kmbs voice newsletter 5th edition

www.kmbs.edu.kw .1Issue 005. October 2011

KMBS VoiceA Globally Networked Management School

Issue 005 . October 2011

The Balance between work and study A Frequently asked question is: will I be able to balance my time between work and study? The answer is clear. It can be done provided you have one important skill; time management. Those joining the MBA programme realize that it is a big step, and it takes a huge commitment both time-wise and financially. The most important advice for new comers to the MBA programme, after congratulating them for taking such an astute step, is to take it one step at a time. What we mean by that is focus on the current tasks that you want to achieve while keeping your mind on the two and half year journey. You will be rewarded with a prestigious MBA degree. Some might say that their work is important and has priority. This is true. But a professional’s life is all about balancing priorities. By enrolling at KMBS you have made a bold choice. You will need courage and determination to reach your goal.

The Editor

Editor Message

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P5The Benefits of the Thesis in KMBS’ MBA Programme

Interview with KMBS Dean: Dr. Jenny Hewson

KMBS Events

Kuwaiti Winter Breeze VS Pollution

Sandwich Technique

Giving Feedback

Academic Support Short Cources

Visiting Maastricht while attending the graduation ceremony

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KMBS voice team: Dr. Jenny Hewson Abdullah Alenezi Hamad Haji Hana Hassan Dia Mohammed

www.kmbs.edu.kw2. Issue 005. October 2011

Interview with KMBS Dean: Dr. Jenny HewsonKMBS welcomed a new Dean in mid September. The Dean has responsibility for all day-to-day administrative activities along with the leadership of the academic body. The following extracts are from her first interview as Dean:

Q: KMBS was the first private university to provide post graduate qualifications in Kuwait. How do you plan to maintain this competitive advantage?

A: KMBS is unique in that it offered the first Masters programme in Kuwait and remains the only European post graduate qualification maintaining full accreditation from the Maastricht School of Management (MSM). MSM has one of the most highly reputable and ranked MBA programs in the world, enjoying global recognition through its 20+ international campuses. As Dean of an MSM campus, I will strive to ensure KMBS embraces the traditional European university values of rigor, respect and high academic achievement. In joining the KMBS masters program, our students have made an astute choice: they have deliberately chosen a learning experience of the highest quality and by definition, this will be hugely challenging and rewarding once it is theirs. With the help of competent administrative staff and highly talented academics, my goal is that KMBS nurtures a learning experience underpinned by the same high standards of educational delivery and firm regulatory management provided by our accrediting partner, MSM.

Q: How is the current economic climate affecting planning for KMBS?

A: KMBS has defied current economic trends by welcoming one of our largest ever intakes. Approximately 105 new students will begin their MBA studies in October, with 67 applicants wishing to enroll being rolled over to the waiting list for the March 2012 intake. Many of the new students are being supported by their employers (Kuwait Ministries and private companies) along with self-funded individuals driven by the need for personal achievement and a sense of entrepreneurship. This increase in enrolment numbers demonstrates the high regard in which the KMBS MBA is held. Anything of value involves hard work. An MBA does not come easily, and true commitment is needed to

succeed. The new intake has thought hard about the options available in Kuwait, they have compared the alternatives and chosen a qualification of distinction. Those who undertake an MBA are a relatively small, elite group with a keen sense of personal focus and a genuine thirst for knowledge and skills. The recovery of the world economy will be led by people like this.

Q: Could you offer general advice for KMBS students and potential students?

A: The MBA program is unlike any other post graduate qualification. It tests participants to the absolute maximum. The program is challenging, demanding and intense, taught over a short period and requiring the acquisition of a myriad of new concepts, skills, and competencies. It’s a pressure-cooker environment designed to nurture true business thinkers and develop their commercial savvy, judgement, and initiative. Balancing such a demanding educational program with the other legitimate requirements of family, work and community is an enormous undertaking, and one which should not be lightly undertaken.

Q: What do you bring to KMBS?

