Feedback on work - was she rude or am I being too sensitive?

[Bananaste]

I'm in my first senior management role, so I accept I'm dealing with feelings of imposter syndrome on a daily basis. Having said that, I've never experienced somebody providing feedback like this before.

I'm in an investigations type of role that requires comprehensive reports to be written. I've taken on this role and had to implement a whole new Framework and templates etc. My boss essentially approved my report template, but I was anticipating some challenge when it was actually used in practice.

Well, challenge is indeed what I have received. First bit of feedback provided was very blunt - the report was far too long, duplicative, needs "an awful lot of work". She said the business won't understand what is being asked of them. I took it on board and reworked the whole thing. I've worked at some large companies and I am very experienced in this area, but I was happy to rework on the basis she knows this business better than I do (I've been in the job for 4 months). Their expectations are just different, and I think I was making it too in-depth.

I thought I'd produced what she asked for, but the feedback I received today was: "I've reviewed the first part but lost the will to go on after that. I have an issue with how it's presented. It's a really tortuous read". Then proceeded to send me a subsequent email with a format she did like, which is basically exactly what I've done but in landscape rather than portrait.

I just found it really demotivating. I've worked hard on this. Ultimately, the content is there, it's just the presentation. That feedback doesn't sound so bad when said like that...

I clearly need more guidance from her, but she keeps changing her mind about what she wants.

Am I being too sensitive because I'm already feeling like I have to prove myself in this job? Despite how it may sound, I really do welcome feedback and I want to do a good job...I just feel like there's a way to deliver feedback that's constructive, without being rude and dismissive?

People often say to me "that's just how senior staff members communicate". I'm fine with blunt, but that felt borderline rude and quite personal...

Just chuck it through copilot and ask it to reword it more succinctly.
The person sounds like a pain, but best just to get in with it.

Reading your comments it doesn’t sound like you have tested drafts of your revised report with colleagues prior to getting your boss’ sign off and have then implemented it for use. Bosses have a habit of signing off what they think is ok / presented without always thinking about impact on the business and the users of the process. What research / work did you do with colleagues prior to finalising your report template ? Your colleague’s response may well be driven in part because she felt there was no prior engagement and your new report has been delivered as a fait accompli without any engagement with the end users. Many years of process design / implementation have shown me that it is important to be seen to engage and seek feedback at design stage - even if ultimately very little is incorporated as it makes the end users feel like they have been involved and had the opportunity to explain why something would work / won’t work, and gives you the opportunity to explain the why change / how change etc and avoid a “tsunami” of feedback at the end which is more difficult to deal with and manage - waiting to ask until implementation stage will cause drama as you are unfortunately experiencing now. Sadly seniors do tend to communicate in a direct way which doesn’t always include the niceties and a style you will receive regularly now you are in the senior management “club”.

I can't tell who is giving you the feedback. Sounds like a colleague rather than your actual boss?

I do think that part of senior management is taking blunt feedback, rolling your eyes quietly and incorporating the helpful bits while ignoring the rest.

I'd ask for a previous copy and use that as a guide. In general I find senior management respond to short succinct reports telling them in a nut shell what they need to know.