How Starting a 360 Degree Feedback Process Improves Performance

Nearly 90% of organizations conduct formal performance reviews [1] as an attempt to improve their performance management. That is the vast majority of organizations, but the real question isn’t if they conduct performance reviews, it is how they evaluate their team members. What they don’t know could hurt them. The way you conduct a performance appraisal has a direct impact on employee performance. Typically, managers only see a 3-5% performance improvement [2] after a traditional performance appraisal. How then, can organizations assess the performance of their employees whilst improving the team’s work? 

360 degree feedback, if conducted correctly, can have better results than the traditional performance appraisal. Because there are multiple individuals involved in the appraisal, each person has a specific role. Let’s take a look...

Roles of the Participants
Unlike the traditional performance appraisal, the 360 degree feedback process is a very involved process. A standard performance appraisal only necessitates the presence of the manager and the employee. 360 degree feedback sessions involve the input of about 7 people (depending on the size of the company): the employee, manager, administrator, and several reviewers. This provides a well-rounded performance appraisal with room for the employee to evaluate their own work and see how it affects the team around them. Jacob Shriar, Director of Customer Happiness at Officevibe, said:

“Most of the time, the annual performance review is one-sided in the sense that it’s the manager who is telling the employee how they did and what they should do better, when it would be great if the employee could tell the manager what they’ve been doing wrong, or what the company could improve on.”

The good news is it doesn’t have to be this way; 360 degree feedback gives employees and those around them a voice in performance reviews. The evaluation of the entire team illuminates the employee’s performance from all angles, including their own. 

●      Employee - 360-feedback is the perfect opportunity for employees to become involved in their development process. The administrator works with the employees to design a plan to improve their performance, rather than the managers simply providing lists of successes and areas for improvement.

●      Manager - While a manager’s role in the 360 degree feedback is similar to that of the reviewer, the information gathered from the manager is significantly different. The administrator assesses this input differently because it is qualitatively divergent due to the contact with the employee.

●      Administrator - This is the person who will be conducting the interviews. They prepare the review and speak with the reviewers and the manager as a third party participant.

●      Reviewers - Similar to the manager’s role in this process, reviewers are interviewed about their coworker’s performance. Typically, there are 4-10 reviewers in a 360 degree feedback. 

Why they Work
The goal of a 360 degree feedback isn’t to punish. It is an opportunity to thoroughly examine and improve the performance of your team on an individual level to help the group succeed. These appraisals give employees ownership of their work and review. By working with employees on development plans, organizations hold their workers accountable for their performance. William Taylor, Contributor to PeopleInsight and HR Daily Advisor said:

“A 360 degree performance review has the power to transform a one-way review into a review process, thus guaranteeing end-to-end feedback and accountability. Depending on the setup and hierarchy of your company, making 360 degree reviews may be an excellent way to analyze your employees and keep an eye on the whole department.” 

Each individual involved in a 360 degree feedback plays a specific part. As an organization, it’s important to ensure your teams understand their roles before the review process begins. Unlike traditional performance reviews, the 360 degree feedback process creates a multi-sided conversation about performance from an unbiased third-party administrator. This administrator takes information provided by the employee, manager, and other reviewers to create a holistic image of the employee’s performance. Give your employees the chance to take ownership of their performance and their professional development.

Consider starting a 360 degree feedback program to get employees involved and engaged. Take a demo of Reviewsnap to get fast and easy employee feedback to improve performance.  

Source:
[1] NPR - Behold the Entrenched and Reviled Annual Review

[2] Washington Post - The Corporate Kabuki of Performance Reviews

Is Your 360° Feedback a Few Degrees Short?

For many companies, the answer to this question is a resounding, “Yes!”

The reason—their employees aren’t conducting self-reviews.

If this is the case at your company, your “comprehensive” feedback is not only incomplete but

it’s also causing you to miss out on a golden opportunity—the opportunity to drive truly targeted performance improvements, to raise employee engagement levels and to manage your talent more effectively.

Properly instituted and utilized, self-reviews impart all of these benefits to employers by helping them facilitate open communication between managers and direct reports; by encouraging personal growth in individuals at every level of the organization; and by making performance management a responsibility that managers and employees share.

Additionally, self-reviews help employers:

·      better understand how employees “see” their performance and the contributions they’re making;

·      address critical gaps between employee perception and reality;

·      and determine whether performance goals are being communicated and understood clearly.

