Main Body
Feedback and Leadership – Leadership in Public Health
Paige Erdeljac and Chris Westrick
“Feedback: The supply of an input to some process or system as a function of its output” (feedback). First documented in the latter half of the 1910s, the noun, feedback, was derived from the verbal phrase feed back. Providing feedback in the form of performance reviews began in the 1950s when the U.S. Government passed the Performance Rating Act, incentivizing government employees with pay increases and recognition for a job well done (Whitlock).
This chapter will take an in-depth look at feedback within the context of leadership. It will review feedback from a leadership quality perspective and discuss various available tools (360-degree feedback and performance appraisals) to assist with the provision of feedback. This chapter will also provide a detailed look at a few types of feedback as well as discuss the equally important response to aforementioned feedback. Methods for communicating feedback will be highlighted, as it is potentially as important as the feedback itself. We end the chapter with our response to the Five Guiding Questions for each of us.
Introduction
While there is no single “best” option for feedback, this chapter will help the reader understand the importance of and complexity to the provision of feedback, including some tools that may be used to improve its effectiveness. A question and answer session through the lens of the Five Guiding Questions with the authors will conclude the chapter on the quest to improving leadership and personal reflection on why they are so passionate about this topic. Let the journey begin!
Feedback in Leadership
Akin to an immunization or handwashing, feedback delivery and/or reception has long lasting positive impacts. While immunizations may sting temporarily, the long-term effects keep us healthy and strengthen our immune systems, and in some cases, have eradicated disease. Hand washing, while not unpleasant, can feel tedious, but is an extra step in preventing spread of germs. Likewise, feedback may not always be a “feel-good” experience and if done often (as it should be!), can start to feel unexciting (Riegel, 2017). However, multiple studies show that feedback, when delivered properly and at appropriate intervals, can ultimately reap multiple benefits that can include less burnout, less depression, improved immunity, increased job satisfaction, and greater mental and physical longevity (Nowack, 2014). As painful as it may be at the time, even negative feedback can incur positive benefits such as self-awareness and insight on what to work on next (Garnett, 2017).
There is such a thing as a healthy feedback culture where leaders and team members are open to and provide continuous feedback to one another in a way that promotes engagement and maximizes performance. Organizational psychologist, Adam Grant, an expert on originality writes “feedback is where we get other people to hold up a mirro