This article from GlobeLife Work in Canada discusses the findings of 360 Degree Feedback across the US, specifically that managers don't listen to their people enough.
The Boss Isn't Listening
There are some tips for both staff and their managers on giving and receiving feedback in the article. In summary, "if your company does 360 degree reviews, pay attention to them". As a member of staff you have an opportunity to make a difference to how you interact with your manager. As a manager, you can learn a lot from how other people see you.
And for the organisation, ongoing monitoring of 360 Feedback results is a great way to measure what the key management issues are, and how they're being dealt with on an ongoing basis.
If you've been asked to give a colleague some 360 Degree Feedback, you may be wondering how to approach it, and how you can make it a positive exercise for him or her.
- Try to be as objective as possible when considering the individual’s behaviour or effectiveness and rating these
- Give as many concrete examples as possible to support your ratings. This is particularly important when giving a lower rating
- Phrase your examples and comments in as positive and constructive a way as possible, as you would in a coaching situation
- Be respectful – remember you are providing feedback on specific behaviours or effectiveness, not on the individual’s personality
- Be careful in your wording – opinions can often sound like clear cut facts
- Allow yourself enough time to collate information, reflect and write feedback
There's a lot of interest in Strengths-based development at the moment.
This article from Canada called Pumping Up Your Strengths is a good summary of the reasons why recognising and building leaders' strong points can be a valuable and positive activity.
I would like to add a couple of points:
- First, that this approach will be very successful for individuals and their organisations provided they are already in the right job, in other words, where their strengths match the requirements of the job, are a key part of their performance measures, and are appropriate for the team they lead.
- Second, and here is where I disagree with the article, it's critical for the individual, his/her manager and the organisation to understand the person's weaknesses as well - otherwise how are they going to ensure that the person is in the right job, that they are able to meet the demands of their role, and that they are being given the right opportunities to develop their talents and career?
I'm all for positivity and playing to strengths, but let's not throw the baby out with the bath water!
Here's a link to Evan Davies' Radio 4 programme The Bottom Line. In the programme, Mark Clare of Barratt Homes, PY Gerbeau (previously of Dome fame and now CEO of X-Leisure), and Jasmine Whitbread of Save the Children talk about, among other things, 360 Degree Appraisal.
To listen to the 360 Degree section, move the Realplayer slider to 17:22. Don't forget to switch on your sound!
They rarely seem to achieve much. So what is the point of appraisals, asks Catherine Quinn in today's Guardian.
When run properly, that is
- with ample opportunity for feedback,
- a focus on practical steps to help towards better performance
- and a visible commitment from the line manager to your development and job progression
appraisals can be a very useful tool for companies of all sizes and complexions.
And, as this article says, it's important to make sure that both the employee and the manager know what's going to happen before, during and after the appraisal, and what their responsibilities are. Remember, as an employee you have a responsiblity to manage your career, it's not just up to your line manager to sort out. And line managers, don't use appraisal as an chance to get all your complaints about your employee off your chest in one go - you should be giving your team feedback on a regular basis. There should be no surprises at appraisal time.
Finally, 360 Degree Feedback, done well, can be a powerful additional to the appraisal process, providing as it does a number of points of view and observations that pure line manager feedback just can't do.
Employees are Pivotal in the Employee-Customer Encounter – Just Ask HCL
This article outlines how HCL has used 360 Degree Feedback, as well as a number of other simple tools, to boost employee engagement and consequently, retention.
We think that sharing 360 Degree Feedback across the organisation is a fantastic idea. It might be a step too far for some organisations though, so you could start by publishing the company 360 statistics first (rather than the feedback for each person), and then eventually moving on to individual feedback.
The improvement in HCL's retention is impressive - engaging your employees and involving them in the business really does make a difference!
A key part of 360 Degree Feedback is your Self-assessment. Assessing yourself against the 360 statements is cricital because this is going to be the benchmark against which you will measure the feedback from your colleagues. Your 360 Degree Feedback report should tell you how you have measured yourself, and how your self ratings compare with those of your colleagues.
The following points are useful as a guide to receiving your feedback positively and getting the best out of it:
- Bear in mind that feedback is based on other peoples’ perceptions, which will tend to be more subjective than objective. You may be surprised at some of your Colleagues’ perceptions of your behaviour or effectiveness. These may be very different from your own perceptions.
- Be prepared to take the Feedback on board, and to consider how you might use it to develop your strengths and to focus on your development needs.
- Don’t focus exclusively on what might appear to be negative comments – take equal account of the positive feedback you receive.
- Don’t try to work out who has provided what feedback, as this is not going to be helpful for you. More often than not, your assumptions can be wrong
- If you feel that some of the feedback is unfounded, ensure that you use the feedback discussion to put across your views
- Express any concerns you may have in a constructive way and try to focus on objective assessment, not on individuals or personalities.
Risky Business - Forbes.com
Although this article in Forbes is US focused, it says some interesting things about the current culture of leadership in business, which also apply to us here in the UK. The cult of the charismatic leader, someone with a big personality, who comes in and tries to change everything (good and bad), is very common, and one that I've experienced over a number of years in business.
In summary, this article is saying that leaders who lack awareness of their impact on other people, are blind to the culture in the organisation or group they are leading, and assume a level of self-importance that distances them from reality and the people around them, will eventually derail themselves. "...They should remember that leadership is a relationship."
The message of the article is clear: without
- an understanding of the organisation and its values
- the people you are leading
- and most importantly, your own behaviours and how you affect those you lead,
you will be a poor leader. Self-awareness is key. The quotes in the article talk about getting a coach, or a mentor, or someone who will reflect reality back to you, and not be afraid to do so. It also recommends getting a 360 Degree review, and obtaining feedback from as many people as possible.
I would add that the successful leader also needs to be able to:
- accept feedback positively and openly (which will both encourage more feedback and demonstrate the respect for others that is so important)
- interpret the feedback and where necessary, get clarification or additional feedback
- then act on the feedback and be seen to be making changes in his/her behaviours
Introducing 360-degree appraisals requires HR to invest time and effort in training the right people to run it
This article in Personnel Today.com covers a number of areas around training for 360 Degree Appraisal.
I would add that an important part of introducing 360 Degree Feedback into an organisation is ensuring that everyone understands and buys into a culture of positive and developmental feedback.
Remember, it's not just the line manager and the appraisee who need to know what the 360 is for, and how it will be used. If the 360 is really a full appraisal up, down and across, then all levels in the organisation need to be trained, or at least briefed, in:
- what the purpose of the 360 is
- why it's important for them to be involved
- how to rate their colleague
- how to use concrete examples to support their ratings
- how to avoid the common mistakes in appraisal, such as focusing on the most recent events, focusing on negative observations and making assumptions about personality rather than observations of specific actions