How to build a feedback culture that works
Every leader wants their team to communicate better, and often feedback is the missing piece; either avoided altogether, or delivered in a way that causes more confusion than clarity. Without honest feedback, teams fall into habits of avoidance. Small issues grow into big ones. People talk around problems instead of addressing them, and performance, trust and psychological safety all suffer.
Open communication doesn’t mean saying everything that’s on your mind at all times, it means creating a culture where feedback is expected, welcomed and useful - where people feel confident naming what’s working, and what’s not.
Here are five practical ways leaders can create the conditions for feedback that strengthens teams.
1. Set the tone early and often
People take their cues from what’s modelled, not just what’s said. If you want your team to speak up, you need to show what that looks like. That means being open about what you’re working on, asking for feedback yourself, and showing that critical input won’t be punished or ignored. The goal is to normalise feedback so that it becomes a regular, useful part of team life.
2. Be clear about what feedback is for
Feedback works best when it's understood as a tool for learning that supports improvement and growth, rather than being used to police behaviour or highlight flaws. It's something that helps everyone improve over time, together. The clearer you are about this, the safer it becomes to give and receive it. Be specific about what kind of feedback you’re looking for: do you want insight on delivery? On clarity? On the decision itself? When people understand the purpose, they’re more likely to engage.
3. Build it into your team rhythm
If feedback only happens in formal reviews, it quickly becomes disconnected from the real work. The most effective teams build regular, low-stakes feedback moments into their routine, from short check-ins to project retros. These are opportunities to surface what’s going well and what needs attention, without turning it into a performance issue.
4. Make it about the work, not the person
The fastest way to shut someone down is to make feedback feel personal. Keep the focus on actions, outcomes and impact. Instead of "you didn’t communicate clearly," try "the message wasn’t clear and that created confusion for the team." Framing matters. Feedback is more effective when it’s tied to shared goals and specific outcomes, rather than focused on personal traits.
5. Notice and name good feedback behaviours
The best way to embed a feedback culture is to recognise it when it happens. If someone gives clear, respectful input or takes difficult feedback with openness, acknowledge it. Over time, this helps shift feedback from something uncomfortable to something constructive, making it a normal part of how the team works.
When feedback becomes a regular habit, teams communicate more clearly, make better decisions and build stronger trust, and like anything that matters, it requires deliberate design and consistent support.
Want to get feedback right with your team? Enquire about booking the Working With Me™ approach for your team or arrange a discovery call.
FAQs on on giving and receiving feedback in teams
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That’s a signal to slow down and check the conditions. Was the feedback clear and specific? Was there enough trust? Reactivity is often a sign that psychological safety is missing, and the feedback environment needs more support.
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Start small by asking about processes rather than personalities, and invite suggestions on how a task could have gone better. Make it low-stakes and build up. The more people see feedback handled well, the more likely they are to engage.
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It can be if it’s vague, uninvited or always critical. When feedback is part of regular working rhythms and shared goals, it stops feeling like a disruption and starts feeling like part of how the team improves.