Sharing negative feedback is a critical component of effective leadership — but while the benefits of receiving constructive criticism are clear, it’s less obvious how giving such feedback impacts leaders. While some leaders enjoy giving negative feedback, one survey found that 44% of managers find it stressful or difficult.
Giving Negative Feedback Can Make Empathetic Leaders Less Effective
We all know how it feels to receive negative feedback — but how does giving negative feedback impact the person delivering it? The authors conducted a series of studies with nearly 500 leaders and found that the impact of delivering negative feedback depended on how empathetic the leaders were. They found that high-empathy leaders became less effective at core leadership tasks after giving negative feedback (especially if the recipient had a strong negative reaction), while low-empathy leaders actually became more effective. Based on these findings, the authors offer several strategies for organizations to better support both high- and low-empathy leaders, including encouraging more-empathetic leaders to take breaks after giving negative feedback and training less-empathetic leaders on techniques for delivering feedback more compassionately.