A: I have lived and worked in Kuwait since 1994. I have stayed because I genuinely enjoy the Kuwaiti culture and have found my work here rewarding. I have a very thorough understanding of the specific educational parameters in Kuwait, the school systems, the student learning styles, the academic aspirations, and the social parameters within which all this takes place. I have been involved with the Private University sector in Kuwait since it began in 2000. I am hopeful that the combination of my academic qualifications, my corporate university experience and my affinity with Kuwait can benefit KMBS by ensuring that it continues to provide a European MBA experience of the highest quality. An experience which culminates in the awarding of a qualification of the highest global standards.


Many prospective students ask the question “why should I join KMBS’s MBA when this is the only one in Kuwait with a thesis requirement?”

During the time I have been at KMBS (almost seven years) I have supervised more than 100 MBA theses and in more than 50% of the cases the students tell me that for them working on the thesis was the best part of the MBA programme. This is one benefit, but there are many more.

First of all, what is the thesis? A thesis is a small research project on any topic related to the MBA and chosen jointly by the student and the supervisor. It takes about four to five months to complete and although most students are a bit anxious about it, the majority find the experience very rewarding. The thesis is an opportunity for the student to choose a topic relevant for him or her and develop it in accordance with internationally accepted research standards in management/business studies.

In terms of new knowledge, the student has a great deal to gain from the thesis and this knowledge is not only about the topic itself, but also about the acquired skills in literature searching, research methodology, report writing, oral presentation and problem solving. Let us look at these skills, one by one.

Literature searching – The first step in the preparation for the thesis is to search for academic literature on the chosen topic. The objective of this searching is to find out what research has been carried out before on the topic, i.e. what were the methodologies, what were the limitations and what were the conclusions. There are thousands of research papers being published every month, hence it is important to learn how to search the specific databases so that you find and retrieve the articles which are directly relevant to your topic.

Research methodology – There are many established research methodologies in management/ business studies. At KMBS we do not expect our MBA students

to become experts in research methodology, but we expect them to have some basic knowledge about the methodology which they will be using in their thesis. For this end, the school provides a short course on research methods as part of the MBA syllabus. I would like to add that very few business schools in the world provide such a course at the MBA level.Report writing – The thesis itself is a report of about 20,000 words, with a great deal of structure. After you have written the thesis, you will know how to structure and to write a complex report.

Oral presentation – As part of the assessment, the thesis must be presented to a panel of examiners. Again, this is an opportunity to learn or to polish your oral presentation skills.

Problem solving – This is perhaps the most important skill to take away from the MBA thesis. In this context problem solving means being capable of transforming a problem or an issue in the life of a real organization into a research problem, in the initial stages of the thesis. In the latter stages and once the results of the research have been analyzed, it means being able to turn such results back into useful conclusions for the organization.I would like to emphasize that all the specialized skills that our students gain while working on the MBA thesis are directly relevant to their work in companies or in the public sector. Now-a-days, it is expected that any manager with an MBA qualification will be able to produce an excellent study about the market, the customers, the competition, the suppliers, the technology or the legislation relevant to some aspect of his/her organization. When the time comes for a KMBS graduate to produce such a study, all the skills gained through the thesis preparation will come to the surface and be of great benefit.

Finally, our MBA thesis gives our students a taste of what it will be like to work on a PhD, and for this reason we have such a high number of students registering in PhD programmes soon after they complete the MBA.

Professor Rodrigo Magalhaes, PhD

The Benefits of theThesis in KMBS’ MBA Programme


Providing and receiving positive feedback and constructive guidelines is critical to success and professional performance. As a human being, we like to hear good and positive things about our actions. To obtain better performance and outcomes; advice, correction and guidelines must be provided in a way that reveals understanding and respect. ‘Sandwich Technique’ is one of the most powerful tools for providing effective feedback.

‘Sandwich Technique’ is a simple method of providing constructive and positive feedback. In addition, it is an effective communication tool. It enables managers, supervisors and team leaders to share their corrections amongst their compliments. ‘Sandwich Technique’ consists of praise followed by corrective feedback, then followed by more praise.

