5 Necessities for 360 Degree Feedback Success

Now that you’ve assessed whether your organization is ready for a 360 degree process, you’ll want to do everything in your power to ensure a successful implementation. Previously, we outlined the steps in a successful 360 degree feedback process, from beginning to end.  However, there are a few more elements you have to consider to achieve success with your 360 degree reviews, from voluntary participation to training.

1. Voluntary participation in 360 degree feedback:

   It is recommended that 360 degree feedback be a voluntary developmental process. There isn’t any advantage in forcing employees and mandatory participation can lead to distrust and low-quality data. Since 360 degree feedback is part of personal and professional development, employees who volunteer will get more out of the process. Also, giving employees the freedom to choose whether they participate builds more trust in the process.

2. Assure confidentiality in the feedback:

   We’ve mentioned this point a few times, but it’s important enough to say it yet again. You must clearly state and communicate that the feedback obtained in your 360 process will remain confidential. Employees may be resistant to participating because they do not trust that their feedback will remain anonymous. Assert the confidentiality of the process in all communications and ensure your policies, procedures and feedback system support it.

3. Separate 360 reviews from performance:

   As we discussed in more detail in a previous post, it is important to separate the 360 process from performance assessments. To get the most out of your 360 process and to ensure high participation, it is best to disconnect it from compensation or salary. Employees may be weary and mistrust the review if they believe it is tied to their pay. Furthermore, staff may fear that any negative feedback obtained will directly affect their salary or job security. Clearly communicate that the 360 degree feedback process is for developmental purposes only and is not tied to compensation.

4. Carefully design 360 reviews:

   You need to develop useful and valid questions for employees and raters to obtain the feedback you want. Using a competency framework will allow you to ensure clarity, consistency and fairness. Be sure to tailor the survey to the employee’s language and culture, should you have staff throughout the world. Expectations and competencies may vary between countries, which you need to account for to ensure fairness and accurate ratings. In a future post, we will look more closely at developing effective 360 questions. Stay tuned!

5. Train participants:

   Since 360 degree feedback is new to your organization, you will need to train everyone involved in the process from top management to employees. It is necessary to train the raters and provide instructions on how to give constructive and effective feedback. Also, if managers are going to act as coaches or mentors they may need to be trained in feedback delivery skills. If you’re utilizing a 360 degree feedback system participants will need to be trained on the software for ease-of-use.