How Feedback Drives Effective Teams

The science behind team-based feedback

Just as agile teams conduct post-project retrospectives to understand what worked and what didn’t at the team level, team-based feedback acts a powerful tool for helping team members and leads understand the strengths and opportunities at the individual level. Further, because many teams launch and complete projects outside of standard performance reviews, team-based feedback is particularly valuable for capturing critical behavioral data for growth and development. 

In addition to contributing to the success of critical projects, team-based feedback acts as a multi-pronged source of input which helps improve feedback quality and reduce bias. As a result, managers can be better informed about their direct reports from those who work most closely with them even though those individuals may not share “official” connected lines on the org chart. 

Further, employees are increasingly interested in driving their own development, and they want feedback from those they work with, especially as their work changes over time, rather than just getting feedback from their managers. In many cases, managers rarely see the actual work their direct reports do, thus, they’re not in a position to provide meaningful feedback without input from others. 

Based on research by Google (Project Aristotle) and findings by behavioral scientists specializing in team dynamics, there are a handful of core factors that influence team success. A few of the most influential components include:

What’s the common thread that runs through each of these components of effective teams?  Candid feedback and open communication among team members and leaders.

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