The technique format is as follows:

1. Slice of Bread: Positive Compliment

Begin your conversation with observation, fact or action that the employee has done that has produced a good result. Use a welcoming and polite tone of voice and open body language.

2. Filling in the Middle: Constructive Correction/Criticism

Discuss specific actions or situations that must be changed, corrected or improved. Do not list more than three constructive corrections at max. Be brief, yet clear and thorough. Remember your tone of voice should remain welcoming and constructive, and body language should remain open.

3. Slice of Bread: Positive Compliment

Wrap up your conversation with a reiteration of the observation, fact, or action that the employee has done, which has produced good results. You can re-emphasize the good action that the conversation had started with or you can speak in general about the

progress s/he is making or also you can compliment on her/his receptiveness to receiving constructive criticism. This compliment should be more encouraging than the initial one, which is given in the beginning of the conversation in order to let the staff know that not only her/his bad or negative traits are observed, but also the good ones are observed as well. Maintain your welcoming tone and open body language.

The advantages of this technique are threefold; it softens the influence of the criticism on employees, it makes it easier for managers to handle and discuss problems or criticism, and finally it encourages employees to repeat desired behaviors. Accordingly it is affirmative feedback that influences change.

In summary, sandwich your criticism between two heavy layers of praise to inform staff when something is wrong without bruising her/his ego. Praise, criticize then praise again.

by Dia Mohammed - Intake 6 Alumni

Sandwich Technique

“Only those who dare to fail greatly can ever achieve greatly.” - Robert F. Kennedy


By Emad Aljumah

Visiting Maastricht while attending the graduation ceremony

Attending the graduation ceremony at Maastricht, I had one day to spare and decided to explore the town of Maastricht. I am very pleased that I did because it turns out that Maastricht is the oldest town in the Netherland; it is well known for its culture, history and education; and it is also popular with tourist for its shopping. I had a wonderful time exploring the rich history of the city; Maastricht offers many museums, churches, historical buildings, alleys and squares. The architecture in Maastricht ranges from roman excavation to modern design. During my one day tour in the city, I captured the many photos and here are some of the photos I like.

Maastricht train station; there is also another train station in Maastricht, Randwyck station, which is opposite the MSM building.

Don’t miss Selexyz Dominicanen: probably the most beautiful bookstore in the world, a church that was transformed into a bookstore.

Maastricht city center is split by the river Mass. The two parts of the city are connected by several bridges

Alaa Kamal and myself :)


Loving winter seasons in Kuwait? Liking the fresh air and cool breeze? Sometimes it gets to your bones but I’m sure a lot of people just enjoy opening their windows and getting pleasure from the air or maybe you love to run/jog in the evening?

That was just an introduction, in which I was being slightly sarcastic. Because there are many facts that you might be unaware of, regarding the quality of the air, with which I would like to enlighten you. Taking the first example of opening your window and enjoying the weather, this will raise a question of “Did you know how polluted Kuwait is and so little is being done?” Yes it is, in fact you have witnessed it when you see black smoke coming out of a car exhaust system which is not filtered. But this is not the most harmful type. The smoke that we can’t see (invisible color) is the worst kind of all. This is the air that we are breathing every day and we all have witnessed a huge increase in asthma and other illnesses which can be related to air pollution.

As time passes by, we are all working for the benefit of the next generation so we can contribute to helping our environment to make it a better place for our children and loved ones. Simply by wise thinking as mentioned above, a small thing we can do is to always service our cars and maintain them, increase the plants in your home, even with the little ones (small plant makes a difference too) or by installing the right filter to the exhaust system and try to enlighten others to do so. Think about it, you could be the one enjoying these benefits of have a healthier and longer life.

Kuwait is a country with low rainfall, and so to clean the air is very hard to do or near impossible. Nevertheless, you need to keep in mind that even rain with polluted air will create ‘acid rain’. Having one of the highest GDP and the lowest fuel prices provides an ideal opportunity for ownership of motorized vehicles, which compounds the situation.

