The SBI Feedback Model

“Sometimes you can come across as a little hard to reach.”

Read that again. It sounds like feedback. It’s actually a cushion. There’s no moment, no behavior, no consequence, and nothing the person can do differently tomorrow. Most feedback fails exactly like this: we soften the specifics out of it until the message disappears, then wonder why nothing changes.

SBI is the fix. It’s a three-part structure that keeps feedback specific, observable, and usable.

What This Is

SBI stands for Situation, Behavior, Impact, a model developed by the Center for Creative Leadership. You deliver feedback in three parts, in order:

1. Situation. A specific, shared moment. “In last Tuesday’s meeting…” Not “sometimes,” not “lately,” not “you always.” One moment you both remember.
2. Behavior. What a camera would have captured. Observable action, not interpretation, not a label, not a guess at intent. “You checked your phone three times while she was presenting” passes the camera test. “You were disengaged” doesn’t.
3. Impact. The real consequence. Data, not a verdict. What happened next, what it cost, what it made possible.

Put together:

“In Thursday’s call [Situation], you shared pricing before confirming eligibility [Behavior]. The customer expected a rate we can’t deliver, and I had to walk it back, which created confusion [Impact].”

Compare that to “you need to be more careful on calls.” Same concern. Only one of them is usable.

Why It Works

The behavior step is the pivot. When feedback names an observable action, the conversation has something solid to stand on: both people can look at the same fact. When feedback delivers a label (“unprofessional,” “not strategic,” “disengaged”), the conversation becomes a fight about identity, and identity fights trigger every defense a person has.

Whenever you feel a piece of feedback drifting toward interpretation, run the camera test: could a camera have captured it? If not, you’re describing your story about the behavior, not the behavior.

How to Practice It

Use it in all three directions. Down, across, and up. It’s the same model at different volumes of nerve. Upward feedback is where your inner critic gets loudest, and it’s also where a specific, behavior-based structure protects you most: you’re not judging your boss, you’re reporting a moment, an action, and an effect.

Use it for positive feedback too. “Great job” tells no one what to do again. Name the behavior that worked: “When the customer escalated [S], you lowered your pace and restated her concern before responding [B]. She calmed down within a minute and stayed on the line [I]. Do that every time.” That’s praise someone can repeat.

Watch the common traps. Stacking three pieces of feedback into one conversation. Sneaking a verdict into the impact (“…and it made you look sloppy”). Softening the behavior back into a hint. One situation, one behavior, one honest impact.

Try This

Try this (5 minutes). Draft one SBI statement today, corrective or positive, for a real person and a real moment. Write all three parts. Then test it: does the Behavior pass the camera test? Is the Impact a consequence rather than an evaluation? If yes, deliver it within 48 hours. Feedback has a shelf life.

Go Deeper

• Center for Creative Leadership, Feedback That Works (2019). The source of the model.
• Douglas Stone and Sheila Heen, Thanks for the Feedback (2014). What’s happening on the other side of your SBI statement.

This page pairs with Feedback: Give It, Get It, Grow From It, the overview of both directions of the feedback loop.