Employees themselves also benefit from self-reviews in a number of ways. For example, employees gain a greater sense of control over how they’re being judged and evaluated when they conduct self-reviews. This translates into greater satisfaction and commitment. Self-reviews also give employees the opportunity to:

·      engage in a constructive dialogue with their managers in a setting that’s devoted entirely to them (as opposed to team and departmental meetings where performance may be discussed);

·      highlight their significant achievements and how they’ve addressed past performance issues;

·      ask for support, education or training to address skill gaps and weaknesses;

·      and think/talk about their performance in a larger context (i.e., how they’re helping to achieve the goals of their teams, departments, functional areas and the organization at large).

Bottom line, all of this adds up to more engaged employees. And, as a growing body of research has shown, organizations that have high employee engagement are more profitable, more productive and enjoy greater customer loyalty.

So here are a few suggestions that can help your company make better use of self-reviews and reap the considerable rewards:

Have employees begin their annual reviews with self-reviews. This is a clear demonstration of your respect for employees and your interest in hearing what they think about their performance. Instead of feeling like a one-way critique, your performance reviews will take on the characteristics of a two-way exchange of ideas and information. And you’ll be able to address gaps in perceptions and expectations more proactively.

Encourage employees to focus on the aspects of their performance that are most important to them. Again, this gives you the opportunity to make sure there is agreement between what employees consider important and what management considers important. As a result, fewer disputes are likely to arise and differences of opinion can be discussed more easily.

Use self-reviews as a reason to hold more frequent (and less formal) performance appraisals. We’re always encouraging clients not to get stuck in the annual review cycle. Companies that hold reviews and performance-related discussions more often can make small, steady adjustments to performance and resolve problems before they become epidemic. Employees are far more open to small “course corrections” in their performance, and they won’t feel blindsided by negative feedback as they might if you wait an entire year to critique their work.

Have employees get personally involved in creating their own performance goals. Don’t just hand your employees their performance goals. Make them your partners in goal-setting and creating performance targets. Employees who have a direct hand in these activities embrace their goals and take ownership of their performance to a greater degree. It’s another way to build up their engagement—and to build a workforce that will give you a true competitive edge.

For other ideas on transforming your performance review process, download our white paper, “From Dread to Moving Ahead: Taking the Pain Out of Performance Management,” available here.

Reviewsnap Will Launch First Performance Management Mobile Application at the HR Technology Conference

Reviewsnap, the leading cloud-based performance management software solution, is pleased to announce that it will unveil its new performance management mobile application at this year's HR Technology Conference on October 7th and 8th in Las Vegas. The development of the application came in response to widespread feedback from the company's global client base.

According to Reviewsnap President Dave Arringdale, "We recognize and appreciate that our users have a host of technologies at their fingertips and they want the ability to address their performance management processes while on the go. Our new mobile application will give them access to all of the key performance management tools available within our Web-based solution without having to log on to a laptop or PC."

The application will allow for access from any mobile device, including all iOS, Android, Windows, and Blackberry devices, with internet access. Clients will have the ability to create journal entry feedback on employees, complete performance reviews, participate in 360 degree surveys, manage goals/objectives, and electronically sign-off on reviews. "This application provides further evidence of our commitment to listening and responding to our clients' needs," Arringdale said.

360 Reviews for a Team of One? You Bet.

In this corner, with a record of effectively improving career development and job performance —supported by detailed feedback from managers as well as colleagues — we have 360 degree performance reviews.

In the opposite corner, with a proven record of improving efficiency — supported through lean staffing and related Six Sigma models, downsizing as a result of the recent recession, and the rise of the mobile-

technology-enabled workforce — we have the team of one.

The contradiction seems obvious. By definition, 360 degree performance assessments take into account feedback from co-workers, colleagues, and managers. Some 360 reviews even include customers. Regardless of the scope and level of detail they dive into, an effective 360 feedback solution is among the most important investments an organization can make in enhancing career development.

Yet more and more employees and managers are working as a team of one. They perform solo. They work remotely — at home or in offices — away from company headquarters or regional offices. They may have no structured group of peers, subordinates, or managers with whom they have routine contact or who regularly see them perform their jobs. 

All of that said, to paraphrase the famous line of poetry, no person is an island. Everyone can benefit from the 360 review process, even those in your organization who don’t have a ready list of raters.

