Writing Employee Feedback: 5 Steps That Will Improve Performance

Jojo is a supervisor at a mid-sized international company. As the main point of contact between upper management and the frontline staff, one of Jojo’s responsibilities is to conduct regular performance check-ins. Jojo understands that clear feedback is essential for keeping the team’s projects on track and meeting the company’s standards.

However, Jojo often worries about giving feedback that sounds too harsh, too vague, or unintentionally rude, especially when someone needs feedback that is less than positive. Jojo is also dealing with some language barriers, as half the team members are not native English speakers—and neither is Jojo!

“This team has a lot of potential,” explained Jojo. “But the same problems keep popping up over and over again. If I could learn how to give them better feedback, we could fix these issues faster.”

If you’re like Jojo and you feel uncomfortable about writing feedback, you can learn how to strike the right tone. Below you’ll find five practical steps to help you give clear, constructive, and professionally written feedback.

1. Stay objective

One of the biggest challenges in writing feedback is separating the facts from your feelings. It can be tempting to include your personal opinions, assumptions, or emotional reactions, especially when you’re frustrated. Unfortunately, emotional language often clouds your message and can make the recipient feel attacked.

Instead, focus on performance aspects that you can observe and measure. Stick to the facts, describe what actually happened, and avoid loaded words like “always”, “never”, or “careless”. Objective feedback sounds calm, fair, and professional, and it’s much easier for the reader to accept.

Instead of this: Your work is careless and sloppy.

Try this: The last report you submitted had several mistakes and was missing a demographic analysis.

2. Be specific and detailed

Vague feedback is one of the most common mistakes in workplace communication. Comments like “This needs improvement” or “Be more professional” don’t tell an employee what to change or how to solve a problem.

Good feedback is specific, detailed, and supported by examples. Explain what needs improvement, where the issue occurred, and why it matters. This shows that you’ve paid close attention and that your feedback is thoughtful rather than arbitrary.

Instead of this: Your writing needs improvement.

Try this: It’s difficult to understand some of your emails. Please work on writing emails that are clearer. It might help if someone else reviews them before you send them.

 

3. Use the sandwich method

Don’t worry. “The sandwich method” doesn’t mean you have to fix lunch for your entire team.

Rather, the sandwich method means placing constructive criticism between two positive comments. You start with something the employee did well, then address the issue that needs improvement, and finish with encouragement or praise.

This approach helps soften the impact of criticism and reminds the employee that you recognize their strengths, even when they need to make changes. While the sandwich method shouldn’t be used to hide serious issues, it’s a useful technique for everyday professional feedback.

• You have great relationships with your team members. However, you need to work on communicating with them sooner when there is a problem. You did this very well last week when our server went down.
• You’re very self-disciplined and independent. But sometimes you try to do too much instead of asking the team for help, which has led to delays. Several team members have told me they enjoy working with you whenever you do reach out to them.

4. Identify desired outcomes

Feedback is most effective when it points out problems and offers a clear path forward. After identifying an issue, explain what success looks like and what steps the employee can take to improve.

This turns feedback into actionable guidance rather than mere criticism. It also shows that your goal is improvement, not blaming the employee for something they’ve done wrong.

Ask yourself:

• What should the employee do differently next time?
• What standard or result is the company or team aiming for?
• Are there tools, examples, or resources that could help?

5. Follow up when necessary

Written feedback shouldn’t always be the final step. If the topic is complex or sensitive, the employee may have questions or need clarification.

Let them know you’re open to discussion and, if needed, suggest a brief follow-up chat or meeting. This reinforces collaboration and ensures that the employee will understand your message as intended.

Following up also shows that you care about solving problems and making progress. You’re not just pointing out mistakes.

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Writing feedback like a professional is a valuable skill in today’s international workplace. Clear, well-structured feedback helps employees understand expectations, correct issues faster, and grow in their roles. It also reduces confusion and defensiveness.

By staying objective, being specific, balancing criticism with praise, identifying clear outcomes, and following up when needed, you can deliver written feedback that is respectful, actionable, and effective.

Even experienced professionals sometimes struggle with tone, clarity, or wording, especially when they are writing in a second language or dealing with sensitive topics. Our team of TextRanch editors can help you check and improve your written feedback, as well as other types of business, academic, and creative writing. Just click the blue box below to get started!