#15: How to deliver clear feedback using SQUACK

I am going to share with you a powerful feedback framework that you can easily implement at your next meeting.

Ever lie awake, replaying the events of that previous meeting in your mind?

We have all been there. Have you ever left a workshop scratching your head, wondering how it really went? Or found yourself drowning in a sea of ideas and suggestions with no way to organize it? Maybe you received a cryptic message from a key stakeholder and unsure how to decipher it.

Let’s change that.

Teams that know how to give frequent and effective feedback can build trust by working more effectively through team dynamics and iterate through ideas faster and more effectively.

Unfortunately most teams don’t know how to give and receive feedback

1. they don’t have effective feedback frameworks
2. they don’t know how to deliver the message
3. they don’t create the space in a meeting or workshop to collect the information
4. they aren’t clear on the type of feedback they are looking for

Today, we are going to focus on #1: a framework for effective feedback. SQUACK

The feedback framework

The SQUACK framework

Suggestion: A comment to make an idea, behavior or work product better

Question: An area that needs more clarification

User Signal: Where we have aligned or veered from a customer outcome

Accident: A typo, math error, etc.

Critical: A problem that must be resolved because of business, legal or customer risk

Kudos: praise or gratitude

SQUACK is a deceptively simple feedback framework that teams like Google, T-Mobile, Uber and Microsoft use to increase their team engagement. It was originally developed by Julie Jensen and she has a ton more info and a book that goes into more detail. You can check it out here. 

I really like it because it is helps me organize my thoughts before I deliver them and it integrates customer-centeredness, a typical outcome design and product teams are driving toward.

A real example from my work

Last week, I received this chat message from a key stakeholder after a tense working session I am leading.

Original Message: “Good to zoom out but I think we need we need to nail the step by step of the process?”

Here is the internal dialogue I started having:

• Is this a Suggestion (S)? Are you suggesting we stop the zoomed out view and instead get into the details? That changes how I am going to design and facilitate tomorrow’s session
• is this a Question (Q)? Are you unsure if we need to zoom out or focus on the details? Because you said the word “I think”…and there is a question mark. Do you need help answering that question and my perspective on it and more rationale? Should I schedule a meeting to talk about it?
• Is this a User Signal (U)? We have an internal customer and I know they are looking for this new process to be implemented by end of May. Do they need the step by step as a deliverable based on our earlier research? Shit, did I misinterpret the research?
• is this Critical (C)? Is this a a make-or-break request because it puts our company at risk? I know I am missing some context and now I am feeling less confident... Are you saying we must focus on the step by step and we don’t have the luxury of zooming out? Maybe because of a promise we made to an executive? are we hemorrhaging cash somewhere and good is better than perfect so let’s get on with it and focus on the details?
• is this a Kudos (K): Did you like that we zoomed out? Because I saw that we were in the weeds during the meeting and the energy I felt in the room made me think it was helpful…so thank you? maybe? or is this a suggestion…?

And round and round we go.

We misinterpret messages all the time. We copy and paste it to a friend and comment "WTF." We can’t sleep thinking about the comment. We ask ourselves:"Did I mess up in today’s meeting?"

Of course, asking for a friend…

Instead, this is what my stakeholder could have written me in shorthand to bring clarity to his feedback message

New Message(s):

“S: can we get into the details tomorrow?

Q: what’s the purpose of the zoom out?

U: their pain point can’t be addressed at the zoom out level, we have tried it before

C: we need the step by step by May 6 - our original scope of work promise

K: The zoom out got me thinking different, thanks.”

Much clearer, nuanced feedback. If we had the SQUACK framework, we could have gotten there a lot faster.

How to implement it with your team:

1. Introduce the framework to your team at the end of your next meeting (copy and paste the SQUACK framework above + send them the original website)
2. You model the behavior first (in a Slack message, during a Teams meeting, in a Word comment, etc.)
3. Watch your team start to adopt it
4. Ask your team for feedback on trying the framework using…I think you get it.

Q: Will you try it this week?

S: Can you let me know how it goes?

U: Your team needs this level of clarity

K: Thanks for reading this far :)