Radical candor is the secret of effective leaders

What is radical candor

It would seem that this is clear to everyone: when employees do something wrong, the boss must point them out. But this is very rare.

To explain what radical candor is, co-founder of the consulting firm Candor, Inc. Kim Scott, who has consulted for Twitter, Dropbox, YouTube and Google, came up with a simple graph. Correct comments of the boss should fall into the upper right sector.

When we know that the boss does not give a damn about us, that he is interested in us not only as an employee, but also as an individual, criticism is more easily perceived. And it is easier for the boss himself to take the next step towards the right leadership - to be ready to anger the subordinate.

Many people find it difficult to criticize employees, and any feedback other than positive feedback seems impolite. But the boss's job is to talk about both mistakes and victories with equal frankness. Moreover, it is a moral duty of the leader.

Scott calls the rules of radical frankness modesty, willingness to help, timeliness, necessarily personal appeal (if criticism, then face to face; if praise, then in public), but not personal communication.

The latter is the essential difference between radical frankness. The boss should not say “You're a fool,” but, for example, “You look stupid when you say“um”every three words” (this is what Kim Scott once heard from her boss after giving a presentation).

Other behaviors

To achieve radical frankness, you will have to forget about the postulate that has been hammered into us since childhood: if you cannot say anything good, it is better to remain silent. And this is not easy.

But if you are in doubt about whether to be frank, then just think about other leadership options (the other three sectors on the chart).

If you can't be radically outspoken, the best you can do is be rude. “Don't get me wrong, I hate working with rude people. But even that is better than not criticizing the employee at all,”says Kim. The worst option, in her opinion, is manipulative insincerity, when the boss tries to influence employees using various tricks.

However, most leadership mistakes can be categorized as fatal empathy. By trying not to offend one employee without criticizing them, you end up hurting those who do their job well.

How to motivate employees to show radical candor

Kim Scott provides four top tips to help any leader create the right team environment.

1. Encourage spontaneous feedback

To move toward radical candor on a daily basis, Scott advises executives to print a second chart, hang it next to their desk, and explain to employees what it means. Then ask them, after each conversation with you, to mark on the graph with stickers of different colors, how the conversation went. “You’ll be surprised how openly people will express their opinions about your leadership,” says Scott.

2. Eliminate the possibility of conversations behind your back

Leaders should avoid the role of mediator between two conflicting employees. Better to insist that they first discuss their problem with each other before contacting their boss. Only if the problem is not solved in this way should the manager intervene.

And do not forget that it is imperative to discuss a disputable situation in the presence of both parties to the conflict.

3. Make it easier to tell the truth

If you are in charge of managers, convey to all subordinates that they can criticize their manager.

Kim Scott suggests this way:

First, let the managers know that you are going to meet with their direct reports. Give them time to get used to the thought and explain that the purpose of the meeting is to help them improve their performance. Then explain the same to your subordinates.
Take notes personally during the discussion and send them to the manager immediately after the meeting. “When you take notes yourself, you show that you are listening to people,” says Scott. "And be sure to inform that after the meeting you will show the document to their leader, without making any amendments to the text."
To prevent the meeting from turning into a showdown, ask employees to highlight only the main problems. Say, for example, “Change is always difficult. Don't expect your boss to change completely after one short meeting. Let's discuss one or two points that, in your opinion, he should change in his behavior."
Then talk to the manager, suggest specific ways to solve the problem. After a while, make sure he keeps his promises.

4. Put the oxygen mask on yourself first

It's not in vain that they talk about this on airplanes. You simply cannot take care of others if you do not take care of yourself.

Going through a difficult period in her career, Kim Scott realized that the most rewarding thing she can do for her team at the moment is not to hire excellent specialists and not to attract funding, but to go for a run every morning.

Kim recalls that one rainy morning, when it was especially difficult at work, she wanted to give up jogging, but at the last moment she changed her mind. She is already used to promises made to herself, to take as seriously as her professional responsibilities.

I used to run hundreds of other people, but this morning there was only one other weirdo running. When I caught up with him, I saw that he was the co-founder of my company. And although a lot was going wrong at work then, I realized that we were on the right track.

Kim Scott