This introduces the weather issue. In long summer

(lasting about nine months), temperatures can reach 50 ºC or higher and with a short winter not a lot of rain is introduced as it drops to single digit value in early mornings and nights.The motorized vehicles are vital for us, as our sole means of transport (commuting and transporting goods). In the last decade, the motorized road vehicle fleet has grown significantly bringing unprecedented mobility to the burgeoning population.

With the growth of vehicles, the fuel consumption has obviously also increased.Motor vehicles are a critical source of urban air pollution (PM10, CO, CO2, NOx, O3, SO2 and VOC's).

Air pollution is a serious health problem and accounts for hundreds of people being taken ill. Enjoy your cool air breeze but do it wisely. In this article I just want to identify the problems that you may already be aware of and which you can research in more depth. You may also wish to do something about it. Take a look at the low CO2 Exhaust system filters or maybe you are an owner of a busy restaurant and can install a filter for your chimneys and encourage your friends to do the same.

References:

Air pollution and road traffic in Kuwait, Author(s): E. Al-Bassam & A. KhanIndustrial Environmental Carbon, www.carboncapturefilters.com

Dust Extraction - Fume Extraction - Local Exhaust Ventilation - Pollution Control Equipment, www.lev-co.com

Unique air filter system cuts exhaust pollutants, Shelley Tom,www.eurekamagazine.co.uk/article/2984/unique-air-filter-system-cuts-exhaust-pollutants.aspx

by Mohamed A. Nassar - Intake 14 Student

Kuwaiti Winter Breeze VS Pollution

“It is on our failures that we base a new and different and better success.” - Havelock Ellis


On Monday 3rd October KMBS held an Orientation session for Intake 16 MBA students. The orientation took place at Sheikh Abdullah Al-Mubarak Hall at Kuwait Teachers Society. The evening was principally a social event with students having the opportunity to meet academic and administrative staff, and spending time with their fellow students. Students also received their admission packages, copies of rules and regulations, their ID card, email accounts, and a copy of their timetables.

Dr. Jenny Hewson, Dean of KMBS opened the evening by warmly welcoming the new students to the KMBS family and introducing each

of the Professors along with members of the administrative staff. Students were then provided with an overview of the MBA programme, its content and timings. The Dean stressed the fact that the MBA degree offered by KMBS is accredited by one of Europe’s most highly ranked management schools and that an MBA from the Maastricht School of Management is a qualification of distinction.The Dean was delighted that this intake was a bumper year for enrolments in the MBA program, with more than 105 students being accepted. A further 37 students were rolled-over to a waiting list for the March 2012 intake. Entry into the KMBS is proving more and more competitive and the robust enrolment figures defy the global economic downturn. Dr Hewson explained that the Maastricht qualification has its roots in the European tradition of higher education, one built on academic rigor, commitment and respect. The rights and responsibilities of students, faculty and staff were explained.

Mrs Sulekha Uthman, Head of the Examination Unit then explained the rules and regulations governing exams and advised students to contact her in the event of queries. Professors Hernan Riquelme and Rodrigo Magalhaes then provided short presentations concerning the competencies and capabilities required of an MBA student, and the critical issue of effective time management.The Dean closed the function by thanking students, faculty and staff for their attendance and wished the students the best of luck in their MBA studies.

KMBS defies Market downturn

KMBS Graduates attend MsM Graduation Ceremony

KMBS Events

A group of 9 KMBS graduates attended the MsM graduation ceremony that took place early September. Each year, MsM invites graduating students from all MsM branches to attend the graduation in Holland. The graduation ceremony was an opportunity for KMBS graduates to visit Maastricht and MsM. KMBS is proud of its graduates and wishes them luck in their professional career.


In early September, the KMBS Dean Dr Jenny Hewson attended the Annual Partners Conference of Maastricht School of Management in Holland. Deans from more than 20 of MSM’s 26 outreach partners were also in attendance. Topics discussed included: measures to increase collaboration between MSM and its partners, accreditation standards, enhanced research output and a planned curriculum review for 2012. Among the participants were Deans from Peru, Fiji, Romania, Ghana, Kazakhstan, Rwanda, Namibia and Suriname.

