Main Takeaways
As the year is coming to a close, we are celebrating our 2024 Culture Stars and giving them a platform to share insights that will help each Binancian to excel at practicing the organization's fundamental values.
We explore five key questions around the feedback culture at Binance and some of our Culture Stars’ most thought-provoking answers.
Discover how feedback culture is woven into Binance's operations, how to give and receive feedback for optimal growth, and how this culture resonates with one of Binance’s core values, humility.
As we approach the end of another year of stellar achievements, Binance takes pride in celebrating the shining examples within our organization: our Culture Stars. These individuals have been recognized for embodying Binance’s core values and fostering an environment where feedback is a cornerstone of personal and professional growth. Through their experiences, we gain a deeper understanding of the unique culture at Binance, where humility, learning, and collaboration are celebrated.
Feedback is more than a practice at Binance: it’s a cultural pillar. It empowers employees across all levels to refine their skills, align their actions with our mission, and drive innovation. Through this feedback culture, Binance continuously improves to always deliver unmatched value for its users.
From leaders to entry-level staff, Binancians embrace constructive input as an opportunity to learn and excel. This culture is an important component of one of our core values, humility, which implies always being ready to learn and a relentless pursuit of improvement.
Read on to delve into the experiences and reflections of some of our Culture Stars, exploring five key questions about feedback culture. Their answers illustrate how feedback has helped them evolve, both professionally and personally, and offer actionable takeaways for everyone who wants to get better at what they are passionate about.
Q1: What’s One Piece of Constructive Feedback You’ve Received That You’ll Never Forget?
For many of our Culture Stars, impactful feedback moments at Binance have left a lasting impression and shaped their career philosophy.
Princess recalls being told, “Please don’t burn yourself out.” This advice, given early in her Binance journey, helped her prioritize sustainable work practices and self-care to better contribute to Binance's cause in the long run.
For Alex, such wisdom is, “Being wrong is the first step towards being right.” This mindset encourages him to embrace Binance’s fail-fast, learn-fast ethos, enabling him to experiment without fear. According to Alex, negative feedback is a good thing because it becomes the first step to improvement.
Christine recalls that she was advised to delegate effectively to manage her workload better. Initially defensive, she later realized that delegation enhanced her efficiency and leadership capabilities. Now, instead of trying to be a one-woman show, she develops better skills for delegation and collaboration.
Early in her time with Binance, Liliana received feedback to “start small” and this has stayed with her, helping her overcome her shyness and speak up in meetings, gradually building her confidence and ability to contribute significantly to team discussions.
For Takeshi, the feedback that stood out most was a reminder to prioritize the team’s success over individual performance. This advice helps him focus on fostering collaboration, ensuring that every team member’s voice is heard and valued.
These personal accounts reveal a common thread: for our Culture Stars, feedback at Binance is not merely a perfunctory gesture, it leaves a lasting impact. It becomes a tool for empowerment and development that not only addresses immediate challenges but also instills habits and attitudes that drive long-term growth.
Q2: What Is Your One Tip for Giving Feedback?
Constructive feedback is a craft that many Culture Stars have honed over time. Ken emphasizes the importance of empathy, urging feedback-givers to “look at things from the perspective of the person receiving the feedback.”
Ashley highlights kindness as the key to delivering impactful feedback, noting that “Constructive feedback, given kindly, lands differently and encourages genuine improvement.”
Specificity also emerges as a recurring theme. It is best to be as specific as possible with feedback to induce real improvement. Fu advises focusing on “constructive opinions on specific matters without bringing in personal emotions,” while Nicolas underscores the need to explain the “why” behind feedback to make it relevant and actionable to the receiver. Liliana’s approach, codified in the formula, “be clear, concise, and constructive,” highlights the importance of pairing criticism with actionable suggestions.
Sena advises on the timing of feedback. “Deliver feedback as soon as possible,” she says, highlighting how timely input ensures relevance and clarity. The longer we withhold feedback, the less relevant the feedback will be to our colleagues, managers, and subordinates.
Amina shares a well-known strategy of using double positive reinforcements to “sandwich” the delivery of constructive criticism. “Start with positive feedback, then deliver your constructive criticism, and end with another positive feedback,” she suggests. This “sandwich approach” has proven effective in creating a balance between encouragement and growth.
