Utilising 360 Degree Feedback

Feedback will be important to any company. From understanding how management are coping and how content employees are to how customers view the business as a whole, without the right feedback it can be very easy to continue blindly making the same mistakes over and over again.

However, valuable feedback can be hard to come by and it can also sometimes be hard to understand what is valid constructive criticism and what is simply people saying what they think you want or expect to hear.

360 degree feed back is a great way to get all the feedback you could need and to have a very easy way of putting that data into action. However, there will need to be certain ground rules with 360 feedback if you want to be sure that you are getting accurate information on all aspects of the business.

Firstly, it will be important that all 360 degree feed back remains anonymous. Should people feel that their feedback is going to be public information, they will be far cagier about how they respond and this may also lead to resentment towards that person and in turn a far less comfortable working environment.

However, it will also be necessary to explain the concept to employees extremely carefully to ensure that they are fair, open and honest. 360 feedback is not a chance to step up rivalries or help one’s best friend to get ahead, but instead is about helping a business focus far more on both its strengths and weaknesses to be more productive and in turn more successful.