Here are some tips for effectively applying 360 performance reviews to a team of one, for both the “single worker” and the managers or executives responsible for their development:

·       Think about the relationships that the solo employee has, even though they may not be on the traditional organization chart, and build a team of raters that way. These might include business partners, suppliers and vendors, and customers.

·       Then cast a wider net to capture feedback from as many other sources as you can. Maybe there are indirect connections the employee has in your organization, people they rely upon for HR or administrative support, for example.

·       Set the stage early to invite this wider, nontraditional network of potential raters into the system. A fully featured 360 feedback solution like the one offered by Reviewsnap includes unlimited anonymous surveys, allowing for numerous reviews, with automatic notifications that act as reminders for upcoming or past-due surveys.

·       Understand how the nontraditional outside perspectives can have an impact on the employee’s development moving forward.
 

·       Be sure to stress the confidential nature of the 360 review process, especially for people who are new to the process or may be outside of the employee’s standard reporting line.

·       Regardless of who information comes from, avoid vague conclusions; use a proven statistical method to ensure the integrity of your assessments.

The bottom line is that unless yours is a sole-proprietor business with no employees and no managers or directors other than the owner, anyone can benefit from 360 degree feedback. It’s all a matter of how you get there.

Course Correct Early with 360 Degree Reviews

It’s exciting when you get to bring new people on at your company. They’re fresh faces with lots of energy. However, their hire date could put them out of rotation with the performance review cycle. The first round might be too soon for the information to be meaningful, but the second round could be a year and a half later. Don’t let that much time go by before you’ve had a chance to talk about performance.

Using 360 degree feedback tools can help you have performance conversations with employees when they’re off-cycle with performance reviews. You’ll get them feedback earlier, as well as make any course corrections before formal review season. Here’s how to integrate 360 degree tools into your off-season performance review program:

·       Select a standard 360 review cycle: You might not use 360s for every employee, but if you set a standard cycle time, new employees will get feedback sooner rather than later. For example, all new employees can complete a 360 degree review after six months.

·       Take away the pressure: Using 360s for developmental purposes can relieve the pressure of this being a performance-related event. Set expectations early that this is a progress check and an opportunity for improvement, not a tool to be used for punishment.

·       Help the employee select the raters: By six months, most employees are comfortable with peers and co-workers. When they go over their rater selection with you, make sure they’ve selected an “A” team.

·       Review feedback and get employee input: Many employees have ideas around how they’d like to improve, so ask for that input before prescribing next steps. If there’s a behavior that needs course correction, discuss it in a constructive manner. Find ways to address the behavior, but also make sure that there are not outside factors influencing the behavior. If you have influence on those factors, assure the employee that you’re doing what you can to address those.

For many people, a 360 degree review offers the chance to get a better idea of their performance than meetings or daily interactions might provide. Employees often want to improve before it’s too late, but they just might not know what’s wrong. Make sure you help employees prepare for formal reviews by giving them an interim step. And don’t forget to celebrate great performance, too. You could find a rising star ready for new responsibilities sooner than if you had waited until the formal review.

Feedback Lineup: Building a 360-review “A” Team

During 360-review season, you’re asked to select raters to help evaluate your performance. Just like picking players for a kickball team, you want raters who will make you look good.

But you don’t want to look good because the raters are all generic and wishy-washy. You want to look good because there’s something worthwhile in the feedback.

Think about the kickball team: If people are picking daisies in the outfield and constantly missing the ball, even if you score home runs, you could still lose the game. If everyone contributes to the best of their ability, then you’ve got a match.

Selecting 360 raters who are going to contribute to the best of their ability means selecting people who will be honest, fair and objective. They’ll also take the time to focus on the survey, not just click through it to get it over with.

These “A” team raters also aren’t going to give you a perfect review.

If you really want to improve your game, you need people who are going to tell you the good and the bad. What makes these raters helpful is that with the bad, you’ll get suggestions on how to improve. You won’t have poor ratings because someone’s had a bad day.

Here are some of the players you should look for:

·        A peer who’s known you for a long time

·        A mentor or indirect supervisor

·        One new and one long-term client or customer

·        A project teammate from another department

·        A remote employee you’ve worked with

·        Someone you’ve faced a work challenge with

All of these people have had a variety of experiences with you. A project could have gone perfectly or it could have been a mess. You could have played different roles on different teams. Clients see a different side of you than your co-workers do. Selecting these people will help you get a full picture of your past performance.

