Feedback is one of those things we all know we need — and often struggle to do well. At Leading Edge, we found ourselves in that very place. As an organization that helps Jewish nonprofits build better workplace cultures, we’re constantly looking at how we can live our values and model the practices we advocate. Yet, when it came to feedback, we realized we had work to do.

Why Focus on Feedback?

The need became clear through both formal and informal channels. Our Employee Experience Survey and ongoing conversations revealed that feedback — especially upward and peer-to-peer — wasn’t happening effectively. Team members expressed a lack of openness to constructive conversations and observed that while we were excellent at positive affirmations, they often lacked detail. Without meaningful feedback, growth opportunities were being overlooked, and the culture began to feel surface-level positive rather than deeply supportive.

As the executive team dug into these insights, it became obvious that feedback was about more than improving processes, it was about relationships, development, and trust. We saw the opportunity to make a change by engaging in a feedback workshop series with Frontline Solutions, a program designed to help teams build stronger communication skills.

We had done feedback trainings before, and while they were well-received, they were one-off sessions. This time, we wanted to go deeper, knowing that real change takes time, practice, and commitment.

Reflecting and Growing as Leaders

For the executive team, the workshops offered moments of deep reflection. We joined the full-team sessions while also participating in focused discussions tailored to our own development. These sessions gave us valuable insight into how the team views our current culture and helped us reflect on our leadership behaviors. They pushed us to consider how we need to adjust our approach to better support the culture we’re striving to build. It’s been a powerful process of listening, reflecting, and growing together.

We’ve realized that relying solely on supervisors to address concerns doesn’t always give us the full picture. People can present differently to us than they do to their direct supervisors, so it’s crucial that we share our own observations directly when something stands out. Supervisors may not always see the same patterns or behaviors we do, and leaving these conversations unsaid can lead to missed opportunities for growth and improvement. Power dynamics are a reality, and it’s important for us to stay mindful of them. While we encourage our employees to show up as their authentic selves at work, we also recognize the weight that a conversation with an executive team member can carry. Feedback from us often holds greater significance, and we have a responsibility to approach those moments with care and intention.

The workshops didn’t just focus on how to give feedback; they explored the dynamics between giver and receiver. A key “aha”  moment for us was understanding that feedback isn’t about following a checklist — it’s about meeting the needs of the person receiving it and being mindful of our differences.

One standout exercise paired feedback practice with the Change Styles Indicator, helping us see how individuals approach and respond to change. This realization deepened our feedback process and strengthened relationships. It wasn’t just about improving communication, it was about building trust and understanding.

Impact: Changing the Way We Lead and Connect

Since the workshops, we’re seeing tangible changes across the team:

• More openness and collaboration: Team members are volunteering for projects outside their usual responsibilities, often with people outside their core teams.
• Greater accountability: Feedback has started to flow more naturally: upward, downward, and across the organization.

For the executive team, this shift has been significant. We’ve always valued feedback, but we’re now more aware of its complexities. We’ve also learned to manage expectations: while we encourage feedback, we’re clear that not every piece can or will be acted upon. When we can’t take action, we commit to sharing context and being transparent about why.

Looking Ahead: Building on the Momentum

We know that feedback isn’t a one-time project — it’s a practice. Moving forward, we’re focused on reinforcing what we’ve learned and exploring areas like skip-level feedback (conversations between executives and team members who report to other supervisors).

Historically, we’ve tended to focus on positive skip-level feedback, perhaps contributing to a culture of hyper-positivity. We now see the need to balance that by sharing observations, even when they’re hard. This will require building trust and creating a culture where this kind of feedback is constructive and doesn’t carry disproportionate weight.

Already, we’re seeing team members reach out to the executive team more informally: “can I share what I heard?” or “can I give some advice?” These messages are welcome, and we’re working to make it clear that anyone can schedule time with us, anytime.

We’re also thinking about relationship-building across the team. As we grow, it’s not enough to rely on full-team meetings to create connections. We need to be intentional about building relationships with team members in new and different ways.

Personal Growth: What We’ve Learned as Leaders

For us as an executive team, this work has deepened our awareness of how we communicate and connect. We’re reflecting on our role in holding the big picture of the organization while staying attuned to individual relationships. Feedback is a tool for growth, not just for the team, but for us as leaders as well.

We see this as the beginning of an ongoing journey. Our goal is for Leading Edge to continue to embody what it means to be a great place to work: a welcoming, open culture where every voice matters and every person has the opportunity to grow. The goalpost may keep moving, but we’re committed to staying on the path.