360-degree feedback is a type of performance review that gives employees a bigger picture of what needs improvement. Providing honest feedback to your employees has been a hot topic for years. It’s one of the most important aspects to keeping high levels of engagement and motivation in your team. However, how do you get that perfect score? 360-degree feedback reviews give an insider perspective from different people that work with a particular employee: peers (co-workers), managers & direct reports alike.
The business world has always struggled with productivity to reduce costs and achieve more results. Engaging the whole team an employee collaborates with is crucial for their development and for company growth.
In this article, we will have a look at what 360-degree feedback is, and describe X ways it helps you achieve better team performance.
360-Degree Feedback – Definition and Examples
360-degree feedback is a form of assessment where employees receive confidential, anonymous comments from the people who work around them. This typically includes their manager and peers as well as direct reports. The idea of 360-degree feedback has been around since the late 1950s and early 1960s. Back then, organizations saw a need to improve communication and business process management for better team productivity.
The feedback process in the workplace has changed dramatically in recent years. In fact, many companies now offer 360-degree performance reviews for their employees. They provide extra insight into how each team member handles their tasks beyond just what is reflected on paper or during annual performance evaluations. Hence, 360-degree feedback in the workplace boosts employee engagement and reduces turnover.
If you just rely on standard procedures, you risk missing out on a great opportunity to be objective about certain issues. These include areas like work ethic, team communication, room for improvement and personal goals.
However, the 360-degree feedback approach allows people outside formal channels (such as other coworkers) to share perspectives on strengths and weaknesses. Also, managers have the chance to give more detailed suggestions to individuals. This is just the opposite of announcing general updates to the whole team.
360-degree feedback works best if performed on a regular basis. In a remote work environment, you need to make sure your team communicates effectively and solves issues on the spot. The easiest way to carry out 360-degree feedback often enough to see positive performance changes is with a BPM software. SaaS BPM eases project discussions and makes their execution a breeze. Your team can address challenges that occur in someone’s performance right on the project template. This way, the particular team member can fix them in the context of the task.
3 Ways 360-Degree Feedback Can Benefit Team Performance
The advantages of using this feedback process are numerous. From increased productivity to better customer service, you’ll be hard-pressed not to find positive results with this approach. Here are 3 ways 360-degree feedback sessions can benefit your organization:
Work Relationships
360-degree feedback promotes communication at work. Unlike standard performance reviews that are usually one-way supervisor/subordinate conversations, 360 reports include a bigger spectrum of colleagues.
This encourages sharing different opinions both ways, coming from those above in the hierarchy as well as the direct reports. Therefore, 360-degree feedback helps team members see issues they would not otherwise spot. After receiving an all-round report on their behavior, employees usually would reach out to colleagues for clarifications and suggestions for improvement.
360-degree feedback is a great way to get an understanding of what you’re doing well and what you need to work on. That said, it’s only the first step in becoming better at your job. In addition, it’s a good idea to follow up after receiving a 360 degree score. Speak directly with managers about findings from different staff members. Fundamentally, this type of conversation can help you all grow as employees/leaders together for the success of the business.
Feedback rituals can be one-sided or absent in favor of more open performance discussions. 360 degree surveys set the stage to create a culture where employees feel free to share their thoughts on how others perform. This in turn helps improve overall work relationships within teams as well!
Personal Development
Personal development can help you embrace your full potential and improve your quality of life. Also, setting goals for yourself helps you stay on track and boosts your motivation. However, it is important to work on personal development alongside teamwork. As a result, every employee in your organization would hold themselves accountable.
In a work setting, personal development occurs when leaders and their teams look at themselves from all angles. Based on their findings, they are able to create a plan that aligns with the feedback they receive. Therefore, 360-degree feedback processes provide such an incredible opportunity to reflect on comments and act on them promptly.
This alternative to one-way appraisals lets people who work with you every day give constructive criticism without the fear of recrimination or retaliation. This can be difficult if not impossible in other settings. For example, if there isn’t complete transparency about one’s behavior towards others on a daily basis, then the method wouldn’t work. Thus, leaders should use 360-degree feedback information wisely. After all, it’ll only lead toward more high scores for the team!
Self-awareness and Accountability
Group 360-degree feedback is one way to increase self-awareness among team members and can lead them in the right direction for improved performance. Antioni (1996) found that when individuals were aware of their strengths as well weaknesses, they communicated more often. As a result, they could make decisions together with others on what needed improvement, channeling all efforts in the collective company goals.
The idea of Naïve Realism is that we all think the world sits right in front us, fully formed and objectively perceived. However, when you get feedback from different people about your behavior or performance, you get an objective viewpoint and avoid being biased by one person’s opinion alone.
Also, 360-degree feedback boosts accountability in your team. The more clear and defined the goals and expectations are, the easier it is to hold individuals responsible for their actions.
When an individual gets positive feedback from their peers on behaviors they consider to be strengths, it can cause some reflection. However, if the person disagrees with these ratings, there must be inconsistency about how others perceive them. If that’s the case, it’s a good idea to look into this and seek further discussions on the pain points you disagree with. On the other hand, if many people have said good things about you, it’s more likely that everyone has seen your true potential as a leader.
Final Thoughts
360-degree feedback reviews are an effective way to provide employees with honest and actionable reports. However, the process of conducting these reviews can be daunting – especially if you’re trying to do it all manually. That’s where a business process management software comes in handy. A BPM software allows for easy collaboration among team members, as well as on-the-spot feedback. As a result, the entire process runs smoothly and efficiently. Have you tried using a BPM software for your 360-degree feedback reviews? If not, we suggest giving it a try!