One of the ways organizations are implementing is through a continuous feedback process. While it may seem a straightforward process, it is not. Every developer takes feedback in different ways. Hence, it is important to engineer the feedback the right way.
Below are a few ways why continuous feedback is beneficial for both developers and engineering leaders:
Keeps everyone on the same page: Feedback enables individuals to be on the same page. No matter what type of tasks they are working on. It allows them to understand their strengths and improve their blind spots. Hence, provide high-quality work.
Facilitates improvement: Feedback enables developers the areas they need to improve and the opportunities they can grab according to their strengths. With the right context and motivation, it can encourage software developers to work on their personal and professional growth.
Nurtures healthy relationships: Feedback fosters open and honest communication. It lets developers be comfortable in sharing ideas and seeking support without any judgements even when they aren’t performing well.
Enhances user satisfaction: Feedback helps developers to enhance their quality of work. This can have a direct impact on user satisfaction which further positively affects the organization.
Strength performance management: Feedback enables you to set clear expectations, track progress, and provide ongoing support and guidance to developers. This further strengthens their performance and streamlines their workflow.
There are a lot of things to consider when giving effective and honest feedback. We’ve divided the process into three sections. Do check it out below:
Plan in advance how will you start the conversation, what is worth mentioning, and what is not. For example, if it is related to pull requests, can start by discussing their past performance related to the same. Further, you can talk about how well are they performing, whether they are delivering the work on time, rating their performance and action plan, and if there are any challenges they are facing. Make sure to relate it to the bigger picture.
When framed appropriately and constructively, it helps in focusing on improvement rather than criticism. It also enables developers to take feedback the right way and help them grow and succeed.
Observe and note down everything related to the developers. Track their performance continuously. Jot down whatever noticed even if it is not worth mentioning during the feedback session. It allows you to share feedback more accurately and comprehensively. It also helps you to identify the trends and patterns in developer performance and lets them know that the feedback isn’t based on isolated incidents but rather the consistent observation.
For example, XYZ is a software developer at ABC organization. The engineering leader observed XYZ for three months before delivering effective feedback. She told him:
So, the engineering leader was able to discuss effectively his strengths and areas of improvement.
Before offering feedback to software development teams, make sure you are well aware of the differences between constructive feedback and criticism. Constructive feedback encourages developers to enhance their personal and professional development. On the other hand, criticism enables developers to be defensive and hinder their progress.
Constructive feedback allows you to focus on the behavior and outcome of the developers and help them by providing actionable insights while criticism focuses on faults and mistakes without providing the right guidance.
For example,
Situation: A developer’s recent code review missed several critical issues.
Feedback: “Your recent code review missed a few critical issues, like the memory leak in the data processing module. Next time, please double-check for potential memory leaks. If you’re unsure how to spot them, let’s review some strategies together.”
Criticism: “Your code reviews are sloppy and miss too many important issues. You need to do a better job.”
Review previous feedback given to developers before the session. Check what was last discussed and make sure to bring it up again. Also, include those that were you tracking during this time and connect them with the previous feedback process. Look for metrics such as pull request activity, work progress, team velocity, work log, check-ins, and more to get in-depth insights about their work. You can also gather peer reviews to get 360-degree feedback and understand better how well individuals are performing.
This makes your feedback balanced and takes into account all aspects of developers’ contributions and challenges.
The feedback shouldn’t be a top-down approach. It must go both ways. You can start by bringing up the discussion that happened in the previous feedback session. Know their opinion and perspective on certain topics and ideas. Make sure that you ask questions to make them realize that you respect their opinions and want to hear what they want to discuss.
Now, share your feedback based on the last discussion, observations, and performance. You can also modify your feedback based on their perspective and reflections. It allows the feedback to be detailed and comprehensive.
When you have shared their areas of improvement, make sure you provide them with clear actionable plans as well. Discuss with them what needs immediate attention and what steps can they take. Set small goals with them as it makes it easier to focus on them and let them know that their goals are important. You must also schedule follow-up meetings with them after they reach every step and understand if they are facing any challenges. You can also provide resources and tools that can help them attain their goals.
Developed by the Center for Creative Leadership, the SBI stands for situation, behavior, and impact framework. It includes:
Example: Last week’s team collaboration on the new feature development.
Example: “You did not participate actively in the brainstorming sessions and missed a few important meetings.”
Example: “This led to a lack of input from your side, and we missed out on potentially valuable ideas. It also caused some delays as we had to reschedule discussions.”
Final words could be: “Please ensure to attend all relevant meetings and actively participate in discussions. Your contributions are important to the team.”
This allows for delivering feedback that is clear, actionable, and respectful. It makes it relevant and directly tied to the situation. Note that, this framework is for both positive and negative feedback.
It is also important to know if any constraints are negatively impacting their performance. It could include tight deadlines or a heavy workload that is hampering their productivity or facing health issues due to which they aren’t able to focus properly. Ask them while you deliver feedback to them. You can further create actionable plans accordingly. This shows developers that you care for them and makes the feedback more personalized and relevant. Besides this, it also allows you to share tangible improvements rather than adding more pressure.
For example: “During the last sprint, there were a few missed deadlines. Is there something outside of work that might be affecting your ability to meet these deadlines? Please let me know if there’s anything we can do to accommodate your situation.”
Before concluding the meeting, ask them if there’s anything they would like to discuss. It could likely be that they have missed out on something or it wasn’t bought up during the session.
Afterwards, summarize what has been discussed. Ask the developers what are their key takeaways from the session and share your perspective as well. You can document the summary to help you and developers in the future feedback meetings. This gives mutual understanding and ensures that both are on the same page.
Keep a record of what was discussed during this session and action plans provided to the developers. You can take a look at them in future feedback meetings or performance evaluations. An example of the structure of summary:
Ensure you give them measurable goals and timelines during the feedback session. Monitor their progress through check-ins, provide ongoing support and guidance, and keep discussing the challenges or roadblocks they are facing. It helps the developers stay on track and feel supported throughout their journey.
Typo is an effective software engineering intelligence platform that can help in improving the feedback process within development teams. Here’s how Typo’s features can be leveraged to enhance feedback sessions:
For more information, visit our website!
Software developers deserve high-quality feedback. It not only helps them identify their blind spots but also polishes their skills. The feedback loop lets developers know where they stand and the recognition they deserve.
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