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How do people feel about feedback in your organization? As a manager, do you find it hard to deliver it? Worried what your team members might say or how they'll react? 

Do you know how to encourage them to discuss feedback in an open and constructive way rather than in a defensive or dismissive way? 

Giving and receiving feedback is an essential part of a manager's job. You need to be able to explore what's going well and what's not with your people so they can reach their full potential. But it's a two-way street. You also need to make sure they're on board and open to discussing feedback as well. 

The CEDAR feedback model is a great tool you can use to do just that. It encourages team members to take the lead in feedback conversations instead of managers. In this way, it can help you to build a culture of feedback where it's not feared by people but welcomed and where it eventually becomes embedded into working life. 

The CEDAR model can be used to structure feedback conversations in a positive way, by focusing on five key factors: Context, Examples, Diagnosis, Action, Review. Let's take a closer look at each of these in more detail. 

First, it's important to explain to your team member what you want to discuss and how this fits into the wider context. Do this by explaining why their performance matters as well as the impact it has on other people and the organization. 

Giving examples of good and bad performance helps to validate your feedback and makes it more targeted and meaningful. If you need to discuss something that's not gone to plan, let your team member take the lead and identify their own relevant examples. But when you want to discuss successes, be sure to step in, praise their accomplishments and celebrate them. This will build their confidence and sense of self-worth. 

Remember that part of delivering positive and developmental feedback is emphasizing people's efforts as much as their results. Understanding why we behaved or acted in a certain way allows us to diagnose any problem areas and recognize successes. When someone understands the underlying cause for their behavior, it's easier for them to replicate an impressive performance or turn around a poor one. 

Get their thoughts on the matter too by asking open-ended questions like, "What led up to where you are now?" or "How did you achieve this?" 

Now, look forward and encourage your team member to create a plan of action. Resist the temptation to solve problems on your team member's behalf. Instead, encourage them to take charge of their own personal growth by exploring what actions they think they should take to resolve a problem or develop their skills further. Ask them questions like, "How would you like to use your strengths in the future?" or "What can be done to close any skills gaps and what actions do you think you need to take going forward?" This will encourage them to think about what their next steps should be. 

Finally, ask your team member when they'd like to follow up. Having a specific date to work toward sets an expectation for action and provides a great opportunity to celebrate progress or troubleshoot any problems that might crop up. 

To learn more about the CEDAR feedback model, read the article that accompanies this video. © 2022 Mind Tools by Emerald Works Limited.