Feedback is NOT a sandwich; 'Where's the BEEF?'

A colleague of mine, who is an internationally known author and speaker, successful entrepreneur, comic and really great guy, just loaded me into a time machine and took me back to the 1980's, where we invented the CD, invested in Microsoft and moon-walked our way across the dance floor.

OK, just kidding.  Though I do wish I had invested in Microsoft and if anyone is looking for a blazer with HUUUUGE shoulder pads, I still have a couple.

What my friend did do is publish an article on 'How to Give Feedback' that took me back in time.  It was all about the 'sandwich technique'.  Now, no offense to my pal or any of you that are fans of that approach, but, in the iconic words of a gravelly voiced Little Old Lady, "Where's the Beef?" 

For those of you too young to remember the 'sandwich' approach to giving corrective feedback (and who also probably don't remember that Little Old Lady's name), a quick review;

The 'sandwich technique' involved stuffing the corrective (Perhaps unpleasant? Unwelcome?) bit of feedback between two fluffy, nutritionally insignificant slabs of positive.  

Might sound a bit like this; "Wendy, it's great how you are all set to start work when you get to your desk, I really appreciate that you take the time to get breakfast, since it is the most important meal of the day...unfortunately, you are always 45 minutes late.  Do you think you could try to get to work on time in the future?...  Thanks so much for trying to do that and it's great that you bring coffee and donuts for the team, that's so very thoughtful, yummy!"

WRONG!  And on so many levels.

This style of feedback delivery harkens back to the days where supervisors and coaches were frequently the associates who had been working in the department the longest and had few qualifications and precious little training for delivering effective performance feedback.  This technique  was great because is was all 'warm and fuzzy', had a lot of buildup to get the coach going, and a nice smooth landing on the other side where the coach could re-establish that they were still 'friends'.  

It resulted in very little pushback from the recipient and even less actual CHANGE in performance.  Why?  Because clumping together all that feedback takes away from the positive, creates confusion so that the recipient doesn't know what to focus on, and, it leads people to begin to expect something negative is going to follow the positive.

"Honey, I love you but..."

Truth be told, the 'sandwich' approach is an attempt to manipulate people into accepting negative or constructive feedback and it is dated, ineffective and, frankly, insulting.

Feedback is a gift.  I know, we have all joked about the 'gift' of feedback, but you know what?  It is.  

No longer are supervisors and coaches chosen simply because they have been at the company the longest.  Service organizations recognize that those roles require very specific skills and competencies, as well as ongoing training, and are investing in hiring and promoting highly qualified, dedicated and committed people and entrusting them with the ongoing development of their critical, front-line representatives... the face of the company.

At the same time, the role and responsibilities of customer service representatives have become more clear, demanding and valued.  No longer are these folks order-takers and glorified operators, no... they are the direct conduit between a company and its customers, an unparallelled resource to collect information, track trends and generate revenue.  Today's customer service representatives do the heavy lifting for their organizations and that muscle needs more than a slice of bologna between two pieces of white bread to get the job done.

Feedback needs to have substance, be able to fuel growth, whether it is affirming a positive behavior, boosting an attempt or correcting a deficit.  At Radclyffe we have been instructing coaches on just how to maximize the value of their feedback sessions for nearly 20 years.  We have 'cracked the code' and developed a proven methodology, grounded in adult learning principles, that insures maximum retention and measurable improvement, when applied consistently; Radclyffe Partners ABC's of Immediate Feedback (TM).

If you have observed a behavior that needs to be addressed, you owe it to your representative or co-worker to do so in a clear, direct, respectful and constructive manner by following our strategy which focuses on ONE behavior at a time, gives either positive or constructive feedback - not BOTH - and is designed to insure that the associate is able to internalize the feedback without having an emotional response to it.

"Wendy, I wanted to speak with you about your attendance.  I notice that you arrive at 9am, but then go to the cafeteria to get your coffee and breakfast.  As a result, you aren't actually at your desk and available to take incoming calls until 9:20 or later.  If you want to get breakfast here, I'd suggest that you plan on getting on campus by 8:30 to give you enough time to get settled at your desk by 9.  Please give that a try, alright?"

No fluff, no filler, no indigestible by-products... a few minutes of preparation on the part of the coach, a few seconds of delivery side-by-side on the floor, a commitment to change and everyone gets on with business.

That is where you find the BEEF!  (Or, veggie protein, for our vegan friends)  

The ABC's of Immediate Coaching is just one component in our comprehensive Coaching for Service Excellence program, which includes in depth training and practice in the four most effective types of coaching, how to introduce and roll out your coaching program, get support and buy-in from all levels of the organization, track and analyze trends both by rep and department and use the coaching feedback and data to make reviews and performance plans a breeze to write and deliver.

We are so excited by this set of tools and how brilliantly effective they are, that we would like to offer a complimentary hour of consulting to help you or your coaches apply them within your organization.  

To get your coaching session, simply do two things; 

-sign up via email to have each new 'Customer Service Tail' delivered right to your inbox, and...


-leave me a comment including the name of that Crotchety Little Old Lady who was searching for the beef in the Wendy's commercials.

We'll contact you to work out the scheduling details.  Look forward to chatting!