ChatGPT is a superpower if you know how to use it correctly.

Discover how HubSpot's guide to AI can elevate both your productivity and creativity to get more things done.

Learn to automate tasks, enhance decision-making, and foster innovation with the power of AI.

Download the free guide

Lawyers as a group have a reputation for being terrible managers. Allegedly we micromanage, give poor directions, and when it comes to feedback, we give it in a way that’s more confusing than helpful, if we give any at all.

I think that last one is both really damaging, and entirely fixable.

So let’s fix it right now.

Maybe you inherited a team, or maybe you built it. Maybe a particular direct report is someone you personally recruited, after knowing them for years and gaining a deep belief in their capability. Or maybe your previous GC hired them, they’re not your pick, and you don’t see what’s so great about them (but also, they’re not a bad lawyer, really, and you don’t want to let them go).

Whatever the situation, whether you’re coaching an absolute rockstar or someone not yet living up to their potential, it’s to their benefit, yours, and the company’s for you to help them to become as effective as possible.

Because there is always more work to be done. And it needs to be done well.

The best way to make sure work gets done and the team gets better, is by giving great feedback so they can grow.

Here’s how to give feedback that makes an impact.

Feedback is only useful if it’s truthful. Telling someone they’re doing a good job when they’re not can be tempting, because few people enjoy a hard conversation. But don’t do that.

Feedback that is not truthful is worse than no feedback at all.

A team member who doesn’t know they need to improve or change something, almost certainly won’t. And, as lawyers, I don’t even need to tell you about the potential legal issues that can arise when we’ve consistently given positive feedback to an underperformer who ultimately needs to be let go.

Conversely, if someone is doing a great job—make sure to let them know. I have occasionally heard of a manager withholding praise for various reasons, like fear that the team member would ask for a raise or a promotion before the time worked for the company. Don’t do that. Manage those requests if they come.

Do not wait for formal end of year reviews to give feedback. Instead, plan for end of year reviews to be a big picture overview of feedback and guidance you gave all year.

If someone botched a project in May, they probably barely remember what went wrong by December. And if you wait until the end of the year to talk to them about ways they can do better next time, they lose out on the potential for months of implementing the new change and growing. That’s a huge miss (and it’s on you, as the manager).

And if someone did a fantastic job on a matter in July, but received no feedback, they may be wondering whether to approach a similar matter the same way next time, or whether they need to change.

For big projects, take time to sit down and give feedback immediately after they are complete. That can be a time to go through what went well, what could have gone better, and for the employee to share any concerns or questions.

For smaller things, like everyday work, make a habit of sharing small pieces of feedback as you go.

“The way you led with the conclusion in that email, and then clearly and concisely outlined the risks, was great.”

“Next time, when you are presenting to the marketing team, lead with the business goal we understand we are working towards, rather than the specific law we’re trying to comply with.”

“That was a great email!” is helpful in showing your support and that someone is doing a good job.

But better feedback would include the reasons a particular email or other piece of work was effective. Any piece of work contains multiple components, so calling out what was good (or what needs improvement) is most useful to the feedback recipient.

The more specific you are, the more actionable the feedback becomes. And actionable is the whole point.

This one sounds simple, but it isn’t always.

When someone on your team does something worth celebrating, say so where others can hear it. In a team meeting, on a group Slack channel, in a message cc'd to your GC or their skip-level. Public praise does double duty: it recognizes the person who earned it, and it signals to everyone else what great looks like on your team.

I've seen managers skip this because they worry about playing favorites, or because they're not naturally effusive, or because it just doesn't occur to them. But people work hard, and they want to know it's noticed.

The flip side matters just as much. When someone needs coaching, that conversation stays between you and them. Correcting someone in front of their peers, or in a group setting, may seem like a good idea (everyone can learn from their mistake!), but it’s likely to cause more problems than it’s worth. The person receiving the feedback may shutdown or feel attacked because of the setting.

The principle is easy to remember. Applying it consistently, especially when you're frustrated or pressed for time, takes real intention. But it builds the kind of trust that makes all your other feedback land better.

If feedback only shows up when something goes wrong, your team will start to dread it. The goal is to make feedback so routine that nobody flinches when it comes.

That means weaving it into the natural rhythm of how you work together. A quick note after a call. A two-minute debrief after a big presentation. A "that was exactly right, here's why" in response to a solid email. None of it has to be formal or time-consuming. It just has to be consistent.

When feedback is a regular part of your relationship, two things happen. Your team gets better faster. And when you do need to have a harder conversation, it doesn't feel like an ambush. It's just another version of what you always do.

Not everyone receives feedback the same way. Some people want it in the moment. Others need a little time to process before a conversation lands well. Some prefer a quick written note they can sit with. Others want to talk it through live.

Pay attention and you'll figure out pretty quickly what works for each person. When you deliver feedback in the way someone can actually receive it, the whole thing becomes more effective. It's a small adjustment with an outsized return.

This might be the easiest one on the list. It also might be the most underused.

Saying thank you, sincerely and specifically, is a form of feedback. It tells someone what you value, and lets them know you appreciate them and their work. "Thanks for jumping on that so fast" lands better than a generic "great work."

In-house legal teams are almost always doing more with less. Acknowledging that goes a long way.

Feedback is a skill. Like every other skill, it gets better with practice.

And it’s an essential skill for in-house legal leaders!

The list above isn't complicated. But doing it consistently, with every person on your team, across the full range of good days and hard ones, takes real commitment. That's what separates managers who are technically fine from managers people actually want to work for.

Your team will do better work. They'll grow faster. And they'll trust you more, which makes every hard conversation easier and every win more meaningful.

A great outcome from a few habits you can start this week.