Using 360 degree feedback.Introduction 360 degree feedback is most often used in development or training and to a lesser extent in performance appraisal Performance appraisal, also known as employee appraisal, is a method by which the performance of an employee is evaluated (generally in terms of quality, quantity, cost and time). . It has particular relevance for appraising leadership skills. This checklist is assuming the scheme will be managed by the HR or training function rather than individual managers. Changes in organisational structures towards flatter hierarchies and greater employee empowerment have had implications for the appraisal process. An individual manager will now often have a greater span of control, so an employee's colleagues may be in a better position to judge his or her performance than before. Hence the now established interest in 360 degree feedback which, by combining opinions of subordinates, peers and team members, can provide a well-rounded and more accurate and objective view than the perceptions of a single person. 360 degree feedback can be particularly motivating for people who undervalue themselves. It can also increase general awareness of the impact people have on each other and lead to more open working relationships and improved teamwork. It is most effective in organisations which have, or are moving towards, an open, supportive, and participative culture. National Occupational Standards for Management and Leadership This checklist has relevance to the following standards: D: Working with people, unit 6 Definition 360 degree feedback (or appraisal) involves appraisal by those above, below, and to the side of the appraisee and incorporates self-assessment. In practice, it may not include all of these elements. Depending on the level of openness required, feedback may be provided through a third party, so that any one person's opinions cannot be traced. Similar approaches are described in a glossary A term used by Microsoft Word and adopted by other word processors for the list of shorthand, keyboard macros created by a particular user. See glossaries in this publication and The Computer Glossary. towards the end of this checklist. Action checklist 1. Decide which behaviours you want to measure and whom to assess Consider which sets of knowledge, skills and abilities you want to measure: for example, should they be competency-based, job-related, or behaviour-related? Remember that 360 degree feedback can be used at any level of the organisation, so decide if you want to assess specific individuals, particular teams, particular levels, or the whole organisation. 2. Design a feedback questionnaire Devise the detailed questions or, if you do not have the necessary expertise in-house, consider buying in Buying in has several meanings. In the securities market it refers to a process by which the buyer of securities, whose seller fails to deliver the securities contracted for, can 'buy in' the securities from a third party with the defaulting seller to make good. a ready-made questionnaire or employing a consultant. Check that the questions are phrased to elicit e·lic·it tr.v. e·lic·it·ed, e·lic·it·ing, e·lic·its 1. a. To bring or draw out (something latent); educe. b. To arrive at (a truth, for example) by logic. 2. a descriptive, rather than a judgmental judg·men·tal adj. 1. Of, relating to, or dependent on judgment: a judgmental error. 2. Inclined to make judgments, especially moral or personal ones: , response, as the former is less likely to give offence OFFENCE, crimes. The doing that which a penal law forbids to be done, or omitting to do what it commands; in this sense it is nearly synonymous with crime. (q.v.) In a more confined sense, it may be considered as having the same meaning with misdemeanor, (q.v. and more likely to provide information for the appraisee to act upon. Also, avoid asking questions which the majority of the likely appraisers are not qualified to answer or which contain terms that might be open to misinterpretation. 3. Communicate the scheme and prepare participants Good communication and an open management style are vital to the success of 360 degree feedback. Make sure that the scope and purpose of the scheme are clearly explained and encourage the airing of worries and objections. If necessary, circulate cir·cu·late v. cir·cu·lat·ed, cir·cu·lat·ing, cir·cu·lates v.intr. 1. To move in or flow through a circle or circuit: blood circulating through the body. 2. a pilot questionnaire asking employees, for example, for their views on managers in the organisation in general. This will serve to demonstrate how the scheme will work and to give reassurance REASSURANCE. When an insurer is desirous of lessening his liability, he may procure some other insurer to insure him from loss, for the insurance he has made this is called reassurance. . A focus on strengths as much as weaknesses will help to make the exercise non-threatening. Appoint a manager to act as a facilitator and publicise Verb 1. publicise - call attention to; "Please don't advertise the fact that he has AIDS" advertise, advertize, publicize announce, denote - make known; make an announcement; "She denoted her feelings clearly" his or her roles and responsibilities. This person should be widely respected and have a good reputation for fairness and honesty. If it is not appropriate to nominate nom·i·nate tr.v. nom·i·nat·ed, nom·i·nat·ing, nom·i·nates 1. To propose by name as a candidate, especially for election. 2. To designate or appoint to an office, responsibility, or honor. an internal manager, consider using a consultant. 4. Train all appraisers in giving, and appraisees in receiving, critical feedback. Encourage appraisers to be constructive, positive and specific, rather than being critical, negative and general. In describing a colleague's behaviour, for example, "I notice that you rarely acknowledge us when you arrive in the morning" is more helpful than "I think you are a bad communicator". "I note that you need time and space to yourself but when you get it you can really produce the goods" pinpoints the message in an acceptable way, which should be better received than "You're too much of a loner loner Psychiatry A single young man estranged from society and family, who suffers from psychogenic pain, and tends to live 'on the edge', vacillating between aggression and depression; loners often have unrealistic goals, but are unable to work towards those goals ". Do not allow the appraisal to become an opportunity for subjective gripes gripe v. griped, grip·ing, gripes v.intr. 1. Informal To complain naggingly or petulantly; grumble. 2. To have sharp pains in the bowels. v.tr. 1. . If this happens, critically appraised people will tend to get their own back when appraising others, especially if they are identified or identifiable. 