1. EMBO laboratory management course © Dr. Conor John Fitzsimons (Baden-Baden), Dr. Klaus Wagenhals (Mühlheim/Main) (2005) Guidelines for Giving Feedback The purpose of feedback is to reduce any blind spots achieve openness with each other prevent misunderstanding develop trust in each other give the other person a positive response address disturbing behaviour directly In giving and receiving feedback appropriately, I send the other person a signal that he is important to me!

2. EMBO laboratory management course © Dr. Conor John Fitzsimons (Baden-Baden), Dr. Klaus Wagenhals (Mühlheim/Main) (2005) Giving Feedback To give someone feedback means, being open to him. Being open can come as a shock to the other person and reduce his ability to hear. Therefore Check if the other person is prepared to hear the feedback Check the appropriateness of your feedback Check the timing of your feedback Feedback needs to be descriptive Check how the other person has heard your feedback. If youre not sure that the other person has heard what you intended, then ask, and supply more detail. Check if your feedback is really helpful and if it fits into the conversation. Consider if you are just trying to offload some of your own aggression. Be spontaneous with your information. Dont allow your anger to fester. However, dont embarrass someone before a third-party and always limit yourself to the behaviour you have observed.

3. EMBO laboratory management course © Dr. Conor John Fitzsimons (Baden-Baden), Dr. Klaus Wagenhals (Mühlheim/Main) (2005) Receiving Feedback Ask others regularly for feedback Avoid justifying your behaviour or defending yourself Check the validity of the information Respond, no matter if youre angry or flattered An attack by someone can also be a form of feedback: it could mean that he is angered by some specific behaviour of yours. Dont go directly on the counter-attack, but ask for more information. And ask yourself, what the other person was trying to express about you, to you. In most cases, an open exchange is liberating, but most people need to experience this to believe it. When you request feedback and in response, share how you feel about this information, you are contributing to the development of a feedback culture. Most people are not used to giving and receiving true feedback. They can encourage others to improve their behaviour in this area by setting a good example themselves.