If you don’t get to choose your team of raters because a supervisor selects them, go ahead and make a list anyway. You can then tell your supervisor to add these people — and show that you’ve given thought to the process. 

Once you’ve built your “A” team, give the same courtesy to the 360 reviews you’re selected to give feedback on. Be honest, fair and objective, and take the time to really give quality answers. Both you and the rest of your co-workers will get more out of the process by being “A” team players for each other.

The 5 Hidden Land Mines of 360-degree Feedback

Venturing down the path of implementing a 360-degree feedback process for performance assessments or development purposes? Better detect the hidden land mines before charging ahead. The process you hope will bring added value to the business may erupt as a destroyer of employee engagement.

For companies that are looking for more complete insight into their employees’ performance, gathering feedback from a broad range of perspectives seems to make sense. But, as is the case with any new, unfamiliar process, the devil is in the pre-planning details. Pay attention to these five hidden land mines:

1.      Lack of planning. Before taking any action toward implementing a 360-degree feedback process, ask the question, “Why do we need this?” If you can’t articulate a strong business case describing how adding a 360-degree feedback process will solve an existing or anticipated problem or advance your business strategy, you shouldn’t go forward.

2.      Disjointed processes. A 360-degree feedback process is rarely used in isolation from or as a substitute for a broader system of performance management. When your 360-degree feedback process brings added value to your existing performance or talent assessment programs, managers and employees are more likely to accept the new process. Train managers and employees in the art of delivering and receiving feedback to alleviate fear or apprehension before implementation.

3.      Poor participation. Involving the right people in your 360-degree feedback program is critical, and successful adoption requires the support and visibility from top executives in the company for the best success. Ideally, involve five to seven raters to provide feedback for employees, but don’t limit feedback to just those names provided by the employee. Determine a mix of colleagues, customers or suppliers that both the employee and the manager feel represent a balanced picture of performance. 

4.      Limited perspective. In addition to seeking feedback regarding “what” the employee has accomplished, solicit feedback that demonstrates “how” their behaviors support the specific competencies needed for success in their role.

5.      Wrong presentation. Regardless of the level of transparency your culture supports, 360-degree feedback is best presented back to the employee anonymously. By clarifying the anonymity up front, you’ll receive more survey returns and more honest feedback. Summarize key themes from the feedback rather than providing verbatim responses. Tie these themes into specific performance coaching, then monitor improvements and revisit progress on a regular basis. 

With careful planning up front, you can avoid getting tripped up in a land mine of employee concerns when you introduce your new 360-degree feedback process. And one of the best ways to ensure your focus remains on strategic outcomes is to shift the administrative burden to an automated performance management system. When too much time is spent creating paper-based processes or searching for confidential ways to route and store forms, you may lose sight of the real purpose and value of the entire process — developing your people to provide the best service and products to your customers.

MY DIRECT REPORTS AND I TALK ALL THE TIME

“I Don’t Need 360 Feedback; My Direct Reports and I Talk All the Time  (Not)”

Let’s be clear: Conversation is not performance management. No way, no how.And just as that’s true for assessing performance down the ladder, it’s also true for getting effective, meaningful assessments of managers from their direct reports.

It doesn’t matter that you’re a personable manager who enjoys chatting it up with your direct reports around the proverbial water cooler. Or that you play together on the company softball team or hang out at the local pub.

It doesn’t matter that you think regular staff meetings and an open-door policy are good enough means of communication for your direct reports to let you know their concerns about how you’re doing your job — or if they want to praise and support you.

So, we’ll say it again: Conversation is not performance management. You may be talking, but you’re sure not engaging in performance assessments in any valid meaning of the term.

In Fierce Leadership, executive training authority Susan Scott puts it this way: “Simply having the conversation isn’t enough. It’s the quality of the conversation that matters. Conversations provide clarity or confusion. They invite cross-boundary collaboration and cooperation or add concertina wire to the walls between well-defended fiefdoms.”

Many 360 reviews fail because, at best, managers mistake casual office conversation for performance assessment input. At worst, managers use the veil of office camaraderie as concertina wire atop the walls Scott refers to.

In short, managers often confuse “conversation” with performance management because they or their organization lack a plan for communication that is specifically centered on defining performance goals and establishing formal performance management.

