When faced with disappointment or letdowns, our minds race to fill in the gaps.
Consider this: a coworker fails to meet a deadline, leaving you feeling frustrated and let down. In the heat of the moment, it's easy to jump to conclusions, labelling them as lazy or indifferent, or some combination of both. But what if there's more to the story? What if their actions were driven by circumstances beyond their control or misunderstood intentions?
Here’s a trick for better understanding intentions when giving feedback.
It's called Situation-Behavior-Impact (SBI)™.
Basically, instead of jumping to conclusions, you just take a moment to clarify the situation, describe the behaviour, and explain the impact before you consider anything actionable. By describing the behaviour you observed with no assumptions, you can better explain how it impacted everyone involved. It's like connecting the dots to see the bigger picture.
This article dives deeper into how you can turn this approach into action.
What is Situation-Behavior-Impact (SBI)?
It’s a research-backed structured feedback model made up of three key components: Situation, Behavior, and Impact. Unlike traditional feedback methods, SBI provides a clear roadmap for both the giver and receiver of feedback, promoting transparency at both ends. Let's break it down:
Capturing the Situation:
Clarify the situation in which the behaviour occurred by providing context for the observed actions. By establishing a shared understanding of the circumstances, both parties can approach the feedback discussion with clarity and (relative) objectivity. Ideally this should be done in the moment, or soon after, and not months later or at an annual review.
Describing Specific Behaviours:
Instead of vague generalisations or subjective judgments, encourage feedback providers to describe the behaviour in concrete, observable terms. This helps to minimise misinterpretations and promote more constructive dialogue.
Explaining the Impact:
Discuss the impact of the behaviour, on those directly and indirectly involved. By expressing feelings and highlighting the consequences, we get valuable insight into its significance. This step encourages empathy and understanding, paving the way for meaningful dialogue.
By sticking to this structured approach, feedback providers can navigate sensitive conversations with confidence, while recipients can receive feedback with greater openness and receptivity. The method is particularly beneficial in talent conversations with employees.
By using SBI as a framework for discussing performance, managers can provide clear, actionable feedback that promotes professional development and growth. Let’s look at one such instance.
Sarah and Alex: A Use Case for SBI
Consider a scenario where a manager, Sarah, needs to provide feedback to one of her employees, Alex, regarding a recent client presentation. Using the Situation-Behavior-Impact (SBI) framework, Sarah can navigate this conversation with empathy, ultimately promoting Alex's professional development.
Situation: What specific actions took place?
During a client presentation last week, Alex was tasked with leading the discussion on the new product features. However, as Sarah observed, Alex appeared unprepared and struggled to articulate key points, leading to a lacklustre presentation.
Behaviour: How did the actions make everyone feel?
Sarah observed several specific mannerisms during the presentation, including Alex stumbling over his words, hesitating during key points, and failing to answer client questions confidently. Alex also seemed disengaged and lacked enthusiasm, which contributed to a lack of impact on the audience.
Impact: What were the consequences for you and others?
As a result of Alex's performance, Sarah felt concerned about the impression it left on the clients and the potential impact on the company's reputation. Furthermore, Sarah observed a missed opportunity for Alex to showcase his skills and contribute to the team's success, which could hinder his professional growth and advancement within the company.
Now what?
SBI Framework in Action
This is how Sarah approaches the feedback with Alex using SBI as a tool:
Sarah begins by providing context for the presentation and setting the stage for the discussion. She then describes Alex's behaviours during the presentation, focusing on concrete examples without judgement or criticism. Sarah explains how Alex's actions affected her and the team, emphasising the missed opportunity for showcasing his skills and contributing to the company's success.
Sarah expresses her belief in Alex's potential and desire to support his growth, offering to work with him to address the identified areas for improvement. Alex, appreciative of the feedback, expresses his openness to working on those areas and suggests scheduling a meeting to discuss strategies for improvement.
With this simple tool, Sarah was able to provide clear, actionable feedback to Alex in a constructive and supportive manner. This approach not only reduces anxiety and defensiveness but also promotes open communication in the long term.
