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In the professional world, feedback plays an essential role in fostering individual growth, improving team performance and reinforcing corporate culture.
However, giving effective feedback isn't always easy, and that's where the OSCAR method can be a great help.
This will enable you to deconstruct a situation in several stages, in order to formulate clear feedback that your interlocutor can accept.
At some point, we've all received feedback that, instead of helping us to improve, locked us into a projection of failure. The aim of this method is to help you avoid that pitfall.
Poor feedback lacks clarity, constructiveness and respect. It is often characterized by vague criticism, unsupported personal judgments, or aggressive communication.
Poorly formulated negative feedback can not only leave the person concerned confused as to what needs to be improved, but also create tension within the team.
Bad feedback ignores the other person's feelings and can even be demotivating. Instead of inspiring a desire to improve, they can provoke a defensive reaction or hostility.
To avoid this, it is essential to give constructive feedback, such as that encouraged by the OSCAR method, which promotes professional growth and personal development.
Good feedback is constructive, well-articulated feedback designed to help a person improve in a given area. It is characterized by clarity, specificity and respect for the person concerned.
Effective feedback is based on factual observations, avoiding hasty judgments or personal criticism. It takes into account the individual's feelings, while highlighting the consequences of his or her behavior for the team or company.
Good feedback doesn't just point out problems, it also suggests concrete actions to resolve the situation.
The main aim of quality feedback is to encourage personal development, improve performance and foster a healthy, productive working environment.
The OSCAR method is designed to guide you in formulating good feedback that will help your interlocutors.
Let's see what's behind this acronym:
The first step in the OSCAR method is to objectively observe the situation or behavior on which you wish to give feedback. Avoid subjective judgments and focus on concrete facts or observable behavior.
For example, instead of saying "You're often late for meetings," say "At our last three kick-off meetings, you arrived 10 minutes late."
Explain the consequences of the behavior in question. How does it affect projects, interpersonal relationships or company objectives? For example, "Being late for meetings delays our decision-making, hurts our overall productivity and generates tension with other employees who feel their time is not being respected."
Suggest concrete, achievable actions to resolve the situation. Encourage the person to take steps to prevent the problem from recurring. For example, "Can you set reminders so you don't miss the start of a meeting? Or announce your departure time at your other meetings so you don't overschedule one on top of the other?"
Finally, describe the positive benefits that the suggested solution will bring for the employee. For example, "If you arrive on time for meetings, the ideas you want to put forward will be more easily listened to, and all collaborators will feel more respected."
The OSCAR method has many advantages for companies and individuals:
Bear in mind that feedback benefits both the person receiving the feedback and the person giving it.
One of the fundamental principles to remember is common sense: give feedback the way you'd like to receive it.
It's important to avoid certain pitfalls when formulating your feedback:
It's worth noting that this method doesn't just apply to negative feedback - you can also give positive feedback!
However, it's vital to avoid sandwich feedback where you mix positive and negative feedback. It's better to formulate two distinct feedbacks.
Here's an example of bad feedback:
"I've been told you've turned in several deliverables late, you're not serious and you're making us look like amateurs."
OS: Here the facts aren't clear, we use "I've been told" and talk about several deliverables, it's all a blur.
C: The consequence is similar to a value judgment towards the employee, who is likely to be on the defensive for the rest of the discussion.
A & R: No actionable ideas are put forward, no dialogue is opened to find solutions. Feedback only leads to increased tension.
Let's reformulate this feedback so that it produces the desired result:
OS: The deliverable for customer Y for which you were responsible was X days late in relation to the planned date.
C: It damages our reputation with the customer and jeopardizes our collaboration with them.
A: What setbacks have you encountered? I suggest you notify the project manager when a delay occurs.
A: It's less stressful for you, and we can work together to find a solution while communicating with our customer.
Like any other process, implementing the OSCAR method requires a certain amount of support.
Role Based Management offers an innovative approach to managing roles, responsibilities and collaboration within your organization. By assigning clearly defined roles, facilitating meetings and structuring actions to be taken, RBM promotes transparent governance and informed decision-making.
It's a good way of supporting change to create an organizational structure where people feel comfortable collaborating, including providing feedback to help everyone move forward.
