Here's how you can handle difficult conversations when giving feedback to colleagues as a network engineer.

In my experience, you need first to troubleshoot the issue to identify the root cause. After that you must have a team meeting to explain the way things were done and that led to this issue by accusing anybody.make sure they understand the importance of troubleshooting and have documented your network. Show them the best method of troubleshoot and then the best way to overcome this next time.

In my opinion, first understand the issue main point, so you don't start the wrong place, topology can always help. Analysis is very important, OSI model can even help you, so you can figure out if it is a layer 1/2/3/4/5/6/7 problem These steps are quite important before the actual issue resolution/feedback.

"Navigating Feedback Dynamics in Network Engineering Teams: Strategies for Success": Perspective: Explore the nuances of providing feedback within network engineering teams, where collaboration and effective communication are crucial. Discuss how the technical nature of network engineering can influence feedback dynamics and provide strategies for fostering a constructive feedback culture. Offer insights into handling feedback across hierarchical levels, from peer-to-peer feedback to manager-to-team member discussions.

Preparation is key. Before initiating any feedback conversation, gather all relevant information. This includes specific examples of the issue, its impact on the team or project, and potential solutions. I find it helpful to outline my main points and anticipate possible reactions. This preparation ensures that the conversation stays focused and productive.

My favourite way to communicate is by using diagrams. Diagrams speak a 1000 words. If the person is in office they usually come next to my desk on the wooden stool :) and we start debugging the network on paper step by step.

You newd to focus on the problem to avoid generalization of analisys. Being to much specific to the problem should avoid undertanding that the problem is in the procedure and not on the professional.

Vague feedback can be more damaging than no feedback at all. Always provide clear, concrete examples. For instance, instead of saying, “You need to improve your work,” you could say, “I’ve noticed that the network latency issue in the recent project was not addressed promptly, which delayed our deployment.” Specificity helps the recipient understand the exact issue and how to improve.

In case of planned changes, It is important to have a "lab environment" to test complex changes and all steps need to be documented. A rollback plan should be defined as well in case the changes on the production environment do not work. Backup of the configuration is to be taken before the start of the lab testing (and import the config to make sure the changes being tested are being done on the same environment as the production one) and another backup just before the start of the change on production.

As Engineer, you tend to look at things with a very critical mind, which doesn't always stroke with what other dept envision on things and is as such sometimes hard to find the right wording on these, also not always easy to translate them to the customer. It of course always helps to have the appropriate data to backup your info to easier convince others. But as with any dilemma, no matter networking or something else, it'll always be to find a balanced approach and find middleground.

When giving feedback, it’s important to highlight the impact of the behavior or performance. Explain how their actions affect the team, project, or organization. This helps the individual see the bigger picture and understand the importance of their role. For example, “The delay in addressing the network issue caused a 2-day delay in the project timeline, affecting our client delivery schedule.”

Phrases like, “I’d love to hear your thoughts on this,” or “How do you think we can resolve this?” can open up the dialogue and make the conversation more productive.

Being there for your colleagues and team members is always important. Debugging a problem with an extra pair of eyes and brains helps to find the solution, rather than providing the solution to the problem more pointing where to look for and ask if checks were done. pointing in the right direction helps for the future issues to be debugged in the same way and solution is found within less time.

Constructive feedback should always come with an offer of support.For example, “I see you’ve made significant improvements in your response time to network issues. Great job!”

After the initial conversation, it’s essential to follow up. Check in on their progress, provide ongoing support, and acknowledge improvements.