Jemstone Consultancy business psychology: Adding value to business through the application of psychology: consultancy, team development, management development, coaching: 020 8293 0017
Who seeks feedback? | Take heart | Coaching principles | Update
Who seeks feedback?
It seems self evident that feedback on performance at work is ‘a good thing’, and that actively seeking feedback allows individuals more control over the amount and the timing of the feedback they receive. Yet many are still very reluctant to actively request such feedback, some recent research suggests why:
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People’s goal orientation is important (are they most interested in learning, proving how good they are, or avoiding being ‘found out’?) |
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Their sense of their performance level affects how likely they are to actively seek feedback, as does the existence (or not) of an organisational ‘norm’ for feedback seeking |
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Those orientated towards learning are interested in gaining useful information, but this doesn’t always translate into feedback seeking behaviour |
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Those orientated to proving how good they are less likely to actively seek feedback, being more concerned with protecting their self image or esteem, while those trying to avoid being ‘found out’ are less predictable |
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Self perceived poor performance is more likely to elicit requests for feedback |
What does this mean for managers and others?
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Work to cultivate a culture where requesting and giving feedback is the ‘norm’ |
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Cultivate learning as performance; create a desire for useful information, with feedback as the way of getting such information |
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Protect self-esteem: give feedback privately, carefully, constructively |
From Tuckey et al (2002) The influence
of motives and goal orientation on feedback seeking. Journal
of occupational and organisational psychology, 75, 195-216 |
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Ever feel it just isn’t going right? Take heart from our experts
‘If at first you don’t succeed, you are running about average’ M.H. Alderson
| However, Lincoln’s road to the white house... | Defeated for Congress 1843 |
| Failed in business 1831 | Defeated for Congress 1848 |
| Defeated for legislature 1832 | Defeated for Senate 1855 |
| Second business failure 1833 | Defeated for Vice President 1856 |
| Nervous breakdown 1836 | Defeated for Senate 1858 |
| Defeated for Speaker 1838 | Elected President 1860 |
| Defeated for Elector 1840 | ...suggests that ‘getting ready is the secret to success’ H.Ford |
Coaching for business success: Key principles
Jemstone consultancy is delighted to find its approach to coaching endorsed by Stewart Beaumont of Deloitte and Touche. Working from experience he pulls out five key principles, reflecting Kolb’s learning cycle
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Work with real life experience |
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Review the real life experience in depth, sometimes in micro-detail, attending to micro-level communication and behaviour |
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Help the coachee to pull out the key learning about their behaviour and note how this aligns (or not) with their aspirations |
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Help the coachee plan what they can/will do differently in relation to the particular issue |
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Next time review what actually happened and go round again |
This article supports our view that coaching is about understanding the learning process and being skilled at asking useful questions. Distilled for managers: Ask don’t Tell!
S. Beaumont (2002) Coaching for Business Success. Selection and Development Review. Vol 18 No. 2, May
Jemstone Consultancy News and Updates
Opportunities to learn more about our approach
Jemstone is delighted to announce that we have created more opportunities to enable others to learn about our postmodern approach to organisational development.
This month Sarah Lewis will be giving an evening presentation on “Organisational talk as a powerful tool for organisational change” for the Association of Business Psychologists on Tuesday 10th September.
During 2003 Sarah Lewis will be presenting one day workshops for the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development on Appreciative Inquiry, dates and details have yet to be finalised
Other news
Sarah Lewis is now an Associate Fellow of The British Psychological Society.
Sarah Lewis of Jemstone Consultancy is an NCVO Approved Consultant 2002/3
If you would like assistance with any current or future project, please email info@jemstoneconsultancy.co.uk