The “Sandwich Approach” Dilemma in Giving Negative Feedback

“Feedback is the breakfast of champions,” said Ken Blanchard. Every good leader knows that giving and receiving negative feedback is the hardest battle of all, and most of the times, we try to minimize the casualties by wrapping our feedback in beautiful wrappings of meaningless pep talk and squeeze the real motive of discussion between positive feedbacks. That is how they coined the term “sandwich approach” because it is the most common way of confronting employees with awkward feedback, which in turn, undermines both your feedback and your respect in the eyes of your subordinates.

There are various reasons why it does not work well in a professional environment when most of us simply assume that it would. You will find hundreds of entrepreneurs, especially, the small business owners, who claim to have used this method frequently and give several reasons for it. Let us look at some of the most common misconceptions about using this approach and why it fails every single time:

It Sounds Kinder:

Hell, no! Trapping your direct reports in a confusing analysis of good, bad, and good again, and then expecting them to improve on your given feedback is NOT kind. It only ‘sounds’ kinder, exactly what you expect. But you use that expectation for the wrong reason. If you believe that it is easier to take negative feedback in the middle of positive feedback, you are, in reality, being unfair to your team. Why? Let me ask you this simple question: How would you prefer to hear the negative feedback yourself – a feedback sandwich or just the meat? If you still go on giving a mixed review of performance, they would either feel alienated or not care at all, thinking that you didn’t really mean it. They might even believe that you used the negative feedback to sound constructive and counterbalance the positive feedback.

It Sounds Balanced:

Like I just said that your direct reports, as well as yourself, usually take it as a means of balancing the overall evaluation and do not consider it genuine. Most leaders prefer their staff to think that negative feedback is only a small part of their performance analysis. But what would you do while giving an all-positive feedback to your direct reports? Are you going to balance it with some negative feedback too? Do you want your subordinates to think that that is how you work? You should never hold back on a positive feedback to share with a negative one. It is your principal job as a leader, to create an operating environment where your direct reports can learn and thrive as a result of that timely learning.

Feedback Sandwich Does Not Work – Avoid the Unilaterally Controlling Strategy!

 A compelling business environment can only be achieved through employee engagement. The best way of making that happen would be by using transparent strategies by the leaders and avoiding the sandwich approach at all cost. Because, if you try to work on your subordinates without telling them what you are doing, it is a unilaterally controlling strategy, which can be described as a strategy that helps you influence others but does not let you be influenced by them in return.

For example, if you have a subordinate, Paul, who you need to give some negative feedback to, are you going to make sure that he does not feel angry or disappointed and takes it easy upon hearing the negative remarks? Are you going to start off with some positive feedback, then dish out the real deal – the negative feedback, which was the real purpose of the meeting – and then, end the discussion with some more positive feedback? Have you considered how that really works for him? Imagine telling your strategy to other people.

You need to realize that in this situation, you are unilaterally controlling everything and not letting the other person in on the plan. This kind of thing only works when the other person does not know what you are up to or is willing to play along. This strategy is ineffective in creating a productive work environment.

Apply a Potent, Transparent Strategy!

So, how do you really get things working under the circumstances? You should provide a transparent negative feedback, and facilitate your and your subordinate’s potential to learn from the feedback.

Here is another scenario for you: “Paul, I would like to talk to you because I have some concerns. The file that you sent to the other team today may have some loopholes and that might create some confusion regarding our strategy. Let me tell you what I have in mind for this meeting and see if it helps you in any way. I want to start by discussing my own analysis of the suggestions in that file, explain my concerns, and see if you saw the same things. Once we agree on how things are, I want to say more about my concerns and see if you share them. After that, we will see if there is anything we can do to eliminate the errors. I would like to learn if I contributed to the concerns I’m raising somehow. How does that work for you?”

There are various reasons why this transparent approach works better than the rest. For starters, you are sharing your strategy with Paul and you both come up with a meeting process that works for both of you. You both get a chance to learn from it. Secondly, as you are both aware of the game plan; you can work collectively in order to keep the meeting on track. Last but not least, is the fact that you are now exploring all the possibilities of what happened and how you can best overcome it and move forward with your direct report, and not just telling him what to do.

This transparent approach of learning is a sure-winner because it results from a change in your mindset. You now take negative feedback as a way of helping your subordinates improve, along with you learning about the things you might be missing, otherwise. It now becomes a mutual learning experience where you both make informed choices. Ultimately, giving a transparent negative feedback is a way of respecting your staff members, with an approach that does not alienate or control them. Instead, it makes both the negative and the positive feedbacks sound more genuine to them, as well as lowering their anxiety.