Inspired by a recent conversation with a colleague about something she had seen on a TED series, we’re sharing a new structure for feedback.
Now let’s be frank, you may not feel you need another feedback acronym, as there are loads!
SBI
AID
EECC
These all do the same thing, giving a handy structure for preparing a feedback conversation. They all feature the importance of being specific about the behaviour, the impact of that behaviour, and some then move into the request for change, or what to continue if the feedback is on something that’s working well.
This new little structure adds a couple of points that are super powerful, so let’s have a look at it.
QBIT
I like the way it sounds! Cubit.
Now, what does it stand for?
Question
Behaviour
Impact
Thoughts
Question
When giving someone feedback, unless we’re in an appraisal-type setting, we can feel really unsure about how to start the conversation. There is so much research into the effects of getting someone to say yes, as a way of starting a conversation in an agreeable manner. To the extent that various studies have shown that getting people to nod their heads, for example to music they are enjoying, makes them more likely to agree to requests for money afterwards! Now we are not wanting to be so manipulative here, we are just wanting to start the conversation in a positive tone. And giving someone choice and awareness of what’s coming is a great start. So ask a question like,
I thought it could be helpful for us to review how the meeting went yesterday, is now a good time to talk about that?
Are you up for a chat now on the project plan?
I’ve had some thoughts on how we could improve the work we’re doing on X, is now a good time to chat it over with you?
The person is free to say no, and you could follow that with, “when would be a better time?” This way you are giving the person choice and control over the timing of the conversation, which gives them a greater sense of buy-in to the conversation at the start. They have said yes to the conversation.
Behaviour
As with all of the old classic feedback structures, we must get specific about what the person did. Quote what they said. Describe what they did. Avoid any judgement here about why they did it or what they meant by it, because we don’t know that. We can only say, “you spoke over Terri three times in the meeting,” rather than judging, “you disrespected Terri,” or “you were rude in the meeting.”
Impact
Again this is core to all the great feedback models. Have a think about why you are giving this feedback. Why is the behaviour you have seen worth highlighting to the person and exploring with them? I had a meeting with our Marketing Manager this week (the person to thank for the increased activity from us in Linkedin articles and newsletters!) Jack came to the meeting ready with ideas, proactive and keen to find out more about what direction we wanted.
I wanted to raise that with him, because that behaviour is exactly what I love, and I want to encourage him to do that all the time. Describe the impact of the behaviour – why is it great or why is it a concern for you?
Thoughts
This is the clincher for me on why this structure works, the most critical part of feedback. It makes it a two-way conversation. This is the question along the lines of, “what are your thoughts on that?” So powerfully to immediately hear the person’s reaction. If it’s a bad reaction, we might take a time-out, give them time to process, or we might say, “tell me more about that” so that we can better understand what they disagree with.
Then we can choose where to go next – maybe telling the person what we want them to change, or asking them coaching questions about what they will do next time… we have the choice. This critical moment is to find out where their head’s at before jumping to next steps.
Why not give it a go? Use the structure to prepare for your conversation and see how it goes.
