As a leader, you can add comments to thoughts in the Thoughts tab of the Results Dashboard.
Comments can provide a major return on investment for your participants. This seemingly small act helps build trust in participants because they see that their input is being seriously considered and appreciated. Even if it’s as simple as “Thank you for this thought”, comments let people know that they’re being heard. And that’s one of the most important and meaningful results that can come of an Exchange.
Importantly, leader comments help to transform a traditional one-way “send and hope someone reads it” experience into a real and meaningful two-way dialogue between participants and leaders. Comments enable leaders and leadership teams to directly answer questions, provide clarity, address concerns, and share their appreciation for thoughts being submitted.
When people see that their thoughts are respected, considered, and (most importantly) valued, then they’re much more likely to offer their thoughts again in the future.
Now that we've tackled why, you may be asking how. Check out these tips on how to maximize the value of the exchange and address the thoughts (and concerns) of your participants.
Best Practices
Acknowledge
Acknowledge the courage and interest that the participant demonstrated in sharing their thought (this isn’t easy for some people!).
Example:
“Thank you for sharing this great thought. I'll be sure to keep this in mind as we move forward."
Be Curious
Show curiosity! If there’s a thought that really made you pause and consider, be sincere and open. Keep the conversation going, even after the exchange!
Example:
“I would love to understand this thought better. If this was your thought or you starred this idea, I'd love to have a conversation about it. Please reach out to me directly.”
Challenge
Maybe a thought isn’t aligned with the needs or goals of the organization at the time of the exchange. This, however, doesn’t mean that the thought should be ignored.
Example:
“This is an interesting thought. I can understand the desire but don't feel that this is going to meet the needs of our organization at this time. I think that our focus at this time is better spent on our current initiatives.”
Appreciate Insight
Show that people should freely share their most innovative or insightful ideas - even if they’re “against the grain” or unconventional. There’s no telling what form a good idea or thought will take on, or where one will turn up!
Example:
“This thought brings up so many new ideas for me! I love the creativity of the thought and appreciate the 'outside the box' thinking.”
How to - Results Dashboard
Leaders and Results Managers can comment on thoughts by clicking the comment button on a particular thought in the Thoughts page (accessed via the dropdown menu on the main Results tool - see image below). You can also open a quick view panel of all the thoughts that currently have comment threads on them by clicking the primary comment button at the top of the page.
Comments can be targeted at participants if you would like to respond to a specific idea or at other leaders/collaborators if you would like to have some behind-the-scenes discussion about the thought to strategize next steps or follow up. When you click the comment button on a thought, you will open the comment panel where you can:
- Create a new comment
- Tag a collaborator in your comment by typing or clicking the @ symbol (they need to be a leader in the same room or have viewer or manager access to your Results Dashboard. Click here to learn more about adding managers.)
- Publish a comment for participants to see by checking the "Publish to participants" option when writing the comment or by clicking the menu button on the comment and selecting "Publish to Participants). Note: Each thought can only have ONE published comment at a time. Publishing a comment on a thought that already has a published comment will replace the old comment.
- Unpublish a comment by clicking the menu button on the published comment and selecting "Unpublish comment".
- Delete a comment by clicking the menu button on the published comment and selecting "Delete my comment".
If you would like to tag someone on a comment who does not currently have access to the Results Dashboard for your Exchange you can add them on-the-fly by typing or clicking the @ symbol and selecting the "Invite them to collaborater" option.