Improving the Payoff From 360-Degree

¶ … Improving the Payoff from 360-Degree Feedback

This article describes the authors' research findings on the 360 feedback process. They have discovered six critical factors, or best practices, to help leaders in organizations get the most from their investment in the valuation process. The authors explore the reasons why some organizations have better results with 360 Degree Feedback than others, and the key factors underlying that success. They claim that despite the time consuming, tedious details necessary to obtain the data from 360 Degree Feedback, nearly all Fortune 100 companies are utilizing it. After reading the article, readers have a greater understanding of both the pros and cons of the process.

The concept behind the 360 Degree Feedback approach is to give employees the training they need to deal with change within the organization. The foundation of the 360 feedback process can be traced as far back in history as 3 AD, and in more modern times to the simple "satisfaction surveys," which were used as a tool to improve employee morale and communication. Goal-setting was seen as a positive performance enhancer at many companies, and regular employee performance reviews between supervisor and participant became very commonplace in both U.S. And global firms. Originally, 360 feedback was used to accelerate the growth and development of a talented employee, with the understanding that discrepancies between how we see ourselves and how others see us would enhance self-awareness and lead to personal development. High-ranking management employees would receive an in-depth evaluation, with support from an external psychologist, in a carefully-planned personal development plan. Changes in the 20th century workplace have diminished a supervisor's ability to perform one-on-one evaluations, often due to the sheer number of employees under one manager's downline. According to the article, organizations that derive the most benefit from 360 Degree feedback still use it for individual development planning, coaching, and feedback, much more so than companies that derived the least benefit in their survey.

To start the feedback process, a company must choose the evaluation tool or questionnaire to be used. This can be either generic or position-specific, pencil and paper or electronic. Next, the organization must choose those who will receive 360 feedback, and self-nominations are not typically allowed: "In the study relating to the article, 67% of higher-benefit organizations exerted high control over the nominating process, while 78% of low-benefit organizations utilized voluntary participation." To ensure the process is understood and beneficial, advance training is sometimes used to help reduce anxiety and help the individual accept and act on the final results. In the most benefit-obtaining companies, the use of trained "raters" proved helpful in achieving the most productive answers to the questionnaire or survey tool. Raters help ensure that quality responses are obtained, and they help to avoid some of the typical pitfalls and criticisms of 360 Feedback: friends rating friends or untrained raters assessing a survey participant with whom they have had little experience. "There should be a standardized process whereby you must submit the questionnaire to specific individuals -- direct customer, support function, boss, and direct reports. Otherwise, individuals may send the survey to friends who only provide positive feedback," one supervisor said. Once the feedback is obtained, it should be shared with those who would make the greatest positive change in light of the results, and mesh that positive change with the goals of the company. Many of the higher-benefitting companies in the survey were not only sharing the results with the participants of the feedback, but also including their customers in the process. Customers were asked to rate the feedback survey participants, because involving the customer requires a follow-up action on the part of the participant: they must provide feedback to the customer, "closing the loop," and spurring a team approach to the resulting action plan.

Since talent development is a top priority for most organizational leaders today, 360 Degree Feedback can be used as a powerful tool to help keep companies on target with their goals. By using feedback, top organizations can better oversee daily operations that lead to top achievement. 360-degree feedback is an evaluation method that incorporates feedback from the worker, his/her peers, superiors, subordinates, and customers. Results of these confidential surveys are tabulated and shared with the worker, usually by a manager. Interpretation of the results, trends and themes are discussed as part of the feedback. The primary reason to use this full circle of confidential reviews is to provide the worker with information about his/her performance from multiple perspectives, and many companies who utilize the 360 feedback to its fullest enjoy higher industry profits, better rankings, internal communication, and create a workplace where employees and managers have a clear understanding of how they must work together to fulfill their personal and organizational goals.

360 Degree Feedback evaluation tools can be used in any corporate setting. However, when discussing feedback, it is important for managers to take into consideration a participant's ethnicity and culture background. It is crucial from the participant's view that the manager not be seen as biased against race, gender, or ethnicity or the feedback may be rejected.