Google’s Use of Feedback to Determine Good Behaviors of Managers

Feedback is defined by K & K as “objective information about performance” (201). Feedback can both instruct and motivate and it is used in organizations across the world to improve employee performance. At Google, performance reviews are performed on a quarterly basis and employees are both reviewed and review their own bosses, using what the book defines as both traditional and upward feedback (205). An interesting article about how Google has used this feedback to improve management was published in the New York Times in March called "Google's Quest to Build a Better Boss." Since 2009, Google has compiled these performance reviews along with feedback surveys in a plan called Project Oxygen, which attempts to figure out the habits of the most effective managers (Byrant). They gathered more than 10,000 comments from over 100 variables, and looked for patterns within the comments (Byrant).

In the end they came up with” Eight Good Behaviors of Managers”. These behaviors were numbered by importance, listing the most important aspect to being a good manager to “Be a good coach. Provide specific, constructive feedback balancing the negative and the positive. Have regular one-on-ones, presenting solutions to problems tailored to your employees’ specific strengths” (Byrant). This goes in hand with K & K’s suggestion that to properly respond to a common employee complaint that feedback is too complex managers should “Help employees understand the feedback by being specific and identifying observable behaviors or measurable results” (203).

While advice such as this is by no means innovative, Google believes that this project was worth it because they want to know “what works at Google, rather than what worked at any other organization” (Byrant) This project has also allowed Google to coach individual managers and allowed them to make improvement to 75% of the worst performing managers (Byrant). However, Google also considers the biases that go into performance reviews and has a list of “cognitive biases” to employees to consider when participating in performance reviews (Byrant).

This project is especially interesting because Google has determined that managers themselves receive better feedback when they in turn provide constructive feedback to their employees. This really seems to show just how essential feedback really is for employees. Employees feel that feedback and coaching is essential to their growth and they reward managers who provide specific and balanced feedback. Satisfaction with management also results in better work performance.

In my own experience, I have also found that receiving good feedback is really important to my performance and development. Whether it is at school or during an internship, I have found that I work the hardest when I am aware of where I am meeting my goals and where I am falling short. My strongest mentors have been those who have shown a genuine interest in my development and have given me constructive feedback to help me improve.

It seems clear that effective feedback is really essential in organizations both for employees and management. Employees need feedback in order to become more of aware of their strengths and weaknesses so that they can improve and become the most productive. Managers need feedback so that they can see their own strengths and weaknesses, learn how to be more effective leaders and coaches and in turn provide effective feedback to their employees. Google's use of performance reviews to not only determine promotions, but also improve the organizational culture as a whole, is an effective strategy that other organizations would do well to consider.