What makes you sweat at work? 

Is it performance reviews? Or the fear of falling behind on new tech like AI? How about writing a newsletter? I admit I still get nervous writing these emails. It seems like there’s never a shortage of things to worry about.

This week, Kellogg’s Gina Fong explains how we might be able to take one of those workplace worries off our list: giving and receiving feedback. 

Plus, we dive into research about how population age affects the adoption of new technology.

Let feedback get personal

One common misconception about feedback is that you shouldn’t take it personally. But Kellogg’s Gina Fong suggests giving and taking feedback personally shows responsibility and commitment to investing in career growth.

“If we take feedback personally, then the sender of the feedback will be more conscientious and disciplined,” Fong says. “And then the person receiving the feedback can trust it and not dismiss it.” 

At Kellogg Insight, Fong recently offered three tips for giving and receiving feedback.  

First, learn how each member of your team responds. As a consultant, Fong has learned that people in different roles tend to have unique relationships with feedback. So Fong says, “you have to figure out how to deliver that news in a way that someone can hear it.” No matter the personality or role, treat the recipient like a human being. 

Second, make feedback more frequent. “I see a lot of organizations do it once a year,” she says. “But you have to normalize feedback so things don’t get too big and gnarly.” Regularizing the process reduces potential anxiety. It can also help everyone better connect with colleagues and personalize their comments.  

Lastly, consider finding a feedback coach. In other words, find someone in your workplace you feel you can trust, and ask if they can coach you in ongoing, substantial ways. “That’s taking it personally, to ask someone to please help. It communicates that you’re open to feedback that can feed your growth,” Fong says. Fong has found that most leaders are very willing to help—when the request is framed as coaching.  

Read more in Kellogg Insight.

Tech’s age gap 

Speaking of feedback: leaders, don’t let an aging workforce cause you to miss out on new technology.

Research from Kellogg’s Nicolas Crouzet and Filippo Mezzanotti suggests that as older people take up a greater share of society, new technologies may struggle to gain a foothold. 

Specifically, the duo looked at the uptake of mobile-payment technology, like Venmo and Apple Pay, compared with the use of credit cards in India. They found that younger people were much more likely than older people to use this new technology, and that businesses adopted it more rapidly in areas with a higher density of young people.

“These findings underscore the possibility that population aging leads to slower rates of technology diffusion, which has potential implications for how policy can, or cannot, spur the adoption of new technologies,” Mezzanotti says. 

The researchers discussed two ways to boost the adoption of this new technology. First, governments could subsidize not just the production of new technology but its adoption. For example, Italy’s government gives merchants credit for adding point-of-sale terminals. Another approach could be to subsidize the use of tech, like incentivizing mobile payment by partially covering transaction fees. 

Learn more in Kellogg Insight.