Meaningful Feedback Reduces Employee Quitting

Cathie Leimbach • July 4, 2023

Everyone wants to feel valued and respected.  Feeling successful at something in their lives increases their self-esteem, self-confidence, and happiness.  When they feel successful at work, they are more likely to be productive and less likely to be looking for work elsewhere.


Their manager's leadership practices are the number one factor in an employee's workplace experience.  Regular feedback has a huge impact on an employee's feeling of workplace success, yet, leaders often give their employees too little helpful feedback. When we rarely catch our team members doing things right and acknowledge their positive contributions, they aren’t sure if they are meeting expectations. And, when we don’t let them know what we wish them to do differently, how are they to realize improvement is required?


Even when leaders provide feedback, they may not be encouraging them to repeat positive behaviors and to work towards improving their performance in weaker areas. Managers may tell employees they did a good job assisting customer Jones but if the feedback isn’t specific the employee doesn’t know which aspects of their customer interaction should be repeated and may not realize the positive impact of quality customer service. On the other hand, when employees don’t meet expectations, if they don’t realize there is a need for improvement and don’t ‘hear’ and internalize ways to improve, they likely won’t become reliable high performers.  They may quit their job, continue to underperform because they don't know any better, or come to work but do as little as possible.  When managers fail to affirm good work or to address need for improvement they are setting the company up for a poor bottom line. 


When providing feedback, keep in mind that people are seven times as likely to remember something they say than something they just heard. Also, we have to hear, see, or say information several times before we will act on it. Therefore, when leaders and their employees have two-way conversations about the team member’s performance, good performance gets repeated and areas that need improvement get addressed.


Let’s explore what meaninful feedback looks like. Positive feedback has the most impact when it is shared in a live conversation. In-person is ideal with a video call or phone call being next best. The leader’s tone and body language tell the employee if their manager is simply going through the motions of showing appreciation or if the thank you is authentic. Only heart-felt thanks spurs an employee to make a habit of doing quality work. The most effective positive feedback is expressed promptly after the good work is noticed, names the specific behavior that is appreciated, and shares the impact of the employee’s action on the company or other people.


Highly effective corrective action involves two-way collaborative conversation. The manager briefly and calmly states the action or behavior that failed to meet expectations. Then he asks the employee questions to encourage self-realization about what caused the unfavorable situation and the impact this has on the people involved and on the organization. The employee is asked to suggest ways to correct the situation and is provided the support needed to improve performance. When the manager and the employee develop corrective action plans together the employee has a better understanding of what is expected and is usually more motivated to address the challenge at hand.


When employees feel that their good performance is valued and receive support to overcome their challenges, they become more engaged, increasing their satisfaction and the company’s success. Conversational feedback is the foundation of win/win/win workplace experiences, increasing employee retention, customer satisfaction, and company results. 


What can you do this month to develop your meaningful feedback skills?  Register for - and attend - our free 45-minute webinar “3 Tips to Reduce Employee Quitting”.   

Why Engagement Isn’t About Perks

By Cathie Leimbach • February 10, 2026
When engagement drops, many organizations reach for perks—rewards, programs, or incentives. These can create a short lift, but they rarely solve the real issue. Engagement starts with expectations. Most people want to do good work. What gets in the way isn’t motivation—it’s uncertainty. When priorities shift, roles feel unclear, or success means different things to different leaders, people disengage quietly. Leaders often don’t realize they’re contributing to this. Vague direction, inconsistent follow-through, or assuming “they already know” leaves teams guessing. Over time, guessing turns into frustration—and frustration turns into disengagement. Strong engagement cultures focus on leadership basics: Clear priorities Shared definitions of success Aligned expectations Consistent reinforcement When expectations are clear, people move with confidence. They take ownership, collaborate better, and stay engaged because they know where they’re headed. Perks can support engagement—but only after clarity is in place. 👉 Read our full article on Why Engagement Starts With Expectations to turn clarity into a real advantage.

How Could You Create a 5-10% Productivity Shift? 

By Cathie Leimbach • February 3, 2026
When it comes to improvement at work, the focus is often on big changes. But frequently, it’s small shifts that quietly create big results. Productivity rarely improves without strong leadership practices. So, what if better leadership increased productivity by just 5-10%? That could mean: Less rework Faster decisions More follow-through Less firefighting More output — without more people That’s not wishful thinking. When leadership improves, absenteeism and turnover drop. Work flows more smoothly. Results, and the bottom line, improve.  When leaders get clearer, communicate better, and follow through more consistently, friction fades. People know what matters. Decisions move faster. Energy shifts from fixing problems to getting real work done. Organizations that invest in leadership development often see: Higher output Lower turnover Better use of talent Stronger momentum The real shift happens when leaders stop asking, “ Should we invest in leadership ?” and start asking, “ What is it costing us not to ?” 👉 Join our 60-minute Leadership Conversation to see what a 10–15% shift could mean for your organization.