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Speedback
Version 1.0
March 2021

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Introduction
Speedback = feedback, delivered in a speed dating format.
Everyone gets a chance to give feedback and receive feedback from everyone
else in their team or discipline, in a short amount of time.

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How Does it Work?
You will be paired up with another team member and be assigned a location.
You have 10 minutes to give and to receive feedback with that person.
(Tip: set a timer and make sure you switch who’s giving/who’s receiving
feedback at the 5m mark)
When the 10 minutes is up, you will switch pairs (and sometimes location).
Repeat until you have spoken to everyone in your team or discipline.

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Why Do It?
Speedback is democratic - everyone will be giving and receiving feedback from
everyone else.
Speedback is efficient - you will receive a large amount of feedback in a
(relatively) short amount of time.
Like retrospectives, speedback is an effective tool to boost self awareness and
team performance when performed regularly (1x/quarter is a good cadence).

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Prep Work
Before the session…
Prepare written feedback for everyone you will be talking to.
Tip: write it down on a sticky note or document that you can read and give/send
to the person afterwards
Try to incorporate at least one constructive thought or suggestion for each
person.

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A.S.K. and S.B.I Frameworks
ASK - Actionable, Specific, Kind
SBI - Situation, Behavior, Impact
● Describe what happened
Be specific. What behavior did you observe?
● Tell them how it made you feel.
How does this affect you? The project? The team?
● Suggest what you would like to happen next time
What makes it great? What could be better? What stays the same?
More details in this slide deck: Interpersonal Feedback -- Talk and Workshop

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Example
“Everyone thinks you’re a keyboard hog and you need to let me drive more.”
vs
“When we were pairing the other day, I mentioned a few times that I’d like to drive,
but I observed that you still held on to the keyboard. This was frustrating to me, as
I didn’t feel like you acknowledged my request, and I didn’t learn as much as I had
hoped to on that part of the codebase. Next time we pair, can you help find some
opportunities for me to drive? Maybe we could set a timer system where we
switch off who drives.”

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Praise just as much
(if not more!)
as you criticize.
Knowing what
you’re doing well
is just as
important as what
you aren’t

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Say: “At our weekly planning meeting, you seemed hesitant…”
Not: “You are a hesitant person…”
Situational
feedback gives
people the
chance to grow
Provide feedback about
behavior or perceived
intention, not their
personality

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What feels like strongly phrased feedback for one person
might will feel weak for another.
Adjust feedback language
for context and audience
Remember that
people have
different
communication
styles

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Successful feedback is
measured not at your
mouth but the other
person’s ear.
Verify that your
feedback has been
understood --
nothing will change
otherwise

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Next Steps
Look out for calendar invites for speedback; this will include a schedule of who
you’ll be talking to.
Start to prep your speedback notes.
Are you newer to giving feedback?
Review this companion piece: Interpersonal Feedback -- Talk and Workshop

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Thank You