#017 - Cloudy with a Chance of SaaS
4 Tips for Feedback
Design December
I’ve written a bit about my Masters of Design Methods degree. My design school experience was not about art, colors, layouts, or fonts. Instead, it focused on Strategy, Innovation, and Leadership, along with many research models based on repeatable methods. I will focus the next several posts on this type of Design. I recently listened to a podcast[1] and it reminded me of several tips or keys to keep in mind when observing or interviewing users, and capturing their feedback. As technical leaders and software developers who have spent countless hours creating your offering, our natural biases give us tremendous ownership of how it works, and please remember that feedback against this feeling of ownership is a gift and not an indictment of your capabilities.
Feedback Early and Often
Like voting in a Chicago election, we want to get feedback early and often. This feedback should not be from the direct stakeholders and/or sponsors. Instead, it should come from independent, outside parties. It is only when we open ourselves up to these outside influences that amazing things can happen. A fresh set of eyes and an outside perspective will always give you insights into how things are progressing with your creation. Getting feedback on each iteration and update ensures that you don’t stray too far from the needs and wants of real humans. With that said, there is always a certain amount of entrepreneurial license that needs to be undertaken, however, this does not free you from getting feedback early and often. Slight course corrections are always easier to incorporate versus a complete change of course after weeks, months, or years have gone by.
Feedback Cadence
Now that you accept early and often feedback is important, how often should you get this feedback? Like the drummer in the marching band, it is imperative that you create a consistent cadence of capture. In my experience, letting anything linger longer than a week is far too long. In reading about other organizations, getting and implementing feedback every other day on Tuesdays and Thursdays would be an advanced step. Having scheduled sessions with those outside contributors does a few things. First, it gets you on a schedule to learn. Second, it gets you used to hearing and seeing feedback. Third, it allows you to course correct before you are far too committed to an idea. Fourth, it gets you used to listening and comfortable with feedback on your ideas, which if you take anything from this article, is never an indictment of you. Fifth, it gets you and your organization thinking about how to inject and take in this feedback with empathy for your ultimate end users and consumers. Having a schedule and sticking to it, is the quickest way to learn and gain the insights necessary for delivering software in this modern world.
Feedback with Grace
Accepting feedback with grace can be difficult for most humans. Being wrong or incorrect is often associated with bad grades in school, losing out on opportunities, or just a general feeling of unease. In the team sport that is software creation, it is imperative that you lose this bias and fear. Remember your feedback session is a gift from the giver to you, and of course, you should not look a gift horse in the mouth. Sitting back and respectfully taking in all of the things the giver is giving you is key. Ensuring you don’t correct or give them any guidance is a hard thing for an observer but is the most important tip for ensuring the feedback you receive is genuine, actionable, and without biases, you can easily inject into the conversation. Just sitting back and listening will allow you to receive so much more, which in this case is the most important item.
Feedback on Feedback
If you are asking people for feedback, especially if they are teammates, or others close to you, you owe it to yourself and them, to take in that feedback with grace and humility as just noted. If people have taken time out of their day, and have injected their experiences and observations, it is a good idea to circle back with them and talk about how their feedback influenced your offering.. This does two things. First, it shows them that you listened to what they had to say. Second, it gives both of you time to explore the feedback and ensures you really did hear them. Just because they said to do this thing, sometimes, what they are asking for can more easily be addressed with a simpler or easier change. Allowing them and you to see the outcomes of the feedback, will empower future feedback sessions with deeper and more profound feedback for all.
Receiving feedback is a muscle like any other, and exercising it on a schedule, early and often, with grace and follow-up for the giving party, will supercharge your software creative efforts.
Thank You
Jim ‘The Designatic’ Tyrrell
[1] https://www.usersknow.com/podcast/2015/12/11/your-research-character