How To Conduct 360 Degree Performance Appraisal

Do you want to perform a 360-degree performance review in your organization, and don’t really know how to? Don’t worry, we are here to help you with the same. We have collected some of the steps to make the process of 360 degree performance appraisal easier for you.

Set the Criteria for Evaluation

This criterion often varies based on the relationship between the reviewer and the reviewee. A subordinate will review his manager for leadership skills and clarity of tasks, while a peer will review you for your problem-solving skills and teamwork.  

At the same time, your manager would assess you for your job skills like your technical skills as a software developer. 

Now Decide, Who Will Review Whom

The decision of who will participate in 360-degree review is often taken by multiple stakeholders like HR teams and the managers. While the HR team and leadership decide who will participate in the review process, managers suggest those who will be reviewing their direct reports. 

Sometimes, even employees get a chance to decide their peers or colleagues with whom they have been involved in certain important tasks in each timeframe.  

Both managers and employees can also figure out if the participation of external stakeholders is required, such as customers or partners (if they are relevant to their job roles).  

Last but not the least, reviewee gets to evaluate themselves about how well they align with broader organizational goals. 

Send Surveys to All the Reviewers

In this we need to send review forms to reviewers via email to complete them. Send the forms in advance, so they have at least one week’s time to review their colleagues, managers and reportees objectively and relevantly.  

Also, send the self-evaluation form to employees before the one-on-one evaluation meeting. 

Generate Performance Report

Conduct 360 Degree Review Meeting with Employees

This is the most crucial step where employees are informed about their overall performance personally. But remember that self-evaluation by employees should be discussed first, rather than making a side-by-side comparison between an employee’s self-review and those received from others.

Else, it will dampen the confidence of employees and they might end up questioning their potential.  

At this stage, it is also important to be specific and maintain a certain level of empathy. To ensure fairness, the HR department should also be a part of this meeting along with the manager.  

Formulate a Development Plan

After considering the challenges and aspirations of the employee, you can further formulate the development plan for his growth. 360-degree feedback is an ongoing process and not a one-time activity. Always follow up with employees to track their progress and growth. 

The Evolution of Stellar Tech: A 360-Degree Performance Review Story

Let’s understand 360-degree performance review with the help of this example. Here is the company Stellar Tech where the human resource department decided to incorporate 360-degree performance review to promote open and growth-oriented culture.  

Rachel, the HR Manager introduced this procedure in the organization along with her team to get a holistic view of an employee’s performance.  

There is John, the team leader of the software development department known for technical expertise but struggling with team management and communication.  

Next, Feedback for John was collected from his peers, subordinates, etc., via surveys. Once compiled, Rachel sat down with John to go over his feedback. 

Through the feedback, Rachel highlighted John’s technical skills and problem-solving abilities but also pointed out that he needs improvement for communication and delegation skills.  

To help him with this, Rachel devises an action plan to help John accomplish those goals.  

The action plan included communication workshops to improve his communication skills and regular feedback one-on-one sessions to address his concerns. 

Over the next 6 months, Rachel observed changes in John’s leadership style and his team felt more valued and motivated, resulting in better collaboration and increased productivity.  

Is 360-Degree Review Process Truly Reliable

A 360-degree review helps gather feedback from all the individuals including employees’ supervisors, subordinates, peers, and others. However, this methodology still holds some of the loopholes that can’t be ignored. 

Firstly, this process contains a high possibility of bias. This is because colleagues can provide negative and positive reviews based on personal bonding rather than following any performance metrics. This leads to distorted results. 

Another major problem associated with this process is that there is a lack of cooperation shown by other departments.  

They might not give much importance to the review process and sometimes may have conflicting interests. This might lead to unreliable feedback and unfair assessment.  

All these issues make this approach a bit inadequate to offer complete feedback on an employees’ performance. Since this feedback approach is a bit subjective in nature, and involves some inter-departmental friction, it fails to offer an accurate result.  

This is why some of the organizations prefer to use more objective and performance-oriented assessments for their employees. This not only removes bias but also chucks off departmental politics. 

Wrapping Up

Now that you have read the article, you might agree that 360-degree performance review is an exemplary method for evaluating your employees, both personally (behaviour-based) and professionally (skill-based). Implementing this method in your organization means fostering a culture of continuous feedback and open communication.  

By practicing the 360-degree performance review, you can unlock the full potential of your workforce. You can develop a culture where the feedback is not just given or received but also actively sought and embraced.