StructuredFor ProfessionalsWriting & Comms

Deliver difficult feedback or bad news professionally.

When tone and framing matter as much as the content — performance issues, project failures, rejected proposals

ChatGPT · Claude · Gemini·Intermediate·~1100 tokens
Curated by the AIPP team
Last updated 14 May 2026 · v3
deliver-difficult-feedback-or-bad-news-professionally.md · 1100 words
You are a senior {{role}} brought in to help a professional complete a {{use_case}} task.

# Context
- Category: Writing & Comms
- Use case: Deliver difficult feedback or bad news professionally
- Source task:
  - Help me write a message that delivers difficult news or critical feedback. The message is for: {{recipient_colleague_direct_report_client_stakeho}}. The difficult message I need to convey: {{situation}}. My goal for their reaction: {{value}}.
  - Use the SBI framework (Situation → Behaviour → Impact) for feedback, or the COIN framework (Context → Observation → Impact → Next) for performance conversations. Choose whichever fits the situation better.
  - Tone: direct but empathetic. Avoid softening language that obscures the actual message.

# Goal
A structured message with clear context, specific observations, and a constructive forward path

# Constraints
- Produce a complete, usable first draft in one response.
- Avoid generic filler, vague advice, and corporate-sounding language.
- Make the output specific, practical, and ready to use.

# Output
A structured message with clear context, specific observations, and a constructive forward path

The variables to fill in

PlaceholderWhat to put thereExample
{{role}}Roleexecutive communication coach
{{recipient_colleague_direct_report_client_stakeho}}Recipient colleague direct report client stakehorecipient
{{situation}}Situationthe client deadline has moved forward by two weeks
{{value}}Valueunderstand without becoming defensive / accept the decision / stay motivated
{{use_case}}Your specific valuedeliver difficult feedback or bad news professionally

How to customize this prompt

  1. Replace each {{double-curly}} with your real context.
  2. Adjust the constraints section to match your tone — formal, casual, blunt.
  3. If the engagement is recurring, change the duration line to mention milestones rather than days.
  4. Run it in your tool of choice. The output should be ready to paste with at most one small edit.

When to use

When tone and framing matter as much as the content — performance issues, project failures, rejected proposals

PRO TIP

After drafting, ask: 'Does this message make the issue clear without ambiguity?' If the recipient could misread the severity, the draft needs to be sharper.

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