A controlled experimental study of 1,361 global corporation managers showed that feedback-based coaching increased the managers’ propensity to seek advice and improved their subsequent performance one year later.

After Leslie gave constructive feedback to Barry, Barry gave constructive feedback to Patty and later to me. Seeing how well he had responded to Leslie’s feedback, Barry’s team dared to tell him, with a bit of humor, when his moodiness was slipping back in and started giving more feedback to one another. We hadn’t hired any new talent or raised anyone’s salaries, but day-by-day candor was increasing talent density in the office.

[Carly] Fiorina, who in fact had done such an in-depth study of the company and the situation that she had many of the answers, probably meant to reassure people by her knowledge. But by not asking questions and by not failing to have some answers, she scared many of the employees. Fortunately, when this feedback was delivered and received, Fiorina adapted her active listening and allowed her natural gift for communication to flourish. This increased her credibility and at the same time deepened her insights into the company, its challenges, and its opportunities.

But if you really dig in and discipline yourself to be receptive, you can become highly skilled at making others feel comfortable providing criticism. Hubert Joly, who led a remarkable turnaround as CEO of Best Buy, shared his own journey in learning how to make productive use of feedback. Before joining Best Buy, while CEO at CWT (formally Carlson Wagonlit Travel), Joly began working with the executive coach Marshall Goldsmith. “Up until then,” he recalled, “I was a perfectionist and mightily struggled with feedback. Whenever a negative point was made in a ‘360,’ I would ask, ‘Who said that?’ Marshall helped me change my perspective.

The merit of getting to know prospects to choose a good successor was evident in Charles’ case. He’d risen to the top of the heap of candidates through a long and rigorous process during which the board had gotten to know him well. They’d been presented with a wealth of information about his accomplishments and leadership talents, and they felt confident he was right for the job. But then he totally whiffed his interview with them by showing up in the manner of a direct report rather than speaking to the directors as a peer. He didn’t come across as the authoritative leader they could rely on to be forceful with them or to make the tough calls and bold moves that would take the firm where it needed to go. They were really taken aback, and they began to reconsider an external candidate.

But all that they had learned about Charles over the prior five years ultimately prevailed. Because of the experience they had with him, they agreed when we urged them to give him another chance to present. We gave him feedback and shared what the board had said about his prior performance before them. He took the feedback well and returned very much as the in-command CEO the board wanted to see. This ability to take feedback and adapt gave them even more confidence that he would continue to grow once in the role. Charles was appointed and has had a highly successful tenure.