Connect to Reconnect: Part of our 10 Christmas Gifts series - Gift Number 1

Gift #1: Feedback Is a Gift

We’re celebrating 10 years of Cake PD by sharing 10 of our favourite tools, snippets and resources from the CAKE Connect library. This first gift focuses on something that comes up in almost every leadership conversation - feedback.

Why this gift?

Because good feedback is transformative  and poor feedback is… well, memorable for the wrong reasons.

The resource you can download here includes the same slides we use across our ILM leadership programmes  . It breaks down:

·         The difference between feedback, criticism and praise.

·         The core characteristics of helpful feedback.

·         A simple and powerful structure: What you did > Why it worked (or didn’t) > What could be different.

·         What shapes how we receive feedback — trust, timing, relationship, confidence and more.

These pages always spark discussion because leaders recognise themselves on both sides: the giver and the receiver.

How to Use This Gift

Here are three simple ways to get value from it straight away:

1. As a conversation framework

Use the What > Why > What structure for your next piece of feedback.

It creates clarity and keeps the conversation grounded in facts.=

2. As a team prompt

Bring this into a team meeting and ask:

“What makes feedback work for you?”

It opens the door to building a healthier feedback culture.

3. As a reflection tool for yourself

Pick one recent moment where you gave or received feedback.

Ask yourself:

·         Was it clear?

·         Was the intention right?

·         What would I do differently next time?

Good feedback is a skill and skills grow with practice.

Download the Gift

Cake PD - Feedback is a Gift.pdf

Download PDF • 554KB

If this gift resonates, we’d love to hear.

And don’t forget to check back tomorrow for Gift No. 2 from the Cake Connect Library!