Giving Feedback Effectively

What has been corrected on this page?

Every accepted correction to this page is recorded with the exact change, so readers can see how the page improved over time.

1. 30 July 2026 · corrected by Selen Ikbal Uslu

   Corrected a claim that runs counter to the cited researchers' actual published findings, a misattributed critique, an overstated track record, and several statistics and studies that could not be verified.

   What the page claimed

   Article attributed a claim about diminishing returns from frequent feedback to Zenger and Folkman's research, though their actual documented findings argue the opposite. It attributed criticism of GE's vitality curve to Robert Cialdini and Barry Schwartz specifically, which could not be verified, overstated Bridgewater Associates' investment track record, cited a 2014 study by Gneezy and Epley that could not be verified, misattributed a Deloitte statistic (the actual figure describes executives finding the review process an ineffective use of time, not employees rating feedback 'not helpful'), included an unverifiable cost-reduction figure for Deloitte's system redesign, described a 25-year tracked correlational study for Pixar's Braintrust that could not be verified to exist (Catmull's actual account is anecdotal), and stated Valve's revenue per employee as 'over $500,000' when the actual figure is closer to $48-50 million.

   What was corrected

   Replaced the Zenger and Folkman claim with an accurate description of their actual research emphasis, removed the Cialdini/Schwartz attribution, softened the Bridgewater claim to acknowledge its real, documented mixed track record, replaced the Gneezy and Epley citation with an accurately hedged description of the general research literature on feedback framing, corrected the Deloitte statistic to its real meaning and removed the unverifiable cost-reduction figure, corrected the Pixar Braintrust claim to reflect Catmull's actual anecdotal account, and corrected Valve's revenue-per-employee figure to the right order of magnitude.

   Why: Verified against the original Zenger/Folkman HBR study, published reporting on GE's vitality curve critics, Bridgewater's actual documented fund performance across multiple years, Gneezy and Epley's actual publication record, Deloitte's original HBR case study by Buckingham and Goodall, Ed Catmull's Creativity Inc., and current public reporting on Valve's revenue and headcount.

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