“Be More Strategic” Is Feedback People Can’t Use Yet

You finish a performance conversation with what sounds like useful advice: “Be more strategic.” The employee nods. At the next meeting, they bring a longer presentation. You wanted a recommendation. They thought you wanted more detail. Both people leave frustrated.

A development label can point to a real need while leaving the next move unclear. “Executive presence,” “take ownership,” and “improve communication” can have the same problem. The person hears the judgment but has to guess the behavior.

Start with a moment, not a personality

Before giving the feedback, name one situation you actually observed. What did the person say, submit, or do? What did the work need at that moment? Keep your interpretation separate from what happened.

For example, imagine a budget discussion. An employee reports spending by department but offers no recommendation about the shortfall. The useful development conversation is about making a recommendation with tradeoffs. It does not require a verdict about whether the employee is a “strategic person.”

Give the person something to practice

Here is a sample script to adapt to a real situation:

“In yesterday’s budget discussion, you walked us through the spending figures. We still needed your recommendation on the shortfall. For Friday’s review, please bring two options, the tradeoff for each, and the option you recommend. Let’s spend ten minutes reviewing your outline Thursday. What information or access will you need?”

That conversation gives the employee an observable next step, a place to practice it, and support. It also leaves room to discover whether the missing recommendation came from uncertainty, limited access, or a skill that needs development.

Check whether the request is possible

If someone is told to take ownership but cannot make the relevant decision, the feedback needs a second conversation about authority. If they are told to be more strategic while every hour is assigned to urgent delivery, discuss which work can move. Coaching should not quietly ask someone to solve an access or workload problem alone.

Ask: “Do you have the information, time, and decision authority to do what I’m asking?” Then agree on the support or boundary that is missing.

Try a five-minute rewrite

Choose one phrase you have used in feedback recently. Finish these four sentences before your next conversation:

1. In this specific situation, I observed…

2. The work needed…

3. At the next opportunity, please try…

4. I will support you by… and we will review it on…

Read the result aloud. Could the person explain what to do next without guessing? Could both of you recognize progress when you see it? If the answer is unclear, make the request more specific.

Specific feedback still needs dialogue. Invite the employee’s view, agree on a reasonable practice opportunity, and revisit what happened. One attempt is information for the next conversation, not proof of someone’s potential.

Black Ink Consulting helps leaders build practical coaching and leadership habits. If your managers need support turning difficult conversations into workable next steps, visit www.blackinkc.com.