Interpersonal Skills in Organizations (provididing feedback) - Essay Example

Providing Feedback Providing feedback is a very powerful tool both at a personal level and in organizations as well. Providing feedback ensures that a person or organization understands the outcomes of a course of action and therefore provides the best way forward. This way the person getting the feedback is able to make an evaluation on progress on the specific issue being addressed. I had a chance of giving feedback on a work colleague who had personal issues at the workplace. This paper seeks to give the actual situation that I had to give the feedback as well as the feedback.

My work colleague had a personal problem at the work place. The actual problem was that he had a problem managing his money and therefore would always run out of the money before the payday. Although he had been able to cope with the situation with the help of his wife, the problem escalated when his first-born was hospitalized. Paying the medical bills and a personal therapist became a heavy burden to him. The work performance began to decline due to lack of concentration and commitment. He also became aggressive and overly sensitive to small issues within the workplace.

This made it difficult for other workmates to suggest solutions or provide any assistance. Since he is a very close friend, he found it worthwhile to seek feedback from me after getting a warning letter from the human resource manager. I used my interpersonal skills to provide a feedback to my colleague. It began with his acknowledgment that he actually had a personal problem and that he needed a feedback from me. Instead of criticizing him for causing the problem, I made it clear to him that the problem was real and it needed to be addressed.

I made him realize the actual source of the problem by taking a personal reflection on past and present expenses. This way he was able to focus on the specific problem, which was finance mismanagement. The feedback particularly focused on specific ways in which my colleague spends his money. I was able to pinpoint the specific unnecessary expenses that resulted to financial distress. I also explained to him how his aggressive behavior has affected his work output and his interpersonal relationship with the rest of the working team.

Particularly, I made him understand that he had become insensitive, and less focused on the work. By having a personal connection and assuring confidence, I was able to involve him in a feedback loop whereby he affirmed that indeed the observations were true. The next step of the feedback involved devising specific ways in which to address the spendthrift behavior. This was done upon his request. I gave him very useful tips on how to avoid unnecessary spending by keeping an updated budget of all necessary expenses.

Since he is a computer enthusiast, I encouraged him to get free expense tracker software from the internet and install it on his laptop. This way he would be in a position to control all his expenses by observing his spending behavior. Conclusion The feedback to my workmate was successful. By use of interpersonal and communication skills, I was able to establish a confidential platform to give the feedback. Specific problem was discussed and a constructive feedback on a good course of action given.

He promised to work on the problem and change his attitude towards fellow workmates. He also requested me to keep a close look on his progress and give another feedback after some time.