Common SBI Mistakes to Avoid
The Situation-Behavior-Impact (SBI) framework offers a structured approach to delivering feedback, but like any tool, it's susceptible to human error. Here are some common mistakes that you should try to avoid. (But in case it’s too late, we’re also sharing some mitigation strategies!)
Lack of Specificity in the Situation Description
One of the most common mistakes when using the SBI framework is providing vague or ambiguous descriptions of the situation in which the behaviour occurred. Using generalities such as "last week" or "during the meeting" can lead to confusion and make it challenging for the recipient to understand the context of the feedback.
Solution: Be as specific as possible when describing the situation. Provide details such as the time, place, and relevant circumstances surrounding the behaviour to ensure clarity and understanding.
Inserting Opinions or Judgments in Behaviour Description
Another common mistake is inserting opinions or judgments into the description of the observed behaviour. This can lead to the feedback being perceived as biassed or subjective, undermining its validity. Additionally, making assumptions about the individual's intentions based on their behaviour can lead to misunderstandings.
Solution: Stick to describing the behaviour in objective, observable terms without passing judgement. Focus on facts rather than interpretations and avoid making assumptions about the individual's motives.
Failure to Articulate the Impact of the Behavior
A critical component of the SBI framework is articulating the impact of the behaviour, both on oneself and others involved. However, many people fail to effectively communicate the consequences of the behaviour, which can diminish the effectiveness of the feedback.
Solution: Clearly express how the behaviour made you feel and the tangible consequences it had on the situation. Use descriptive language to convey your emotions and highlight the significance of the behaviour's impact.
Not Considering the Intention
While the SBI framework focuses on describing behaviour and its impact, it's equally important to inquire about the individual's intent behind the behaviour. Failure to explore the motivations behind the behaviour can result in loose ends and missed opportunities for growth.
Solution: Extend the SBI model a step further to include questions about intent. If you can understand the individual's motivations and underlying reasons behind certain actions, it can lead to deeper insights and facilitate a more constructive dialogue.
Using SBI as a One-Time Fix
One of the most significant mistakes people can make with the SBI framework is treating it as a one-time fix rather than an ongoing process. Feedback should be a continuous dialogue rather than a one-off conversation, and failing to incorporate SBI into regular communication can limit its effectiveness.
Solution: Integrate the SBI framework into your regular communication practices. Use it as a tool for providing both positive and constructive feedback and encourage ongoing dialogue and reflection within your team.
Conclusion
By capturing the situation, describing specific behaviours, and explaining the impact, leaders can navigate feedback discussions with confidence. As we've seen, common mistakes such as lack of specificity, inserting opinions, neglecting intent, and using SBI as a one-time fix can hinder its effectiveness.
This is because SBI offers not just a framework for feedback delivery, but a mindset shift. One that prioritises understanding over assumption, empathy over judgement, and growth over stagnation.
Feedback is a gift!
Yet, so often in organisations, we see that people do not regularly and freely exchange feedback.
In an ideal world, feedback should be frequent and timely, seamlessly integrated into interactions with colleagues.
It would not be a ‘big deal’ but just ‘how we interact’, with the aim of continuous improvement, better job performance, and learning from mistakes.
However, the sad reality is that feedback is often withheld until issues escalate, leading to higher stakes and more challenging conversations.
The feedback giver may become anxious and irritated – even having sleepless nights as they rehearse what they are going to say and fearing the reaction.
While the recipient, believing they are performing well, may be unpleasantly surprised—potentially at critical moments, like missed promotions.
The SBI (Situation-Behaviour-Impact) framework offers a valuable structure for delivering feedback.
I urge teams to use it frequently - ideally after each meeting or interaction.
Familiarity with SBI fosters makes it easier for both to give and receive feedback, contributing to personal growth and development. This leads to enhanced job performance, increased productivity, a more positive perception of colleagues, and generally, creating a more enjoyable workplace.
Surely that has to be a good thing?
Helen Leighton is a no-nonsense Leadership Coach with 30+ years of experience. She has led diverse teams globally but what truly brings her joy is partnering with ambitious executives on their journey to the leadership lottery. By sharing carefully curated tools from her extensive experience, she has witnessed (and facilitated) remarkable transformations.
Yours could be up next!