Better: Fearless Feedback for Software Teams

The feedback loop is easily the most effective way to improve individual and team performance. When it is given well and received willingly, feedback can be a powerful ally in growing happy teams who work together effectively to deliver great software. Here's the challenge: giving and receiving feedback are skills, and many of us haven't had the chance to develop those skills. Maybe we find giving feedback intimidating. Maybe receiving feedback makes us feel defensive. Maybe we simply haven't had much positive experience with open, honest conversations about performance. It's not easy to do feedback "right", and when it is given badly or received poorly, feedback can cause a team's relationships to disintegrate. This talk will introduce the fundamentals of effective feedback; provide strategies for giving, receiving, and processing feedback; and discuss the challenges and rewards of using feedback as a tool to improve team performance.