These insights help Binance employees to foster a supportive and solution-oriented environment. Feedback at Binance isn’t about pointing out flaws or assigning blame, it’s about offering kind guidance that enables colleagues to unlock their potential.
Q3: Have You Ever Received a Rating Lower Than You Expected?
Receiving unexpectedly low ratings can be challenging, but at Binance, such moments are viewed as opportunities for growth.
Chloe admits to feeling disheartened when she received a lower rating, but she quickly pivoted to self-reflection. “I understood it was an opportunity to grow,” she shares. By focusing on the feedback, she identified areas for improvement and channeled her energy into finally exceeding expectations.
For Mateo, a lower-than-expected rating was a wake-up call. It motivated him to reflect on his performance and seek clarity on how to align better with the team's goals. Yuhan’s lower rating helped her understand Binancian standards better. “I realized Binance’s bar for excellence was higher than I anticipated,” she says, inspiring her to raise her own benchmarks.
Similarly, Jared recalls that while the experience of receiving a lower rating was initially frustrating, it ultimately served as a chance to refine his approach to project management. By seeking feedback from his manager, he charted specific areas for growth and developed a plan to address them. Langte echoes this sentiment, emphasizing that “feedback is a roadmap for improvement.”
These answers reveal an approach shared by our Culture Stars when receiving unexpectedly low ratings. They demonstrate that setbacks, when approached with the right mindset, can serve as powerful catalysts for development. Culture Stars, of course, are not perfect people. They make mistakes just like everyone else, but what makes them ultimately stand out is how they learn from these mistakes and grow thanks to them.
Q4: Have You Ever Missed an Expected Promotion?
Missing a promotion can be a deeply disappointing experience. Luca recounts the disappointment of being passed over that he turned into a motivator. “I told myself, in the next cycle, I will prove I am capable,” he says, achieving promotion through focused and intentional effort in the next cycle.
For Emilio, the key takeaway was communication. After missing a promotion due to a lack of information, he doubled down on regular discussions with HR and managers to align with the expectations. This proactive approach ensured clarity and readiness for future opportunities. “I sought to understand better what was worth doing and what was not, what brought value to our customers and what did not.”
These answers bring forward Binance’s transparent culture, where open communication and constructive feedback help employees understand how they can advance their careers. Binance empowers every employee to understand how to chart a fulfilling career path. An effective feedback system is indispensable to make this happen.
Q5: “Upholding a Feedback Culture Has Helped Me ________."
The impact of Binance’s feedback culture extends far beyond professional development. Husain shares how feedback has made him “more understanding of perspectives of other colleagues” across different backgrounds and improved his ability to collaborate effectively. Ashley notes that this culture creates “a healthy work environment where communication is key to working better together.”
For many Culture Stars, feedback has been instrumental in personal growth. Myshyko reflects on how feedback helps him “become a better version of myself both professionally and personally.” These testimonials underline the profound role that feedback plays in shaping not just careers but also personal views and values.
Amina emphasizes that upholding a feedback culture has helped her “transform challenges into stepping stones,” while Veselin thinks that feedback fosters a mindset of continuous learning. For Langte, feedback becomes a tool that helps Binancians “bridge gaps and build trust within teams,” reinforcing the collaborative spirit of Binance.
Ultimately, feedback is seen not as a critique but as a gift. It helps employees discover strengths, address weaknesses, and continuously improve, both individually and collectively.
Growing Through Feedback and Humility
Feedback is most effective in an environment of humility, a core value that Binancians champion on all levels of the organization. By acknowledging that there is always room to improve, our people create a culture where learning and innovation flourish. Humility fuels Binance’s drive to remain the number-one platform for our users, ensuring that we adapt, grow, and lead in a rapidly evolving industry.
As we celebrate the achievements of our Culture Stars, we reaffirm our commitment to nurturing a feedback culture that supports learning, collaboration, and development. Looking ahead to another year, we'll continue to embrace feedback as a tool to understand how to empower each other and deliver excellence to our users.
If you are interested in joining our rockstar team in 2025, apply here.