Feedback can be positive or corrective. Positive feedback consists of giving a reward to employees when they do something correctly or well. It includes raises, bonuses, promotions, formal recognition at meetings, or just plan praise. It tells employees what they are doing well and encourages further efforts. It can also prevent discipline problems from occurring later on.
Corrective feedback involves showing an employee a quick way to solve a performance problem.
It can be uncomfortable to give corrective feedback. One way to ease the discomfort is for managers to recognize that corrective feedback can benefit the employees as well as the company. It shows employees what they can do to work more effectively and confidently, it helps them develop good work habits, and it increases motivation as employees know that their manager cares whether they do a good job. Some managers even find it difficult to deliver positive feedback as they worry about sounding insincere, glossing over other performance issues, or being accused of favoritism. Yet, positive feedback has too many benefits to ignore.