Delivering feedback to employees can be a tricky situation. While it’s in a supervisor’s best interest to deliver honest and accurate feedback to their employees, it can be quite difficult to do so in a tactful manner. Because of this, supervisors are often extremely hesitant when it comes to giving honest feedback. Unfortunately, this can lead to persistent problems, unresolved issues, and the creation of a subpar work environment. These are all problems which can ultimately affect the company’s profits. Here are several reasons why a supervisor should always provide honest feedback to their employees.

Sometimes an employee’s subpar performance may be a known issue by other employees on their team. Perhaps they always clock in fifteen minutes late in the morning, which is conveniently after essential morning tasks have already been completed. This may be an issue that fellow employees may not want to address, due to not wanting to negatively impact that workplace’s social culture. Also, that particular employee may have been in their position for so long that they feel they are able to get away with more than other employees with less tenure. Diego Ruiz Duran believes that a supervisor should tactfully address such issues with the employee in question. By doing so, a supervisor can effectively deal with the issues at hand, and promote positive change within the workplace.

Every employee will make a mistake once in a while. There is nothing wrong with an occasional small slip up from time to time, such as missing an email or occasional memo. Most employees will self correct such behaviors with little to no reprimand or retraining necessary. Occasionally, some employees will see acceptance of such slip ups as an unstated permission to let the quality of their job performance slip. This usually happens slowly over time, until it’s widely accepted that a particular employee is known for such behaviors.

This can be extremely toxic to a workplace if left to fester for too long. Such behavior can be contagious among a workforce, leading to lower productivity rates as well as less adherence to standards and protocols. This can also lead to decreased morale amongst employees who, inevitably, have to pick up the slack of every other subpar employee. Diego Ruiz Duran believes that providing employees with honest feedback is the best option for future improvement within any company and it’s workforce. By addressing small issues when they occur instead of letting them get worse, a supervisor can ensure that they are always aware of outstanding issues, and correct them before they get out of hand.

Some employees may truly believe they are doing a great job of carrying out their daily tasks and responsibilities, but maybe they always come up short of company standards and expectations. This may not be due to any fault of their own. Perhaps they received inadequate training, or even received outdated training by a tenured employee who’s become used to conducting business in a substandard manner. By providing honest feedback to this employee, a supervisor can help them acquire more adequate skills which can help them thrive at the workplace.

Providing employees with honest feedback does not have to be a daunting or intimidating experience. By staying objective, providing employees with constructive feedback, and offering them advice on how to improve their skills in the workplace, supervisors can turn performance assessments into a positive experience.