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🗣️ Feedback Mastery

What does your feedback approach look like when work needs to shift quickly?

Competency: Feedback Delivery

Instructions:

This assessment is meant to help you reflect on how your one-on-one meetings actually show up in practice. To get the most accurate results, choose the response that most closely matches your typical behavior, even if it’s not the one you wish you were selecting.

Once you’re done, use the results and rubric to spot strengths, uncover patterns, and identify a small number of areas to focus on next.

1) You notice a well-liked team member starting to miss deadlines and make small errors. You’re deciding whether to address it.

mindset shift

Do nothing because you don’t want to risk hurting the relationship.

Tell them how to correct the behavior, even if it feels uncomfortable.

Do nothing. There are bigger fish to fry.

Acknowledge the discomfort that may come with giving constructive feedback, and have the conversation with the goal of coaching and development.

Make a casual comment and hope they get the hint.

2) You heard a team member make a comment to a peer that comes across as rude.

timeliness

Address it quickly, explain the impact of the comment, and coach toward a more respectful approach moving forward.

Assume it was a one-off and ignore it.

Address it later in the day once other work is done.

Make a mental note to bring it up later.

Address it promptly and privately to reinforce expectations and prevent it from happening again.

3) You’re addressing your concerns with a team member regarding their engagement and reliability. How do you phrase it?

behavioral focus

“You’re always late to meetings and not putting in much effort.”

“You don’t seem very motivated lately.”

“You were late to several meetings last week, and I’m missing some deliverables.”

“You were late to all three client meetings this week, and I haven’t received the pitch deck yet. Let’s talk about what’s going on.”

“You seem disengaged and unreliable.”

4) You’ve shared the same feedback before, but the behavior hasn’t changed. Now you’re at your next one-one-one with them.

impact focus

Repeat the feedback with more emphasis.

Describe the negative pattern you’re seeing with their performance and clarify expectations.

Preface with, “I’ve mentioned this before,” and restate the feedback.

Decide it’s not worth bringing up again.

Ask for their perspective on the situation, and align on what needs to change going forward.

5) You asked your team member for employee engagement data last week but they haven’t sent it to you yet. It isn’t urgent, but you’d like it soon. What do you say to them?

progressive feedback

“Hey, could you send me the engagement data before you leave today? I’d like to review it ahead of our meeting on Friday.”

“I need the engagement data now. It’s important.”

“I need the engagement data immediately. If this isn’t sent right now, it could create problems.”

“I haven’t received the engagement data yet. I don’t want to have to follow up again.”

“I’m still missing the engagement data. Can you send it to me as soon as possible?”

6) A high-potential employee loads the wrong data, causing a project delay. How do you frame the feedback?

motivational framing

“I noticed the wrong data was loaded into the spreadsheet, which caused incorrect outputs and set the project back a few days. Moving forward, let’s double-check our data points and use version control—adding dates to documents so it’s clear which information is current. I’m here to support you and want to see you succeed, so please reach out if you have questions.”

“The wrong data was used on the project, and it’s setting us back a few days. We need to avoid this kind of mistake going forward.”

“I noticed a data issue on the project, and it caused a delay. Just be more careful next time. You got this!”

“I noticed the wrong data was loaded, which impacted the accuracy of the project and set us back a few days. Let’s talk about how to prevent this moving forward.”

“You loaded the wrong data, and now the project is delayed. This kind of mistake shouldn’t happen.”

7) You’re preparing for a check-in with a direct report who recently completed a system implementation project successfully, despite multiple obstacles and the need to collaborate cross-functionally with other teams. What do you say?

coaching & developing

“Nice work on the project! You did great!”

“You handled the project well, especially given the cross-team challenges.”

“Great job on the project! You completed all deliverables and worked through several cross-functional obstacles. What did you learn from this experience, and how can we apply it to future projects?”

“You navigated the cross-functional challenges really well. You had a strong approach, and it made a real difference. How do you think it went?”

Say nothing. You assume they know they did a good job and move on to the next topic.

8) You are a manager reviewing work where the same expectation has been missed multiple times. You sit down with your direct report and say:

firm but fair

“We’ve talked about this before. You need to be more careful.”

“I want to emphasize that I know you can do well, and I’m here to support you. At the same time, it’s important to understand that when you do X, Y happens. My expectation is that X won’t happen again.”

“Here’s what needs to change… I’m confident you can do it.”

“This wasn’t what I was looking for, but we can fix it.”

“This keeps happening, and it’s frustrating.”

9) You’ve just given an employee feedback about performance and behavior that needs to change. You also recall guidance from the People Team about documenting performance-related conversations. What do you do next?

documentation

Plan to document it later.

Plan to revisit it verbally.

Send a follow-up message summarizing expectations and next steps.

Write a few notes for yourself.

Don’t document it.

10) During a feedback conversation, your direct report becomes defensive.

managing emotions

Slow down and ask what they’re feeling.

Ignore the emotion and continue to prevent tension in the room.

Acknowledge the emotion, tell them “I’m sorry you feel that way” and continue the rest of the meeting.

Tell them to stop being defensive.

Acknowledge the emotion and behavior you’re seeing, ask the employee to share their perspective, and adjust the conversation before moving forward.