The Admissions Unit is currently accepting applications to Intake 17 which will commence in mid March 2012. Places are limited, so those interested in joining are advised to submit their applications as soon as possible.

KMBS center of excellence in coordination with the admissions department launched three courses during the summer. The three courses are English Preparation course, English Development course, and Math preparation course. The courses were designed to help students struggling with English and math requirements to pass the exams at the end. The EP course was a two weeks course which was specifically designed for those whose level of English is on Intermediate level. The course is to prepare new candidates for the English exam that they all have to take at the end of the course. Students were assisted by practicing the listening, reading, and writing skills. There was a solution for those who do not pass the EP and those whose level is below intermediate which was the ED course. This course was an intensive English course specifically designed for students wishing to join the MBA programme to prepare them and help develop their reading, writing and listening skills. Students were required to take an English exam at the end. The last course that was developed was the MP course. This

course was tailored for those who are weak in math or come from a different background. All three courses were a huge success and appealed to new students. They helped solve and overcome some of the obstacles they were facing. We had 38% of applicants 16 take the EP and the ED course together, and 36% took the Math course. The students enjoyed the learning experience they acquired and they gained a lot. The courses helped prepare students for classroom attendance and team work.

The center also worked with the British Institute of Training and Education (BITE) and tailored specific short courses to help the students during their study at KMBS. The list of courses was approved after thorough investigation of the problems and the difficulties that some students face during their time at KMBS. These courses include; Academic writing, Business English, Time management and Referencing. Courses outlines will be sent to student and alumni to gauge their interest, and plan the course schedule.

Center of Excellence

Dr. Jenny Attended the Annual Partners Conference of MsM

KMBS is accepting applications for the March 2012 intake


“There are several paths to entrepreneurship”, Dr Hernan E. Riquelme explains in his course Entrepreneurship and New Business Venture at Kuwait Maastricht Business School. “One of these forms is very popular in Kuwait namely, Franchising”, he adds. In franchising, semi-independent business owners(franchisees) pay fees and royalties to a parent company (franchisor) in return for the right to become identified with the trademark, to sell its products or services. Franchising gives individuals the possibility to become entrepreneurs but with substantially less risk than if they started a business from scratch. If four out of five new businesses fail within three years, the relationship is the opposite when individuals start a franchise. This is not to say that there is a guarantee in franchising but at least the risk carried by an entrepreneur is much less.Mr. Fadil Al Nassar, executive director of Middle East Franchising, with offices in Kuwait, Riyadh and U.K., explained MBA students at KMBS that “franchising gives potential entrepreneurs the opportunity to realize their dreams as business owner by riding on the experience of others, that is, a franchisor”.“Unlike in the West,” Mr. Fadil explained, “franchising in the Middle East is carried out in a different way; most of the franchises are in the hands of a Master Franchisee instead of individual franchisees.” A master franchisee gives a franchisee the right to create a semi-independent organization in a particular territory to recruit, sell and support other franchises. “In Kuwait”, Mr. Fadil noted, “the majority of the franchises belong to large companies such as Americana and AL Shaya and these companies normally develop franchises with their own resources rather than sub-franchising to individuals.” This is not to say there is no opportunity for individuals to become entrepreneurs through franchises. Middle East Franchising helps individual and companies to realize their dreams. Mr. Fadil Al Nassar emphasizes several steps before investing in a franchise: one of these is the financial resources. Franchisors opt to develop their businesses with the money of the franchisee therefore a franchisor would expect the

franchisee have adequate financial resources to establish a franchise. “The amount needed to create a franchise varies from one type to another, and also the contracts with the franchisor may require the franchisee to develop a number of franchise outlets within a specific time.” Potential franchise owners should be aware of the various conditions the franchisor will impose on the franchisee, some franchisors are more flexible than others. “In one case”, Mr. Fadil mentioned, “the franchisor did not even allow the franchisee to alter the furniture”. For all individuals who want to become franchisees, Mr. Fadil recommends to ask if they are cut out to be franchisee. Like all entrepreneurs, successful franchisees must be committed to making their businesses successful. For franchisees, that means learning how the franchisor’s system works and how to apply it in their individual markets. “Sometimes,” Mr. Mohammed Al Nassar, managing director of Middle East Franchising, “people enter the world of franchising because they believe they can become creative with the business, however, franchising boils down to following the system that the franchisor has established.”Consistent with the view of each course at KMBS to develop general and managerial capabilities, both, AL Nassar’s brothers provided MBA students with an example of how to evaluate a franchisor and Dr. Riquelme complemented the exercise by evaluating the potential of the franchise for the Kuwaiti market.

