Week 6 - Discussion 2 - Observer Feedback Guidelines

The book details a 10-step guideline for observers to follow while giving feedback to a group. Generally speaking, these guidelines include:
Avoid generalizations and give specific, clear, and concise feedback. Compliment the group members publicly but criticize in private. This will eliminate anyone trying to defend their actions, or others jumping on the bandwagon and criticizing. That is not what feedback is for. Similarly, you always want to focus on the positives more than the negatives.

Next, you want to focus on behaviors that can be changed while not micromanaging every single thing. Don’t say that you don’t like a certain member, or you think a member has bias because of outside factors or something. Instead focus on matters that can change, such as how much time is spent on one task, or if everyone in the group is given equal chance to speak. Similarly, do not criticize every little thing – Remember that you want the group to become successful by itself; you are not the new group leader.

Finally, remember that you are an observer. You are not a member of the group, you are not the leader, you are not the taskmaster or the note taker. You are there to provide constructive criticism for the group to improve how they act as a group, not improve the subject of their work.