision and focus on a positive future, not a failed past."\[10\] This
novel idea of looking towards the future to generate ideas is another
way that teams, or leaders of teams, can provide positive actions to
build a positive end result. There is truth in the statement that
feedback tends to cause us to look at a potentially failed past as a
dissection of what was done right and what was done wrong. However, the
optimistic point of view treats feedforward as the way to grow by
looking forward and making right decisions for the future.

**Checklist for Positive Interactions** In an article by Lindsey
Swinton, she states seven steps for positive feedback. They are:

1\. No Time Like Now: Give positive feedback as close to the event as
possible so the feedback doesn't go stale.

2\. In Public and Private: Praise in public, criticize in private.

3\. Practice Makes Perfect: Make it a habit to praise regularly

4\. Does the Reward Fit? : The amount of effort put in merits a reward
of the same level.

5\. No Favorites: Don't over praise one person. Keep a mental tally of
whom you praised most recently

6\. Be Clear and Mean It: Tell the team exactly why you are praising
them. Be specific.

7\. Catch People Doing Things Right: The more you catch people doing
things right, the more right things they will do! \[11\]

After reviewing these steps for positive feedback, it is clear that it
takes planning and effort to make each bit of positive feedback
worthwhile and meaningful for the team. Planning and execution of such
feedback is worth the time preparing and thinking of who deserves it and
why they are deserving of it.

**The Johari Window Model** The goal of feedback within teams is to
influence the team and member behavior. Members of teams will need to
have knowledge of models for feedback to implement in group settings to
reach the goals set and to be productive. The Johari Window model \[12\]
can be used to begin to understand group dynamics and interpersonal
behavior that can lead to feedback opportunities for managers and
groups. (insert image)

                        Known to Self   Not Known to Self
  --------------------- --------------- -------------------
  Known to Others       Open            Blind
  Not Known to Others   Hidden          Unknown

Group members share "open" information. One group member may have
"hidden" information. The group may deal with areas of "unknown"
information. Additionally, members may create "blind" information areas
when there is information or feelings observed but not shared. Lack of
information or pent up feelings can cripple a group's success. Feedback
can help to reduce the areas of hidden, blind, and unknown information
as well as to better discuss and utilize open information. A group may
choose to participate in a Johari activity and actually place adjectives
in each box of the model. This placement can then be used for members to
inform interpersonal relationships and communication.

**The Losada Line** The Losada Meta Learning Model \[13\] is one way to
divide groups into high, medium and low performers by actually
quantifying tiered variables of team dynamics:

● inquiry-advocacy (how much people ask vs. talk),

● positivity-negativity (how much people are positive vs. negative),

● other-self (how much people are focused on others vs. on themselves),

● connectivity(a control parameter)

● viscosity (how the environment resists change), and

● negativity bias (our speed of response to negative events to avoid
harm). While individual groups or group members may not be able to
produce the mathematically generated computer model to determine whether
they are high or low performing, these variables can be discussed and
influenced through feedback. Additionally, categories of teams could
also be related to a positive/negative feedback ratio:

• High -- 5.6 P/N

• Medium -- 1.9 P/N

• Low -- 0.36 P/N

**T-Group** A T-group is a model that provides participants with an
opportunity to "study their own behavior when they interact within a
small group."\[14\]. Because of the self-disclosure and openness
involved, this type of exercise may not be appropriate for regular
working groups within an organization. Best results occur in an
environment such as a training group or a seminar in which the
participants are strangers that will not work together in the future.
The group's work is focused on feelings, process, and feedback. Some of
the objectives that a participant can expect to come away with are an
increased understanding of underlying social processes within a group,
increased awareness of the effect one's behavior has on others in the
group, increased ability to give and receive feedback, and increased
ability to manage conflict.

## Response to Feedback

Generally, one feels comfortable giving positive feedback because the
danger of conflict is minimal. On the other hand, the reception of
negative feedback can be much more difficult to predict. A person may
receive feedback as a sign of constructive criticism. Others may receive
the same feedback as a personal attack. Often time people are reluctant
to give feedback because "complex interactions, especially that are
unproductive, occur when we interact with people who we perceive as
being very different from us." \[15\]

Use common sense to increase the chance of success when giving feedback.
Be slow to speak until you are sure that there is a problem that needs
to be addressed. It is better to err on the side of caution because
words cannot be taken back once they are spoken.

What should you do if the receiver doesn't respond in the desired manner
to your feedback? First of all, do not give up. Change often takes time.
You must also remember that you cannot control other people, but only
yourself.

After each feedback encounter, take a few minutes to evaluate your
performance. What went well? What can you improve? Make a mental note on
what you want to try different next time, because there will always be a
next time. A big part of giving successful feedback involves practice.

## Examples of successful real world applications of technique

**Cleveland Clinic Research Experiment** Doctors Mariana G Hewson PHD
and Margaret Little MD at the Cleveland Clinic in Cleveland, Ohio \[16\]
conducted a research experiment to verify the effectiveness of
recommended techniques for feedback in Medical Education. The study
aimed to substantiate several recommended feedback techniques (listed in
table 1). The researchers used both qualitative and quantitative
approaches to measure results.

They investigated "clinician teachers\' personal experiences with
receiving feedback in a course for improving the teaching of medical
interviewing (the annual training course of the American Academy of
Physician and Patient)."