KMBS Host Mr. Fadil Al-Nasser from Middle East Francising


Dr. Hassan received his M.B.A. in Finance with distinction and Ph.D. from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in the United States of America (USA). His area of specialty is Corporate Finance, International Finance and Banking. For the past two decades he has taught a wide range of courses in Finance and Economics at several American Universities. Dr. Hassan also taught as a visiting International Faculty at North South University and Daffodil International University in Bangladesh, Gulf University of Science and Technology (GUST), and Kuwait University, in Kuwait. His teaching philosophy and pedagogical skills have earned him several awards as “Outstanding and Best” Professor of the year. He was the Director of the MBA program, Finance program Coordinator and Chairman of the Department of Economics, Finance & Accounting in different academic institutions in USA. His last appointment was Chairman of the Division of Business Administration and Professor of Finance at Allen University in USA.

His active involvement at Professional meetings resulted in numerous presentations, publication of a book and several paper publications in reputable journals in USA and abroad. His on-going research continues in the field Corporate Finance and International Finance and his productive scholarship is further integrated into his coursework. He has been appointed as a consultant by the College Board and ETS (Education Testing Services, Princeton, New Jersey, USA).He has served both as a teaching faculty member and as an administrator in various educational institutions. As an administrator he has played a major role in developing academic curriculum for finance majors and developing a full-fledged Master in Business Education Program. Dr. Hassan’s service to his profession, department, institution and community continues to be extensive. He is an active member of a number of professional organizations including the Financial Management Association International (FMA), and since 2006 has been serving as a board member for National Social Science Organization. www.nssan.us

Welcome Dr. MunirKMBS would like to welcome to the KMBS family Prof. Munir Hassan, Professor of Finance.

Congratulations to Professor Rodrigo for his newly published article in the acclaimed British Journal ‘Systems Research and Behavioral Science’ titled ‘Re-Interpreting Organisation Design in the Light of Enacted Cognition Theory’. Professor Rodrigo is also Editor-in-Chief of the International Journal ‘Organisational Design and Engineering’.

Congratulations to Professor Rodrigo

“Anyone who proposes to do good must not expect people to roll stones out of his way, but must accept his lot calmly if they even roll a few more upon it.” - Albert Schweitser


“When it comes to organizing, entrepreneurs have a wide choice of forms of ownership”, Dr Mohammed Al Noor, lawyer and Chief of strategic business development & VIP client relationships, Al-Twaijri & Partners Law Firm, indicated. The guest speaker to the course of Entrepreneurship and New Business Venture taught at Kuwait Maastricht Business School (KMBS) by professor, Dr Hernan E. Riquelme is one, of several practitioners, that bring the “real” local examples into the classroom.

Many business owners do not consider seriously the implications of the form of ownership from the legal point of view. “Sometimes owners believe that they should start a sole proprietorship form by default”, Al Noor, commented in class, “just because it is simple to create and the least costly form of ownership. However, owners must be aware of the implications of this type of business form especially in relation to personal liabilities”. Probably the greatest disadvantage of a sole proprietorship is the unlimited personal liability of the owner because in this form the owner is the business. If the business fails, the creditors can also force the sale of all personal assets to cover its debts. In short, Al Noor, emphasized, “ the company’s debts are the owner’s debts”.

Al Noor, suggested potential business owners to review several factors before choosing a form of ownership, not only the ease and cost of formation. Some of the factors to bear in mind are, in addition to those already discussed, continuity of the business, liquidity of the owner’s investment, ability to raise capital, and transferability of ownership.

