One of the best aspects of TM is the feedback that is given to the speakers and the other participants (assignees) at a meeting.

In TM we use the word “feedback” and this implies that it is an opinion and not a judgement. It also implies that it is the prerogative of the person receiving the feedback to either accept or reject it. TM clearly asks us to use the sandwich method for giving feedback. Here, the speakers positives are spoken about and then one or two suggestions for improvement, and in closing, there is another positive slice to close the ‘sandwich” Diagrammatically, the feedback would look like this...

Giving feedback is not easy. It is a tool that has to be perfected with a lot of learning and practice. An experienced evaluator should motivate a speaker to re-do a speech. When the intention is to help the speaker, the feedback will be taken more seriously, and all the feedback seriously, incorporate it in the speech, and finally deliver it to the evaluators/mentors approval. No other organization formally uses feedback as this effective a tool for self improvement. The best way to get the maximum out of evaluating is for:

• The Speaker to have the will and the interest to listen to the evaluators comments and be ready to incorporate the feedback in the next speech.
• The Evaluator can give the speaker invaluable information that the speaker may not otherwise have obtained by just self-evaluation or introspection.

It is good to remember that the evaluator is only expressing how the speech appealed to him/her. It is not a judgement, nor a way of showing that the evaluator is in any way superior. There are going to be times when the evaluation appears to be totally different from what many of the listeners may have observed/heard. However, it is also pertinent to note here that everyone has a different opinion of what happens... based on the evaluator’s:

• Experience (specially in terms of having completed projects)
• Competence (as a speaker)
• Understanding/Interpretation of the Manual Requirements
• Listening abilities
• Relationship with the speaker
• Assessment of the stature of the speaker

• Evaluation is an opinion, not a judgement
• Use “I” instead of “U” Statements
• Start and End on a positive, motivating note
• Focus on the Speech, Not the speaker
• Be as positive as possible... however, do not whitewash the speaker
• Be as balanced and honest as possible

Do also try the other methods of evaluating, like the PANEL Evaluation, Stop and Go Evaluation, POINt Evaluation, and the Signal Light Evaluation.

• VIDEO.
  In my experience as a corporate trainer, I use Video Feedback to take the feedback to a new level. When we give oral feedback, the speaker has to imagine what we are saying. When the feedback is visual, the picture is VERY CLEAR. No ambiguity and no mis-understanding. We have also used this at a club level, and with camera’s having video capability, and phones coming with pretty good are now employing this as a tremendous tool for evaluating every speaker, at the Speakers’ Workshop for Excellence being conducted at Bangalore.


• AUDIO
  The Digital Voice Recorders, and Micro Cassette Recorders available make it extremely easy to record the audio portions of a speech. Do sit as close to the lectern as possible, so that you are able to catch as much of the speech as possible.

Soon other cities will also be employing this strategy to lift the levels of education and learning about Speaking, at other cities across District 82 (India and Sri Lanka). We will put up some of the clips on this site, so that other TMs can benefit.

We look forward to getting your best tips on evaluating, and we could share this on the group for all the TMs to benefit.

Mail to ian1tm@yahoo.com