How to Provide Negative Feedback (advice from Arlyn Recruiting’s director!)

No one enjoys being the bearer of bad news. Like it or not, feedback is critical in keeping a well-run team. Our director, Stephen Danvers, founder and CEO of Arlyn Recruiting has a career built on 26 years of people management, and 16 in the legal industry. In other words, he has perfected the art of providing feedback of all varieties. Here’s what he has to say on how to navigate those tougher conversations.

First, meet in a private setting, frame your conversation around facts rather than assumptions and look for solutions.

When the employee demonstrates inappropriate behaviour, explain what you’ve seen and how it directly affects the team. Come at the issue in as non-threatening a way as possible and with the goal of gaining a greater understanding the situation.

Show possible solutions and the new outcomes possible if they choose to change their behaviour. Make suggestions and provide some ideas around how they might be able to improve their performance or avoid causing conflict.

We recently met a job candidate who was attempting to transition across industries and although they had ample confidence and some interesting background highlighted on their resume, they lacked legal education. Their high level of confidence read as entitlement to roles for which they were simply not qualified.

“I could immediately read that he was about ego and wanted to argue, wanted a challenge,” Danvers says. “I acknowledged this and his strengths and where he was coming from, to bring him down.”

He followed it up with clear, honest advice — the kind of direct feedback that his friends and colleagues have never provided, but words the candidate was very interested in hearing. Within minutes, the candidate had been rejected from the job, laughing and thanking Danvers for the career coaching.

“Because his personality is so strong, people tend to avoid giving this person the negative feedback he needs (and wants) to hear.”

So how do you know when someone is on the market for a challenge, that they want criticism to foster debate and personal growth? How do you know that they’ll laugh and agree when you tell them their resume is falling short? There’s no checklist for that. Spotting bold egos who thrive on powerful, direct communication is a skill honed over time and as many tough conversations as there are employees.

Got a question that needs some answering? Looking for some advice yourself? Feel free to drop us an email at info@arlynrecruiting.com or leave us a message in the comment section below. We're here to help!

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Our approach to Legal Recruitment is different. Once you get to know us you’ll see just what we mean. We are the only legal recruitment agency in Vancouver that offers the full range of Human Resources services, including recruiting, training, and consulting advice tailored to your unique firm’s needs: everything from performance management to policy development.

We take the time to make the match and our intuitive ability combined with our solid foundation in Human Resources allows us to put the right person in the right job. We are honest with everyone, both clients and applicants.

Our commitment to building long term relationships with our clients and candidates is at the heart of our approach to legal recruiting. At Arlyn Recruiting, we believe we are the best legal recruitment agency in Vancouver for jobs including lawyer positions, paralegals, legal assistants and temps.

So if you’re ready to see how we can help you make the right career choice for you send us your resume today!