Al Noor also commented on the various forms (for a foreign company) of entering the Kuwaiti market namely, appointment of a local commercial agent, or a local commercial distributor, a commercial representative, or through a joint venture agreement. Al Noor went on to specify the different types of companies the Kuwait Commercial Company Law provides among others, With limited liability (WLL, sharika that mas’ouliyyah mahdoudah), closed shareholding co. (SAKC or KSCC, sharikat

musahamah moqfaleh), public shareholding co. (SAK or KSC, sharikat musahamah aamah), Joint liability company (sharikat al tadhamun), Limited partnership (LP, sharikat al tawsiyah), and Joint venture (JV, sharikat al-mahassah). All with the exception of the last one possess a separate legal entity.

Al Noor, discussed several examples of each type in Kuwait and some of the challenges the different types of companies and agencies brought with them. Al Noor mentioned some public cases in

Kuwait of disagreements in relation to agencies and distribution agreements, the reasons, obligations and implications of the contracts.

The students, as usual, appreciated the invitation of guest speakers in this course and the additional knowledge these guests bring to the classroom. As a result, it is common practice in this course as well as others in KMBS to have industry speakers to deliver specific sessions in the curriculum.

KMBS Host Dr. Mohammed AlNoor from Al-Twaijri & Partners Law Firm


Giving feedback or confronting employees is one of the most difficult social task we face in our lives. Giving positive feedback is sometimes called motivation or encouragement, and many of us are sometimes doing it wrongly by generalizing the feedback by saying "you have done a good job". A good feedback should be specific like saying "Your report has listed the major critical points that we did not notice before, thank you for reporting them to us."

We do similar or even worse mistakes when we give negative feedbacks. Sometimes our negative feedback has more destructive effect than the constructive change we hoped for. Reading the following pages will help you understand the types of feedbacks you may use at work or at home. Some valuable examples are given at the end for your a reference.

The effective and simple wayby : Sami Malallah

Giving Feedback

FEEDBACKWorkers and employees do their daily work with little variation in their performance. Somedays they would perform better than their daily average. Once in a while, they would surprise us with new initiatives or excellent work that deserve appreciation.On other days, their performance would be lower than expected. And once in a while, they are below our expectations or they could make undesirable mistakes. Supervisors and managers use different approaches to improve the employees performance or to bring it back to their average. Some use positive feedback, others use negative feedback. Both feedbacks would have desirable results, but which one is better than the other?

How we perceive the feedback

The English publisher Thomas P. Jone once said “Honest criticism is hard to take, particularly from a relative, a friend, an acquaintance, or a stranger.” We love feedback when the feedback is positive and when it is announced in front of a group of people. We would be floating on white clouds all day because of this public acknowledgement. We would feel that this feedback should have been given publicly long ago. We think that we have done an excellent job and it is about time the rest of the world acknowledged our achievements. We rarely accept negative feedback and we immediately ask the feedback giver for details to support what he or she has just told us. We normally go through denial and argue with the feedback giver without accepting or realizing the value of comments and we would finally accept it as a form of jealousy. Sometimes negative feedback is nothing more than a quick comment coming from a friend who had a difficult day and needs a listener to blast his or her anger on.

The value of feedbackAuthor and business speaker Ken Blanchard said “Feedback is the breakfast of champions.” I believe that feedback (positive or negative) is constructive criticism as long as it shows us the faults, shortfalls that we have committed and also distinguishes the good actions and achievements we have made. High achievers are used to delivering excellent work and think this is normal. They are surprised other


employees are not doing the same. The average workers would look at the high achievers and ask

themselves: "what's wrong with those people, why they are killing themselves?" The American author Elbert Hubbard said “To avoid criticism do nothing, say nothing, be nothing.”

Positive FeedbackPositive feedback is always needed always, both when employees are doing extraordinary work or when they are doing their normal daily work. Giving positive feedback boosts moral, improves behavior and enhances both the giver's and the receiver's moods.

GIVING CONSTRUCTIVE CRITICISM Criticism is a delicate issue especially to a vulnerable person. The following few steps are a good guideline to give criticism constructively

Get the factsGet the facts about the subject you are going to criticize. Make sure you know the gap between your expectations and what was done by the person you are criticizing.

