The Inquiry
A manager, whom I’ll refer to as Justin, recently reached out to me to discuss a challenge that he and his fellow managers are grappling with. As dedicated professionals, they take their roles seriously, particularly the responsibility to develop their staff—helping them develop their skills, earn promotions, and progress in their careers. However, they’ve encountered a recurring issue: some employees seem unresponsive to their manager’s feedback.

The Lament
Justin summarized the team’s shared frustrations with remarks such as:

• “I wish my staff would communicate more openly with me or their project supervisors.”
• “When I work with [employee], it’s difficult to understand what they’re working on,whether they need help, or how they’re performing.”

This consistent struggle prompted Justin to ask, “Do you have any articles or insights about why some employees fail to act on feedback, even when it’s delivered multiple times? As a seasoned leader, I’ve seen this often enough to wonder why seemingly straightforward feedback is so rarely addressed.”

The Frustration
Justin’s frustration is warranted—and understandable. Many of us have faced similar challenges in our professional lives. His question is straightforward: what can managers do to address this issue effectively?

When faced with situations that defy logic, our minds naturally seek explanations to bridge the gaps. In this case, Justin and his colleagues speculated that employees who don’t respond to feedback might lack commitment to their roles or career growth. They even considered whether this behavior might be an early indicator of an under-performer.

The Solution
Here’s the encouraging news: there are practical steps managers can take to address their staff’s inattentiveness to feedback. However, doing so requires an elevated level of skill and understanding beyond the fundamentals of management.

In the next three editions of Monday Messages, we will introduce a set of actionable skills designed to help managers get results from their feedback efforts. These skills are drawn from our Delivering Effective Feedback course, which equips managers with the tools they need to lead and communicate more successfully.

If you think of someone who would benefit from these skills, please forward this and the following Messages to them. Better, encourage them to subscribe to the Monday Message here.