The Importance of Feedback

Why do we ask for ideas if we’re not ready to listen? Companies love to celebrate creativity—a brainstorming session here, an idea box there—but they often forget one crucial piece of the puzzle: feedback. Without it, even the best ideas can wither and die in obscurity. This isn’t just about corporate strategy; it’s about something deeper—a failure to connect the right voices to the right ears. Feedback isn't optional. It’s the silent engine of innovation.

Companies love new ideas. Some even have weekly brainstorming sessions or put out a box for new ideas. But they often forget one very important aspect of the idea generation process, feedback.

This can lead to ideas being unused or simply forgotten. In the worst cases, they gathered by a single individual that has to go through everything by themselves. In the best cases, it is a closed group of people that decided what is relevant and what is not.

The problem here is that in both cases feedback is exclusive to a small number of people. This means that many relevant parties excluded by the idea generation process and thereby also great ideas. Thankfully many companies have realized this and turned to more modern idea management processes. But still, there are those who don’t realize how important feedback is.

Everybody Needs a Voice

It is very rare that a single corporate employee or a group of employees have complete oversight over everything. Some might think that this doesn´t matter. But it can lead to problems when a company is generating new ideas and choosing which ones to follow through on.

Some employees might have more experience and others might have a knowledge in a specialized field but still, they need each other. For example, Ford’s CFO might not be up to date on the newest processes in their Chicago plant. But he knows how much the company will save if the plant workers save 30 min on each produced unit.

There are small nuances in the day to day operations that only certain employees know about. These don´t have to be complicated but management might not know of them. With experience and specialization comes indispensable knowledge.

A one way street sign in front of a tall building

The Manager is Still the Boss

Getting feedback from your employees is not about giving away power. It is about having all the necessary information which is very important. A manager needs to gather all relevant information. Normally an idea management process starts with identifying opportunities and/or challenges. Possible solutions to these opportunities/challenges are created in the idea generation phase. But you need good feedback to choose which idea to develop further. Because if you don’t have all the relevant information you might choose to develop something that has failed in the past or ignore a simple solution that would lead to increased worker productivity. This has happened hundreds of times in the past and a bad idea can ruin a company. It is therefore important to know what each idea means to each employee. But in the end, it is still the manager that decides.

Get Your Feedback

So after a company has generated loads of ideas it needs to get this feedback. There are many ways to do this. You could conduct interviews, print questioners or create some sort of software solution. Of these three solutions, the last is definitely the easiest to implement. An easily accessible software generates lots of feedback, it is accessible and stores feedback efficiently.

The only problem is to get good feedback you need a motivated workforce. How you create this motivation is up to the manager. But you will need to get people involved to generate more feedback. An easy way to involve employees is by listening to their feedback. This shows us how cyclical feedback is. It not only creates better and more satisfied employees. It also simplifies idea development and lessens the chances of mistakes being made.

A person sitting at a table using a cell phone

How to Get More Feedback

Instead of creating your own software solution for idea management companies should see what the market has to offer. Ideanote is one of the best idea management software out there. It offers an easily accessible mobile platform that you access anywhere. Users can add ideas right away but more importantly, the can add feedback instantly. Whether they are sitting in front of the TV or at the gym.

Ideanote has a “like” feature which means users can quickly mark which ideas they think will work. So when a manager inspects ideas they can easily see what others think and what is popular. Also, there is a comment option in Ideanote so users can discuss and improve ideas. Both of these options create more follow through and make sure that your company is getting the most out of its idea management process.

Innovation Needs Feedback

It is not enough to have lots of ideas. A good idea management process needs feedback. To get this feedback a company has to have a software solution that is easily accessible. This will incentivize their workforce and in turn create more feedback. Ideanote is a great idea management platform that will help companies get the most out of their ideas. It is accessible, easy to use and optimizes a company’s idea management process.

That is, in the end, what everyone wants. Because ideas drive innovation, feedback drive ideas and Ideanote drives feedback, ideas and innovation. So to get the most out of your employees check out our free trial today.