Meeting venue Meet the person in a convenient place for both of you. Make sure that your discussion is private. Your office is always the preferred venue is these situations.

Explain the purpose Explain the purpose of the meeting and assure the person that this feedback time is for the benefit of both of you. The benefit for him or her would be not repeating the same mistake (low performance) and for you to get the relation (or job) going in the best way.

Explain the difficultyYou may add that this feedback session is difficult for you to give and not easy for him or her to accept. But assure them that the intention is “constructive criticism”.

Encouragement Briefly state some of the good qualities (performance) that the person is currently doing. This step is used to reduce their tension. Some experts do not recommend this step because it may conflict with the message you are trying to give. Use your judgment to either do this step or not, according to the situation.

Criticize Point out the mistake, fault or low-performance (criticism). Give example of what the person had done and what was expected from him or her. Establish the gap and support it with evidence.

Make sureMake sure that the person understands the gap. Some smart trouble makers would end the feedback session without agreeing to their mistakes. They will argue later that you discussed the subject casually, you never explained what they did wrong.


Show them the waySuggest a way to remove the obstacles or explain the right behavior you need from them. Sometimes the instruction or procedure was difficult for them to understand or follow. Explain what they should do in similar situations.

Get the agreementReach an agreement with the employee that he or she understood what went wrong and they understand what they need to do in future situations.

Document the discussionIf this criticism is done in a work environment then record (by writing) the meeting highlights and the required actions. Set target dates for each action for you to follow up and for the employee to set his or her priorities.

Conclude the feedback sessionThank the person for their understanding and their positive way of accepting the criticism. Agree on a follow up meeting if necessary.

Feedback ExampleYou pass by one of the employees work place (office disk, workshop, or showroom) then you notice that the place is not tidy, not organized or unsafe to work in. The discussion in the feedback would be like this:

You: " I noticed some interesting situations in your workplace and I think we need to discuss it, do you have the time to discuss it now" (if the answer is no then ask when you can discuss it in the near future).Employee:"Yes, what is it about?"

You: "I saw your workplace that day, it appears to me that your workplace is not organized/clean/safe. How does it appear to you?"

Employee: "I guess it is Ok the way it is now"

You: "I have seen the place more organized/cleaned/safe before. Don't you agree. If you agree I would like to work with you to change the way it looks now" or "I want to understand how organized/cleaned/safe it appears to you"

Employee: "Yes, we need to discuss how we can change things around here."

If the agreement was not reached on the need for change then you can continue by saying: "This is how I perceive this situation ..... and what you are saying is....... Did I understand the situation correctly?"

"I am just trying to correct this situation in the best way I can and if you chose not to work with me to change it, I would have to ...... ".

However, if you and the employee had reached an agreement on the employee's wrongdoing or the shortcoming then the discussion can proceed as in the following.

You: "What are you going to do to make it more organized/clean/safe"

Employee: " I can ......."

You: "When you will do that"

Employee: "I will get it done by tomorrow"

You: "Good, I am sure you will perform better in an organized/clean/safe place. Thank you!

Your perception

of the situation

Explain how it looks to

you

Explain your intentions are to help both of you

Restate the real situation and employee

views

Explain that disagreement

would lead to undesired

actionsreach

agreement on how to

change

Ask employee to explain otherwise


Academic Support Short Courses Approved by KMBS

“A life spent making mistakes is not only more honorable but more useful than a life spent in doing nothing.” - George Bernard Shaw

Academic Writing

Presentation SkillsThesis Defense Preparation

Thesis SupportBusiness English

Writing English as a Second Language

Reading Skills

Note Taking Technique

Time ManagementManaging Study Related Stress & Anxiety

Work Effectively in a groupPrioritizing and Preparation

Exam Preparation

English Development

Referencing

Proof Reading/Editing Service

Concentration and Recall


DISCLAIMERPlease note that individual views and opinions expressed in this newsletter do not necessarily reflect those of KMBS as a whole.

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