Critique, Don't Criticize!
/
NYC Guggenheim Museum’s Oculus ℅ Guggenheim Foundation
In my first year of college, I took an upper level course on Kant’s Critique of Pure Reason, filled with philosophy majors. I was totally over my head. But, I still love Critique! Usually relegated to the design world, it is a technique we should be using in business (and life!). In business, we usually criticize…and personalize. Maybe we can adopt a Critique process in business ~ giving an opinion about the ‘thing’ done, how it was done without criticizing the person who did it.
An approach I’ve used for critique separates the HOW (process) from the WHAT (project) first and then assess how they inform each other:
In HOW, we assess the methodology used, steps taken, and lessons learned along the way in each step, each iteration. We discuss things like other possible HOWs and any other potential research.
In WHAT, we assess the “deliverable” itself ~ the project, concept, model, prototype. We discuss the context and framework in which the deliverable lives, ways to describe the deliverable, and/or other potential deliverables (variations on a theme or totally different ones).
Jackson Pollock, Number 5, 1948
Even though the HOW and WHAT are intertwined, critiquing them separately, understanding the inter-dependencies, usually leads to new insights, new approaches and new, better solutions.
In a critique, the Critiquer and Critiqueé are both responsible for success. It’s best if the Critiqueé clearly communicates their ‘design’ philosophy, adapts their communication style to the critiquer’s style, and isn’t defensive but open to feedback, understanding and assessing if, how, and what to adapt and adopt. The Critiquer should have a helpful, refining attitude; this isn’t to boost their own ego! They start with positive comments, ask thoughtful questions to understand, and provide clear, actionable feedback tied to the ultimate user/customer.*
Of course there is a ton more to learn critiques, but this is a start. Think about how and when you can try this in your organization…and see what kind of difference it can make!
*Many thanks to Michael Donohue for sharing his lecture on Critique in our newly created Intro to Engineering class, ENGN 32, at Brown.
