Toll Free: 877.880.

4477
Phone: 281.880.6525

Meet Your Employee Review Goals

with 360 Degree Feedback

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The 360-degree feedback mechanism (also called "multi-rater") has been in

use for decades, thus long enough that it's been subjected to a battery of
academic studies highlighting its benefits and pitfalls. The research has
identified both.

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First, consider the limitations of the traditional supervisor-only evaluation,

particularly for employees who work in teams or who have subordinates of
their own. In this environment, direct supervisors:

Often find it hard to give critical feedback to employees they have become
close to over the years,

Might have biases that unduly influence their assessments, for better or
worse, and

Have a limited perspective to grasp how the employee is perceived by

others (for example, colleagues and subordinates) whose performance
the employee may influence.

Using a 360-degree feedback system can indeed help you overcome those
impediments, but first you need to decide whether to use it to aid employee
development, or as a performance assessment method or both.

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A Cautious Start
It might be more prudent at the outset to use a 360-degree system in
conjunction with an ongoing development process, simply to pinpoint
possible areas where that employee might benefit from additional training.
Why? That allows you to gain confidence in your ability to evaluate the
feedback you get from the 360-degree process, in terms of validity.
With some experience you should be able to weed out feedback that amounts
to unfair potshots from disgruntled subordinates or colleagues.
Also, the employee in question is more likely to warm up to the 360-degreee
process if he or she knows that, in effect, you are giving it a trial run.

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If your organization is large enough you might consider starting off with a 360degree-feedback performance-rating pilot project in one department or
division, before launching it company-wide.
It may seem counterintuitive, but 360-degree programs aren't always
anonymous. One school of thought holds that it's better for all feedback
providers to identify themselves in order to:

Maintain accountability, thereby encouraging constructive and detailed

input, avoid toxic comments and even conspiracies to damage an
employee's reputation,

Encourage a workforce culture of openness, and

Make it possible for the object of the feedback to engage directly with
that employee to resolve an issue when that person has a specific
complaint or concern.

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Anonymity Preferred
Still, most 360-degree programs are based on anonymity. That allows those providing
the feedback to give more than bland or favorable comments out of fear of negative
repercussions. Anonymous or not, a side benefit to a well-managed 360-degree
program is those giving the feedback get the message that their opinions do matter.

Advocates of these systems encourage employers not to launch a 360-degree

program until they've first identified a specific purpose for it. That way they can also
establish a basis or benchmark for evaluating the success of the program. An example
of a valid purpose might be to change an organization that has developed a rigid
hierarchy into one with a culture that emphasizes continuous feedback and
improvement.
Keep in mind that when you're identifying a purpose, this type of system shouldn't be
viewed as a way to address poor employee job performance. Employees might
become more self aware through the process, but this feedback isn't a substitute for
direct communication between a supervisor and the employee.

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Best Practices
Here are some pointers for implementing an effective 360-degree program:

Tell feedback providers how their input will be used, to assure them their
time will be well spent,

Train feedback providers on the importance of being objective and

avoiding invalid observations that might arise from their own prejudices,

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Only ask feedback providers to comment on aspects of the subject

employee's performance that they are in a position to observe,

Make sure the performance criteria are job-related and not personal in
nature,

Include both quantitative and qualitative performance questions,

Even with anonymous feedback systems, some accountability is needed;

incorporate a mechanism that would enable someone other than the
subject of the evaluation, for example, a senior human resource
executive, to address any abuse of the system,

Ensure adequate participation to assure maximum statistical validity to

feedback results,

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Have a system in place to help the subject of the feedback to process and
act on the input he or she receives, and

Build in (and follow) a process to periodically evaluate the overall

statistical validity and goal achievement of the program.

Of course, there's no guarantee that a 360-degree feedback system will

accomplish whatever goals you set for it. This method of review was
pioneered in the 1950s and rose to popularity in the 1990s. Its longevity alone
suggests it might be worth a try.

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14550 Torrey Chase Blvd., Ste. 360 Houston, TX 77014 USA

Toll Free : 877.880.4477
Phone : 281.880.6525
Fax
: 281.866.9426

E-mail : info@hrp.net

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