Feedback, Reviews & 1:1s
How feedback and reviews actually drive growth, not just paperwork.
360-Degree Feedback
360-degree feedback, or a 360 review, is a process where an employee gets feedback from people all around them at work: their manager, peers, direct reports, and sometimes clients, plus their own self-assessment. Responses are usually anonymous and combined into one report. It is mainly used for development, especially for managers and leaders.
Coaching Leadership Style
The coaching leadership style is an approach where a manager focuses on developing people's long-term capability rather than just directing the task in front of them. Coaching leaders ask more than they tell, give regular feedback, and hand people stretch work. It is one of the six leadership styles Daniel Goleman described in his 2000 Harvard Business Review article "Leadership That Gets Results".
Coaching vs Mentoring
Coaching and mentoring are both one-to-one development relationships, but they work differently. Coaching is focused on specific goals or skills, usually over a set period, and the coach mostly asks questions to help the person find their own answers. Mentoring is a longer, broader relationship in which a more experienced person shares advice, perspective, and connections to guide someone's career.
Employee Feedback
Employee feedback is information given to an employee about their work, behaviour, or impact so they can keep doing what works and change what doesn't. It flows in several directions: from managers, from peers, and from employees back up to their managers. It can be informal and in the moment, or formal, as part of a review or 360.
Employee Recognition
Employee recognition is the act of acknowledging an employee's contribution, effort, or behaviour, publicly or privately. It can come from managers, peers, or leadership, and it can be informal (a specific thank-you in Slack) or part of a formal programme (awards, peer-nominated shout-outs). Rewards are tangible, like bonuses or gifts. Recognition is the acknowledgement itself.
GROW Coaching Model
The GROW model is a four-step framework for coaching conversations: Goal, Reality, Options, Will (sometimes "Way forward"). The coach helps the person define what they want, look honestly at where they are, explore possible paths, and commit to specific next steps. It was developed in the 1980s by Graham Alexander, Alan Fine, and Sir John Whitmore.
Interview Feedback
Interview feedback is the structured assessment an interviewer records after an interview, plus any feedback shared with the candidate. Internal feedback rates the candidate against the role's criteria, with evidence from the conversation, and a clear hire or no-hire recommendation. Candidate feedback explains the outcome and, ideally, one or two specific points they can use.
Leadership Coaching
Leadership coaching is a one-to-one development process in which a trained coach helps a manager or executive improve how they lead. Sessions focus on the leader's specific goals and challenges, such as delegating, giving feedback, managing conflict, or leading through change. Coaches mostly ask questions and offer frameworks rather than giving direct advice.
Performance Review
A performance review, also called a performance appraisal or evaluation, is a formal assessment of an employee's work over a set period, usually six or twelve months. The manager and employee look back at goals, results, and behaviours, agree on a rating or summary, and set goals for the next period. Reviews often feed pay and promotion decisions.
Performance Review Comments
Performance review comments are the written statements a manager (and often the employee) adds to a performance review to explain ratings, describe strengths, and set expectations. Good comments are specific, tied to goals, and backed by examples. Weak comments are adjectives like "great team player" that nobody can act on.
Positive Feedback
Positive feedback is specific recognition of something a person did well, given so they understand exactly what to repeat. It is different from praise. "Great job" is praise. "Your one-page summary let the exec team decide in ten minutes" is positive feedback, because it names the behaviour and its impact.
Self-Assessment
A self-assessment, or self-evaluation, is an employee's written review of their own performance over a set period, usually completed before a formal performance review. It covers results against goals, strengths, areas to improve, and goals for the next period. The manager reads it before the meeting so the conversation starts from both views.
Talent Review
A talent review is a structured meeting in which leaders discuss employees' performance, potential, and readiness for bigger roles. It is used to plan development, identify successors for key positions, spot retention risks, and make sure promotion decisions are consistent across teams. Many companies use the 9-box grid as the framework for the discussion.
