Some years ago Toyota put in place a number of measures for its managers to take, two of which were particularly striking. The first was: Don’t criticise, praise. If someone does something wrong, praise him. That way he won’t be afraid to make mistakes or tell you what went wrong, and this will enable you to find a way of making improvements. Second, Toyota asked the staff to be open about any complaints they might have about their managers. So the appraisal system now worked both ways. The staff appraised the managers, the managers the senior staff, the senior managers the directors, and so on – it kept everyone on their toes, but it also encouraged everyone to do better.

Robin Sieger

Source: Robin Sieger, Natural Born Winners, 1999, London: Random House Business Books, p.62