The group of 83 course participants was comprised of 39 men and 44 women
from roughly 60 different medical institutions located in the United
States, Canada, and the United Kingdom.

At the end of the week-long course, each participant "was asked to
provide a short narrative of two selected course-related feedback
incidents, one of which they judged as personally helpful, and the other
as personally unhelpful."

The doctors found that the feedback techniques used in helpful incidents
often included a focus on skills along with personal styles. The
specific skills included: being able to lead a group discussion, giving
feedback, setting up a role play, and handling challenging incidents.
The effective personal styles consisted of traits like being quiet,
being verbally assertive, being non-threatening, being flexible, and
being facilitative.

According to Doctors Hewson and Little, the manner in which the feedback
was presented to the participants \"strongly affected their perceptions
of its helpfulness.\" Techniques like \"giving feedback lovingly,
supportively, and caringly\" as well as \"being gentle and not hitting
someone over the head with his or her mistakes\" along with \"being
concerned to understand the other person\'s position\" were all deemed
helpful. The researchers also noted that the \"participants appreciated
accurate and clear feedback about particular behaviors.\" The study also
mentioned that \"feedback that included specific suggestions for
improvement was seen as very important.\"

Ultimately through their research Doctors Hewson and Little were able to
conclude that "Feedback techniques experienced by respondents
substantiate the literature-based recommendations, and corrective
feedback is regarded as helpful when delivered appropriately."

**Bellon, Bellon & Blake Study** Research has shown that when classroom
teachers effectively use feedback techniques with children, they often
have a strong positive effect on the students. Researchers have found
that "Academic feedback is more strongly and consistently related to
achievement than any other teaching behavior" and that "this
relationship is consistent regardless of grade, socioeconomic status,
race, or school setting." In a study by Bellon, Bellon, and Blake
\[17\], when "feedback and corrective procedures are used, most students
can attain the same level of achievement as the top 20% of students."

Feedback has proven to be effective when there is recognition of a
common goal, evidence given of current position, and some understanding
is reached between the teacher and student of how to close the gap of
the desired goal and current position.

## Conclusion

Feedback is a valuable tool that can be used to improve team
performance. It is educational for both the sender and receiver.
Feedback informs, seeks to change behavior, and improves communication.
It can be of a positive or negative nature. Feedback works best when
given in a timely manner. Several techniques and tools were given to
help in giving successful feedback. Common sense also prevails. It is
difficult to predict the response one will receive. Do not be
discouraged if the response to your feedback is not what you were aiming
for. Remember that you cannot control others. Evaluate your performance
after each feedback session and remember that practice plays a big part
in improvement.

## References

\[1\] E. W. (1996). Feedback: An Educational Opportunity. Reading Book
for Human Relations Training. Columbia, MD: Bingham House Books.

\[2\] Journal of Applied Psychology, Vol 89(6), Dec, 2004. pp. 1035-1056

\[3\] <http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/positive%20feedback>

\[4\]Jean Briattain Leslie, & Sylvester Taylor. (2005). In
focus/feedback and development: The negatives of focusing only on the
positive. Leadership in Action, 24(6), 19+. Retrieved November 21, 2010,
from ABI/INFORM Global. (Document ID: 862836731).

\[5\] <http://www.thesykesgrp.com/FeedbackAppetizingArt01.htm>

\[6\] Templeton Finn Ltd, The Barn, Burrows Hall Farm, Over Burrows,
Brailsford, Derbyshire, East Midlands, DE6 3BU,
<http://www.templetonfinn.co.uk/resources/article11.php>

\[7\] LaFasto & Larson When Teams Work Best , pp 50-61, c2001

\[8\] LaFasto & Larson, When Teams Work Best, p. 46, c2001

\[9\] Marshall Goldsmith. (2003). Try feedforward instead of feedback.
The Journal for Quality and Participation, 26(3), 38-40. Retrieved
November 21, 2010, from ABI/INFORM Global. (Document ID: 454274271).

\[10\] <http://www.mftrou.com/positive-feedback.html>, Lindsey Swinton,
accessed via web 11/21/2010

\[11\] Luft, J.; Ingham, H. (1955). \"The Johari window, a graphic model
of interpersonal awareness\". Proceedings of the western training
laboratory in group development (Los Angeles: UCLA).

\[12\] Losada, M. (1999). The complex dynamics of high performance
teams. Mathematical and Computer Modeling, 30(9-10), 179-192. Additional
resources: <http://losada.socialpsychology.org/>

\[13\] www.orgdct.com/more_on_t-group.htm

\[14\] (Seashore, E.W. (1996). Feedback: An educational Opportunity.
Reading Book for Human Relations Training. Columbia, MD. Bingham House
Books)

\[15\] J Gen Intern Med. 1998 February; 13(2): 111--116. doi:
10.1046/j.1525-1497.1998.00027.x. Copyright 1998 by the Society of
General Internal Medicine,
<http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1496906/>

\[16\]
<http://www.academicleadership.org/leader_action_tips/Providing_Students_with_Effective_Feedback.shtml>,
Providing Students with Effective Feedback, By Academic Leadership the
Online Journal, Volume 4 - Issue 4, Feb 12, 2007, Bellon, Jerry, Bellon,
Elner, and Blank, Mary Ann. Teaching from a Research Knowledge Base: A
Development and Renewal Process. New York: Macmillan Publishing Company,
1992. (pp. 277-278)
