behavior
April 8, 2024
Minutes To Read: 7

How to critique your boss in a mature and professional manner

Criticism is something that is part of the work environment, and even the most competent of employees know that one day they will be criticized either by the boss, other employees or customers. But what about the boss, how do you criticize him? Criticism is essential to the growth of the professional and the company, so the boss can only be criticized.

According to coach and psychologist Simone Alves, one tendency we have is to turn criticism into just one bug report on the other, which is a big misconception about what criticism really is.

The way we criticize the boss says a lot about our professional conduct, so criticism is a time not only for the employee to communicate his dissatisfaction, but also to demonstrate that he is in tune with the company, what the company needs and also to demonstrate proactivity. Learn how to structure your criticism of your boss in a constructive and professional manner with the tips below.

6 Essential Rules for Criticizing Your Boss

It is important to follow a few principles so that the criticism does not shift focus and get lost in the way as a list of one's faults. Here are some tips for criticizing professionally:

1. Don't be emotional

According to Simone Alves, being too emotional is the biggest mistake you can make at the time of criticism. Many people do not have a "filter of their own emotions and speak anything". Excessive emotions not only lead the individual to choose wrong words. For Simone, this passionality implies that the individual "has no perception of himself and no perception of what happens in the company and with other people."

2. Know the company culture and its boss

Does the company encourage criticism? What kind of leadership is your boss? Is he more or less distant from his employees? Before approaching the boss, you need to know the company, what it preaches, and your boss so that you can prepare properly.

A more charismatic boss may accept a less formal approach, for example. If your boss is very straightforward, he is likely to prefer you to be straightforward in his critique without? Sprucing up? too much his introduction to criticism.

3. Do you know yourself?

Just as important as knowing your company and boss profile is knowing yourself. Are you a shy person? Are you too confident? Do you talk more than necessary? You need to know which personality traits can bring problems for you.

Very shy people find it difficult not only to criticize but to position themselves, to impose themselves in the workplace, says Simone. They need to work on this shyness either in coaching or in therapy, because the difficulty in criticizing is just a manifestation of something bigger.

Read also: How to have a friendly relationship with your boss

Similarly, too much assertiveness and self-confidence can lead the employee to misjudgment. However experienced the employee may be, overconfidence can lead him to ignore certain fundamental aspects of the company or context, weakening the criticism.

4. Properly choose the place of criticism

Once again Coach Simone draws attention to the importance of knowing the company culture and the profile of the boss. In some cases, criticism can be made in a closed-door meeting, in others, during the coffee break, always evaluate the context.

Never criticize the boss in front of other employees or bosses. In addition to exposing your boss and offering an opportunity for nasty comments and rumors, you end up involving other people in a problem that is yours with the boss.

5. Criticize the behavior, not the person

"The person is much more likely to accept something that has to do with her behavior and not with her as a whole," Simone points out. That is, instead of saying that the boss is hasty, highlight that signing the contract with a particular customer, for example, was something hasty at that time. Generalizing and saying that the boss is hasty can leave him offended, causing a discomfort in the relationship.

6. Stick to the facts

In addition to being punctual in your criticism, you need to offer facts that support your criticism and examples of what you are talking about.To say that the boss speaks loudly is vague, it is necessary to explain how this interferes negatively with work.

7. Use the sandwich technique

Before going straight to criticism, start with a compliment. Then communicate the criticism and end up talking about something positive again. This model is not just for? Softening? or? deaden? criticism, but according to Simone he demonstrates that you have an overview of what is going on and took the whole context into consideration when formulating your criticism.

8. Offer a solution

Providing a solution to the problem is essential, because for Simone Alves, this shows proactivity and you are not only interested in criticizing, but in being a person involved in the company, seeking solutions regardless of whether the problem is yours or not. When criticism comes alone it may seem that the practitioner is just complaining and "if you are all the time on this grievance profile and offer no solution, that practitioner tends to be seen as a problem professional," says Simone Alves.

And the bosses, what do they think of the criticism?

Check out now the testimony of people in leadership positions on how criticism should be presented and also how the manager can create a favorable environment for criticism.

Pamela Mocelin Manfrin, Strategy Manager, Apetit Food Services

With a friendly and respectful attitude to the leader, the professional should emphasize the importance of transparency in a company and choose a suitable time for chat. The employee must act simply, objectively and safely, making clear his interest in contributing to the growth of both parties. Public, aggressive and pejorative criticism that compromises the authority of the superior should be avoided. In such cases, the professional himself runs the risk of having his image compromised. On the other hand, it is important to know how to express your opinion, even if contrary to others, in order to contribute to reflections. High-performing leaders need the support and feedback from their team to achieve better technical and behavioral results. It is also worth evaluating if the leader's attitude is in accordance with the values of the company and those of the team. If the company colludes with an inadequate leadership posture, I believe it is not worth trying to intervene. However, to feel good in the workplace, you need to look for companies that offer opportunities that are allied to our personal values. This way, the whole team remains aligned for success.

Solange Pinheiro, Managing Partner of the Aliar Group

When approaching, the contributor must be aware of the subject, have pertinent data, mere speculation is not always taken into consideration. Every manager seeks positive results, people who are committed and committed to their work. [We managers] We are looking for employees to make a difference, with solutions, ideas to improve and improve the development of the company. To do so, we have to be open to listen to them, analyze them, make room, create a condition where the employee feels comfortable interacting, exposing improvements and their criticism. It is essential to give feedback to them, whether the suggestions are plausible or not, and not to assume authorship as their own. The employee has to feel like a person who is there to add, not just a number among others. The receptive posture, cordiality and transparency are very valuable items for the manager to have the confidence of his team. People like acknowledgments, thanks, we are a team and we grow together.

Marcos Sousa, Human Resources Manager at Gocil Security and Services

[Criticism] is not uncommon, but it is still delicate to do, depending on the company's culture and the readiness of both the leader and the employee. I believe that for the employee to be successful in his approach with his superior, especially if it is to make a criticism, it is necessary to present arguments and suggestions that make sense and add, either in the relationship, in a project or in the management model of the leader. . Otherwise, the feedback proposal is limited to "disagreeing for disagreeing", disregarding the importance of this management and work tool. Regarding behavior, it is important to put yourself in a friendly manner, preferably suggesting a private conversation, so that there is no exposure from both parties. Other important points are emotional balance, body language and transparency at the time of conversation. An approach at a nervous moment can be hasty and damage the employee's image, causing him to not pay attention to his tone of voice and the use of words, thus losing his ethical posture. Finally, it is important to know the purpose of the feedback and to make it clear that it is intended to add to the work and management, leaving aside any personal motivation.

Criticizing the boss is a practice that intimidates employees, even because it is a practice that only a few years ago started to be encouraged in companies. However, it is an important moment for both the company that needs to hear the criticism to keep growing, and for the employee who has a chance to demonstrate that he or she is aware of what is going on in the company and is actively contributing to its growth. With a little preparation, the task of criticizing the boss becomes more comfortable, including increasing your satisfaction with your job.