Broadly, feedbacks are classified as
- Developmental
- Appreciative & Positive
- Performance
- Coaching
- Continuous
- 360-degree
More than 1 type of feedback can be used depending on the need.
- Developmental feedback is used when an employee is expected to gain some new knowledge or learn new skills that chosen line(s) of work need.
- The more common Performance feedback is used to convey how well an employee is at her/his job and it includes praise for the good work, a bit of positive criticism, and maybe some specific suggestions for improvement too!
- Appreciative & Positive feedback is used to let know the employees that their contribution, hard/smart work, achievement, effort, and dedication are appreciated. This might translate into Rewards and/or Recognitions too.
- When some specific skills of an employee need to be honed, such as communication skills (interpersonal and otherwise) or leadership skills, then the Coaching feedback method is used.
- Continuous feedback is more hands-on and is used to let know an appreciation of a good work done, and also helps quickly identify and set right the negative performance or behaviour. Such hands-on feedback is good for both the organization and for the individual, when handled professionally and with care.
- A 360-degree feedback is a within the ‘feedback macrocosm’. It is kept anonymous to minimize or neutralize any ‘personal disconnects’ that may arise due to receiving critical feedback from one’s managers, upline managers, peers even. The 360-degree feedback helps setup a multi-point rating and could directly be fed into an employee’s development plan.