When was the last time you were asked for your own feedback regarding your performance? Chances are it was a long time ago, or it wasn’t formalized, if it even happened in the first place.

Thankfully, the days of a supervisor rating performance on a scale of 1-5 and simply signing off on it are through! Employers that caught onto this trend early on added an “Employee Comments” area on their performance review template, but it’s time to think bigger. It’s time to think about 360-degree reviews for all staff, or at the very least, for your supervisory team.

What is it?

A 360 review is a professional development tool that provides employees with feedback from several perspectives, not just their supervisor’s, and not by just adding one space for the employee to comment. A 360 review is not a traditional performance review, rather a way for professionals to receive constructive feedback from their manager, peers, and direct reports while simultaneously performing a self-review on the same competencies.  

Why should you consider them for your organization?

360 reviews provide powerful insight into performance from several different perspectives. They help us understand how an individual leads, communicates, manages projects, and relates to internal and external customers. 360 reviews tend to provide insight into an individual’s soft skills, in addition to technical abilities.

What does the process look like?

• First, we identify what it takes to be successful in the selected role by assigning the competencies in which to be evaluated. In this way, Skywalk Group can customize our 360-degree tool to incorporate your organization’s cultural expectations and values.

• Next, Skywalk Group sends the customized survey to the supervisor of the individual, any peers or teammates, their direct reports, and most importantly, to the individual themselves. It’s time to think critically and use definitions to objectively measure performance and derive feedback for improvement.

• After this, Skywalk Group analyzes that feedback and customizes a 360-Degree Feedback report for that individual. Not only do we have success defined, but we’re able to gauge how close we are to the mark by comparing answers and identifying trends.  

•  Finally, the individual who was evaluated receives the feedback. In praising them for what they do well and formulating a plan to address areas of improvement, the tone has been set for a collaborative, growth year for that teammate!  

How does the survey work?

Once the selected participants receive a link to the survey, the fun begins! It will start by asking what your relationship with the individual is, whether you supervise them directly, are a peer, directly report to this person, or are this person. The survey is composed of two parts. The first part is a series of statements based on core leadership competencies. Each participant reads each statement and indicates how often they experience or observe the behavior by selecting a corresponding rating on a 6-point scale. The second part of the survey is composed of several open-ended questions. These questions relate to corresponding competencies, your organization’s values, and the soft-skills side of management.

Why use a third party?

Feedback like this only works if the participants feel comfortable enough to be vulnerable, honest, and helpful. When a third party like Skywalk Group doesn’t know the participant’s name and is able to house the sensitive information outside the network of their employer, it tends to generate more meaningful responses and therefore, feedback.

What are my next steps?

Identify who in your organization would benefit from full-cycle feedback, rather than receiving one-sided feedback regarding their performance. After that, we customize the survey, pick the participants, and off we go!

By Samantha Rogers