The solution is to develop a culture-wide appreciation for the power of discussing performance assessments in the “right environment” and at the appropriate time. That ain’t the water cooler, the softball field or the local pub.

To help get you there, Roland Smith and Michael Campbell, co-authors of Talent Conversations: What They Are, Why They’re Crucial, and How To Do Them Right, offer these six steps to guide a true talent management discussion: 

1. Clarify the goal
2. Explore the issues
3. Identify the options
4. Set expectations
5. Motivate
6. Identify the plan

As Smith and Campbell say, a conversation of performance assessment is not done to someone but with someone.

I’M ONLY A COG IN THE MACHINE; MY THOUGHTS DON’T MATTER

“You Are Not a Cog in the Machine”

Monday morning. You show up for work right on time. The deadlines and projects from last week apparently reproduced on their own over the weekend. It’s early, and the cortex of your brain hasn’t achieved maximum velocity quite yet. Ever feel like you’re just a cog in the mighty machine, fueled by endless venti café Americanos?

Who doesn’t? Despite the position, the paycheck or the portfolio of work, we all wonder from time to time how much our contributions really matter in the grand scheme of our company’s success. When we question our talents or second-guess our capabilities, we look to our immediate manager to help us refocus. But what happens when your manager isn’t there for you in a professionally supportive and encouraging manner?

As difficult as it may be, it might be time for “the conversation.” Your future performance and growth may hinge on your taking the initiative and offering feedback to your manager so that he can take the necessary next steps to meet your development needs. It really shouldn’t be so difficult — after all, he’s been placed in his role to be a leader. It’s his job to improve employee satisfaction and increase your engagement in your work and with the company you both support. He’s been placed at the front lines of advancing your company’s performance management strategy, and you’re there backing him up. When you reinforce him with leadership suggestions that specifically address your individual needs, you’ll collectively contribute to a high-performing force within your organization.

Maybe you are just another cog in the machine — or perhaps you’re the driving axle holding the entire team together. Either way, your bright thoughts and big ideas matter, especially for a business strategy based on innovation. So go ahead — next time you’re ordering that Joe to go, grab one for your manager and strike up a conversation about how he can best lead and encourage you, so you can truly fire on all cylinders.   

Focusing a Wide-angle Lens on Performance Assessments

Assessments of talent are important, impactful decisions. Whether they’re used to support work assignments, performance appraisals or succession planning, judgments by others on the measures of our work can leave us either motivated or miffed.

Employees expect, and deserve, performance assessments that are accurate, honest, and provide valid and balanced feedback. But with cross-functional project teams and remote work assignments being the norm today, it’s challenging for managers to have a complete and current view of an individual’s performance at all times.

Using a multi-rater, 360-degree feedback process can equip managers with a wide-angle lens to more effectively evaluate employee performance. A 360-degree appraisal collects information from a variety of people with whom the employee has frequent contact, and assesses the skills, behavior and knowledge of the employee. The insight can then validate, or present contrary evidence to, the manager’s own view of the employee’s performance.

Most talent management experts agree that including a 360-degree feedback process can be a positive addition to a company’s strategy of performance management. But before you swing into action and start soliciting performance feedback, there are best practices to consider — and, of course, land mines to avoid. A 360-degree feedback process that isn’t carefully introduced and implemented has the potential to backfire and deliver a negative blow to employee morale.

Consider the following best practices when designing a 360-degree feedback process for your organization:

• Involve senior leaders — gaining their support to champion the process will build a strong culture of communication and trust.
• Marry the process to the culture of the company — decide early on whether feedback should be open and transparent or remain anonymous.
• Invest in training — for managers and employees alike, be sure everyone understands the process and expectations up front.
• Bridge to development — beyond performance appraisals, link 360-degree feedback to individual development planning.
• Size matters — include enough raters — ideally six, but no more than 10 — to provide a complete and balanced perspective.
• Summarize — if you’re using an anonymous process, provide the employee with broad themes of feedback rather than specific comments.
• Automate the process — an automated 360-degree software solution can bring added efficiency to the entire process.

Performance Review Research

Freestyle PR of Des Moines, IA is running a quick survey on performance reviews and would like as many participants as possible. Click here to participate in the survey.

ReviewSNAP President Featured in Talent Management Technology Article

Take a look at the Talent Management Technology article featuring ReviewSNAP President, Dave Arringdale.