Feedback culture explained

In many organisations, creating a feedback culture is high on the HR department's wish list. But what does a feedback culture actually mean? In an open feedback culture, people feel free to ask for and give feedback continuously, and they actually do so. Feedback is the beating heart of any organisation. The continuous exchange in a feedback culture means people get a little better all the time. Even so, it is still asked for and given too rarely. Often only once a year, during the performance appraisal. People find giving colleagues feedback nerve-racking. Often so nerve-racking that they would rather leave it unsaid. A missed opportunity, in our view at Treams, because a feedback culture can give a real boost to the growth and development of individuals, teams and organisations. When people are consciously working on their development, continuous feedback is all the more important, whether it is about strategy or about feedback at an individual level. Ultimately you want people to feel free to ask for, give and receive feedback, and that is how a feedback culture is created.

Why create an open feedback culture?

In recent years, organisations have been organising themselves differently. Hierarchy within organisations is steadily disappearing. The classic top-down org chart is a thing of the past and more and more work happens in self-managing teams. In the future we will increasingly work in a network of teams, where one team works on a shared project (a particular client, for instance) with a shared goal. To be able to work this way, you need a feedback culture in which people give each other continuous feedback in order to get better together. Giving each other feedback continuously gives people insight into what is not going well and into what is. That means you can respond to innovation together far more quickly, and so grow faster as an organisation.

How do you create a feedback culture?

The move to an open feedback culture is not just any change. As an organisation you are coming from somewhere, and you want your people to adopt new behaviour, which is not always easy. Before you start on the change, it helps to be clear about a few things:

1. Feedback is not a goal in itself

Creating an open feedback culture has a better chance of succeeding when you teach people how to ask for feedback rather than how to give it. Asking for feedback puts people in control. They decide when they ask and what they ask about, so it always comes at a good moment, which is not always the case when feedback is given. Asking for feedback also creates more engagement, because you are asking for someone else's view and showing interest.

2. Safety and trust are the foundation of a strong feedback culture

Safety and trust are the most important conditions for feedback. Do you feel safe with your colleagues? Then you can receive feedback well and you feel freer to give honest feedback. Get to know each other properly before you start working with feedback. It is also important that managers set the example. As a manager, be vulnerable, open and transparent, and your people will follow more readily.

3. Work towards a shared goal

Do you want to build a strong feedback culture? Then working towards a shared goal matters enormously. Once you put that at the centre, reflection becomes easier and feedback becomes more concrete and less personal.

4. HR plays a facilitating role

Both in building a feedback culture and in supporting employees and managers, HR facilitates. It is up to the organisation to equip HR with everything it needs to establish this open feedback culture.

5. Give people responsibility and ownership

Give people responsibility for their own development. That does not mean they can do everything straight away, so make sure that you, as HR and as a manager, help and facilitate. Giving people responsibility gives them confidence and plays to their strengths, which makes it easier to build an open feedback culture.

6. Give yourself time to create a feedback culture

Change takes time, and so does the move to a feedback culture. We all know it is not easy to learn new habits. Give yourself time and do not hold yourself to producing big results quickly.

How do you use a feedback app to support a feedback culture?

For any agile organisation, it is important that a feedback culture is supported by a good feedback tool. For the younger generations in particular this is an absolute must. They grew up with technology and know better than anyone how to work with it. Anchoring it in a tool makes asking for feedback and giving compliments far easier to do, and makes it easier to build an open feedback culture. But what should you look for when choosing a tool?

Organisations are constantly in motion. It helps if you can make changes in the tool yourself, which saves a great deal of time. Employees are the ones who will use the tool most, so choose one that is built for them and easy to use. A tool is not a goal in itself. It is important to look for a tool that supports your feedback culture, rather than adapting your feedback culture to your tool.

Looking for a feedback tool that is highly rated and simple to use? Treams has the perfect solution for you. With the 360-degree feedback tool, people can ask for and give feedback, both internally and externally. Because the app works on mobile devices as well as desktop, it is easily accessible to everyone. Treams also gives you the opportunity to follow a masterclass in which feedback is explored further and you pick up plenty of tips.