5. Let the appraisee choose their appraisers Allow the employee to select who is to appraise appraise v. to professionally evaluate the value of property including real estate, jewelry, antique furniture, securities, or in certain cases the loss of value (or cost of replacement) due to damage. them from an agreed pool, but ensure that those chosen include people with whom they do and don't get on: the aim is to achieve a rounded appraisal. Set limits on the number involved in each appraisal, as otherwise the exercise can become an administrative nightmare. Instruct in·struct v. in·struct·ed, in·struct·ing, in·structs v.tr. 1. To provide with knowledge, especially in a methodical way. See Synonyms at teach. 2. To give orders to; direct. v. appraisers to return their questionnaires to the appointed facilitator. If it has been agreed that all comments will be treated anonymously, reassure re·as·sure tr.v. re·as·sured, re·as·sur·ing, re·as·sures 1. To restore confidence to. 2. To assure again. 3. To reinsure. them that their views will not be attributed specifically to them. Minimise the gap between collecting the data and giving the results. 6. Decide how feedback is to be presented Work out how the results are to be collated and presented by the facilitator: is your objective to allow employees to be able to compare their own performance over time, compare themselves with like employees, or compare themselves against a set of competences? Consider whether feedback on particular actions is to be linked to a consensus on how important that action is to the job. If so, the results will have to be weighted accordingly. 7. Provide counselling and assistance Decide whether improvement actions should be left to individuals or whether they should be offered solutions. If you wish individuals to take responsibility for their own improvement, don't show the results to their boss without their approval. The facilitator or another trained person such as a psychologist should be available to help employees deal with feedback, particularly to advise on how to deal with diverging di·verge v. di·verged, di·verg·ing, di·verg·es v.intr. 1. To go or extend in different directions from a common point; branch out. 2. To differ, as in opinion or manner. 3. views. Consider whether to hold development sessions in which appraisees can offer support to each other. 8. Set action plans for improvement Follow up appraisal with a programme of suitable training. This may range from attending a course, or sitting with a colleague, to internal or external secondment Noun 1. secondment - a speech seconding a motion; "do I hear a second?" endorsement, indorsement, second agreement - the verbal act of agreeing 2. . Remember that learners will have different needs and preferences. 9. Evaluate the use of 360 degree feedback Evaluate the appraisal initiative, taking into account the thoughts of all participants, including any difficulties that arose in completing the appraisal questionnaire or in analysing the data from it. Compare the results of using 360 degree feedback with previous appraisal schemes. Details from the evaluation should be acknowledged when undertaking the next appraisal. Glossary of terms related to 360 degree feedback Peer appraisal: employees are evaluated by their colleagues and their supervisor. Team appraisal: team members assess their own team's performance. Feedback should preferably also come from representatives of clients of the team and from a supervisor. Upward feedback In leadership development and management development, upward feedback (also known as manager feedback and subordinate appraisal) is a structured process of delivering feedback from subordinates to managers, intended to identify ways to increase management : managers are appraised by those who work under them. Managers should avoid * forgetting that employees may find the introduction of 360 degree feedback both threatening and challenging * treating it as a one-off exercise or leave long gaps between appraisals * allowing appraisers to drift into personal attacks * generating an environment of suspicion. Additional resources Books 360 degree feedback beyond the spin Michael Silverman, Maire Kerrin and Alison Carter Brighton: Falmer, Institute for Employment Studies 2005 (IES report 418) Appraisal and feedback: making performance review work, 3rd ed, Clive Fletcher London: Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development The Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) is the leading professional body for those involved in the field of personnel, training and development. Membership of the CIPD is highly respected and widely accepted by employers as a requirement of practice. , 2004 360 degree feedback best practice guidelines practice guidelines Medical practice A set of recommendations for Pt management that identifies a specific or range of range of management strategies. See Peer review organization, Practice standards. Cf 'Cookbook' medicine. Department of Trade and Industry The Department of Trade and Industry was a United Kingdom government department which was disbanded with the announcement of the creation of the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform on 28 June 2007[1]. : London Guide to the implementation of 360 degree feedback, Valerie Garrow Horsham: Roffey Park Management Institute, 1999 This is a selection of books available for loan to members from the Management Information Centre. More information at: www.managers.org.uk/mic Journal articles Survival of the similar, Madan Pillutla and Sarah Ronson People Management, vol 12 no 6, 23 Mar 2006, pp36-37 How to link 360 degree feedback and appraisal, Peter Goodge People Management, vol 11 no 2, 27 Jan 2005, pp46-47 This is a selection of journal articles available from the Management Information Centre. More information at: www.managers.org.uk/mic Related checklists Conducting a performance appraisal (036) Preparing to be appraised (069) Establishing a performance measurement system (129) Giving feedback as a coach (222) Giving criticism as a coach (223) Internet resources Team Builders Plus: www.360-degreefeedback.com Basic introduction to 360 degree feedback with details of tools and products. Organisations Chartered Management Institute Inspiring Leaders The Chartered Management Institute is a professional institution for managers, based in the United Kingdom. In addition to supporting its members, the organisation encourages management development, carries out research, produces a wide variety Management House, Cottingham Road, Corby, Northants NN17 1TT Tel: 01536 204222 www.managers.org.uk Institute of Management Consultancy The Institute of Management Consultancy (IMC) is a Professional Body for Management consultants in the United Kingdom. In January 2005 it merged with the Chartered Management Institute. The IMC operates as a separate division with the CMI. 3rd Floor, 17-18 Hayward's Place, London EC1R 0EQ Tel: 020 7566 5220 www.imc.co.uk |
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