The Benefits of 360-Degree Feedback In the Workplace

We're all a little guilty of thinking that our coworkers are just like us. 

After all, we work together every day, so we assume that everyone is on the same page.

But what if they're not? What if you've been looking at your coworkers through a narrow lens for months or years, and you haven't even realized it?

That's why 360-degree feedback is so important in the workplace. 

It's not just about you—it's about understanding how you fit into the big picture. 

It helps you see where your strengths lie, and where there are areas for improvement. It shows you how others see you as a colleague, or as a leader. And it can help you grow professionally in ways that might otherwise be invisible to you.

In recent times, many organizations have moved away from the traditional one-on-one feedback methods to the 360-degree feedback model. They have found that it is one of the keys to a more effective, happy workforce. 

But what is a 360 feedback survey, and how do you effectively implement it?

To learn more about 360-degree reviews and other performance management flows, book a demo today. 

What is 360 Feedback Process?

360-degree or 360 feedback is a systematic evaluation system where employees receive feedback on their performance from several stakeholders. These stakeholders or respondents can include their superiors, peers, subordinates, and even customers. With a good 360-Degree Review Flow, you can significantly boost employee engagement and improve managers’ professional development.

Since many people are involved in this feedback process, it is also called the multi-rater feedback system. It gives an overall analysis of a team member or manager’s performance. This feedback method is so effective that almost 90% of Fortune 500 companies use it. 

Fun Fact: The global 360-degree feedback software market size is estimated to reach $1,908 million by 2029. 

Most companies employ the 360-degree feedback style to identify employees’ weak spots and training needs. So you see, feedback doesn’t always have negative consequences. In fact, the benefits are numerous for both the company and the individual. 

Let’s explore some of them.

Read - How Effective Employee Feedback Helps Managers

What are the Benefits of 360-Degree Feedback?

Some importance of 360-degree feedback in the workplace are:

1. Improves employee self-awareness.
2. Fosters a culture of transparency and trust.
3. Offers a better perspective of strengths and weaknesses.
4. Increases accountability.
5. Uncovers blindspots.
6. Improves work relationships.

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1. Improves employee self-awareness.

Self-awareness is not just another management buzzword. Research has shown that employees who are self-aware are more emotionally mature and better at handling high-stress situations. They are also more productive and honest. 

With 360-degree feedback, managers can get a clear picture of the strong and weak aspects of their work and behaviour. This full view removes bias and increases their level of self-evaluation. 

2. Fosters a culture of transparency and trust.

Employee trust is the foundation of engagement and productivity. When employees take part in reviewing their managers and peers, they feel like their opinion counts. They’re able to share their thoughts without fear of repression or backlash. This culture of trust fosters better decision-making, improves engagement and encourages a more cohesive environment. 

3. Offers a better perspective of strengths and weaknesses.

Need a way to unearth your employees’ strengths and help them improve their weaknesses? Implement 360 reviews.

The results will uncover the subject’s strengths and help you know how to tailor a development and training plan. Helping managers develop their strengths and improve their leadership skills is great for both their career growth and the company’s effectiveness. 

4. Increases accountability.

Implementing 360 feedback for managers is a means for team members to effectively hold their leaders accountable in a positive manner. With a manager feedback survey system in place, being defensive and unapproachable is out of the picture. 

Knowing that the purpose of 360 feedback is individual and organizational development, project leads will be able to take action on the feedback results. Note that results are more efficient when participants are given prior training on how to receive and implement feedback in a healthy and productive way.

5. Uncovers blindspots.

Since 360-degree feedback gives reviews from different sources, it enables the participant to uncover blindspots in their performance. This is important for regular self-improvement because it lets the manager know how to focus their learning and development efforts on improving these overlooked behaviors.  

Using 360 feedback for team leader performance review also helps the organization unearth skill gaps and training needs. A study by Degreed shows that 46% of employees are aware of the widening skill gaps. The 360-degree feedback can help you stay ahead of it and find avenues to upskill your team. 

6. Improves work relationships.

Traditional one-on-one feedback sometimes leaves room for bias and defensiveness. Sometimes, team members don’t even get to give feedback to their managers because they’re not sure how it would be received. But, with the 360 feedback system, managers and employees can review each other - improving the superior-subordinate relationship. The best part is that this feedback model allows for anonymity. Thus, both parties continue to work together to achieve set goals.

