Mental health articles

How to Reject Suggestions Tactfully Listen carefully: Give employees an opportunity to explain their suggestions in greater detail. Aspects of the suggestion that have merit or could be developed to make the suggestion more viable may not have been completely explained on the suggestion form. Express appreciation: Be sure to let employees know that their suggestions are appreciated. Encourage future suggestions. The message to leave them with is this: “This suggestion didn’t work out, but your effort is appreciated and your ideas are valued. I’m looking forward to your next suggestion.” Carefully explain your position: Don’t make excuses or blame the company, higher management, or anyone else. Explain the reasons the suggestion is not feasible, and do so in a way that will help employees make more viable suggestions in the future. Encourage feedback: Encourage feedback from employees. You may have overlooked an aspect to the suggestion, or the suggester may not fully understand the reasons for the rejection. Solicit sufficient feedback to ensure that you understand the employees and they understand you. Look for compromise: It may be possible to use all or a portion of a suggestion if it is modified. Never adopt a bad idea, but if a suggestion can be modified to make even part of it worthwhile, a compromise solution may be possible.