Now that we’ve explored the benefits of effective 360-degree feedback, you might ask, ‘How do I give good 360 feedback?’. 

How to Implement 360-Degree Feedback in The Workplace

As Pablo Picasso once said, “Our goals can only be reached through a vehicle of a plan, in which we must fervently believe, and upon which we must vigorously act. There is no other route to success.”

In the same vein, implementing effective 360-degree feedback requires detailed planning. Applying the following steps will ensure success: 

1. Communicate the process to stakeholders: 

Discuss the idea and intended process with participants and reviewers. Let participants know the relevance, objectives and intended outcomes of the review process. Be sure to let reviewers know that they need to give honest, professional answers only.

2. Outline the objectives and competencies you intend to measure: 

Determine and outline the objectives you want to achieve. Also include the skills, values and behaviors you want to assess. These should typically focus on the manager’s personal and professional development. Outlining these will help determine what questions to ask and how best to structure them.

3. Outline the questions: 

The manager's role and responsibilities are key factors for setting the manager feedback survey questions. For example, questions for a new manager who just finished their probationary period will differ from those developed for a long-term manager due for an annual performance review. With this in mind, carefully write out the questions.

4. Carefully select the respondents: 

The respondents should be selected with the ratee in mind. This ideally includes a combination of 5 or 6 persons who are colleagues, subordinates and direct reports. Be sure that you have enough people to ensure balance and provide different perspectives.

5. Guarantee confidentiality:

Respondents are most likely to give honest, constructive feedback when they know that their responses will be anonymous. So, be sure to reiterate this fact when briefing them about the review process. 

6. Choose the platform/tool and launch:

The best 360 manager feedback tool is one that is easy to use, detailed and easily customizable to your organization’s needs. Look out for one that offers credible data security and has a great customer support team. 

Assembly has an excellent, easy-to-use 360-Degree Review Flow that can help you set up project manager performance review surveys quickly. Book a demo today. 

7. Collect and share results:

Once you’ve collected feedback from respondents, it's time to analyze the results and share with the participants. When sharing results, endeavour to deliver them personally. You could set up a 1:1 meeting with the employee to discuss the results and explore opportunities and strategies for improvement. 

Top 360 Review Feedback Examples for Managers

The review's objective will determine the questions you’ll include in your feedback survey. Some objectives and sample questions to include in your feedback are:

Leadership Skills

• How well does the subject assume responsibilities?
• Is the subject good at delegating?
• Are they active listeners?
• Is the subject quick to make critical decisions?

Interpersonal Skills

• How well does the subject manage their emotions when under stress?
• Is the subject eager to learn new skills?
• Do they create an environment that promotes teamwork?

Strategic Planning Skills

• Does the subject ask questions to assess problems?
• How innovative and competent are their solutions?
• Do they understand the consequences of and take responsibility for their decisions?

Communication Skills

• How well does the subject accept constructive feedback?
• Does the subject communicate consistently, clearly and professionally?
• Does their speech and behaviour show respect, empathy and kindness?

360-Degree Feedback Best Practices

Here are some tips to bear in mind when drafting 360-review feedback questions:

1. Keep it short and simple.
2. Use open-ended questions. These will give the reviewers the opportunity to suggest specific areas for improvement.
3. Ask clear, specific questions to avoid confusion and vague answers.
4. Use scales for questions that have adjectives or single words as answers. We suggest using a scale of 1-5. 

Enhance Manager Performance With 360-Degree Feedback

One major benefit of 360-degree feedback is improved performance. Basically, employee feedback for managers and team leads promotes a higher level of self-evaluation and uncovers professional and personal development needs. 

If you don’t have a consistent feedback culture, try cultivating one now. Using a customizable 360 feedback workflow will guarantee confidentiality, build trust, improve your relationship with your team and help you gather unbiased data to help your team grow. 

Remember to set up follow-up sessions after the review is done. Depending on the employee’s needs, follow-up can come in form of workshops, mentoring and training sessions, etc.

Schedule a call today to learn more about Assembly’s performance management flows.