360 Degree Performance Appraisal, Feedback System and its Review

The 360 degree performance appraisal system is a way to make sure the appraisal is done in a full-
fledged way considering all the elements surrounded to the employee
360 Degree Performance Appraisal, Feedback System and its Review

The 360 degree performance appraisal system is a way to make sure the appraisal is done in a full-
fledged way considering all the elements surrounded to the employee.

The 360 degree performance appraisal policy is very complicated and difficult to implement. One
may ask why organization should invest in 360 degree performance appraisal system? Here the
answer, is for long term development of employee and to create a strong leadership front. The 360
degree performance appraisal method provides a holistic approach towards the performance of
employee. It includes very important factors such as collaboration, teamwork and leadership.
Development plan based on the 360 degree performance appraisal system, effectively improve the
overall performance of employee and productivity of organization. There are different steps which
we follow in order to implement the 360 degree assessment. Clarity and effectiveness of the system
is very important for an organization.

What is a 360 degree performance appraisal?

The 360 degree performance appraisal system is advanced kind of appraisal which is used
by many organizations where performance of employee is judged using the review of around 7 to
12 people. These people are working with the employee and they share some of their work
environment. The feedback is gathered in the form of reviews in terms of competencies of the
employee. The employee himself or herself also takes part in this appraisal with the help of self
assessment. The 360 degree performance appraisal system is a way to improve the understanding
of strength and weaknesses of employee with the help of creative feedback forms.
There exist 3 prime reasons due to which organization prefer to go for a 360 degree
performance appraisal.

1. In order to get a enhance review about performance and prospective of the future
leader.
2. To broaden the insight of manpower development and its needs.
 3. In order to collect feedback from all the employees and to ensure the
organizational justice.
Usually under 360 degree appraisal system the feedback is collected from peers subordinates
customers managers and the team members of the employee. The feedback is collected using on
job survey based on the performance of employees there exist four stages of a 360 degree appraisal.
The first stages self appraisal followed by superior’s appraisal then subordinates appraisal and
lastly the peer appraisal.
What is a 360 performance review in HR?

The 360 review is a professional opportunity given to the coworkers to provide 360 degree
feedback about the performance of their fellow employee. Traditionally either the HR department
or reporting manager of employee asks the subordinates to provide their feedback.
Many organizations use an online survey method in order to interact with the employee and enable
them to provide performance feedback. The online survey instrument is very useful in collecting
the feedback and providing a clear understanding about employee’s performance.

The 360 performance review is mostly focused on the contribution of employee and their skills
along with the competencies. It is a balance way to view the actual performance of employee in
the area of teamwork, leadership, interaction, interpersonal communication, contribution,
management, accountability, work habits, vision, and other things based on the employee’s job
profile.

Here the actual contribution of employee in terms of performance is judge by the manager while
the other aspects of the role are judged by or reviewed by the subordinate, peers and the customer.

The purpose of collecting feedback from all the employees who work together is to analyze about
how the employee affected the work of their fellow employees. Also it focuses on the steps
organization need to carry out in order to enhance teamwork among the employees. Along with
the formal feedback manager can also request for informal or verbal feedback from the
subordinates in order to get a clear view about behavior and work attitude of employee.
How to implement 360 degree performance appraisal system?

The implementation of 360 degree appraisal method is not an easy task. In order to design an
effective 360 degree appraisal system one has to take care of following things.

1. Determine the right skill to be assessed.

2. Proper selection of appraiser.
3. Proper training should be provided to all the employees about how to use the 360
degree review system.
4. The intention of appraisal system should be elucidate.
5. Design simple and easily understandable process.
6. Ensure that a follow up is taken after appraisal review
Objectives of 360 degree performance appraisal

The objective of 360 degree feedback process differs from company to company however the main
objective of 360 degree performance review used to evaluate the performance of employee in a
holistic manner expert of this field often claim that a properly and effectively implemented 360
degree feedback process makes employee more comfortable with the organization and lead to their
overall development along with boosting their performance.

In this Era use of 360 degree feedback system has brought a team oriented meaning to the
organization. Organization is not restricted to bunch of people but it has become a bigger team. In
a traditional way the appraisal was the responsibility of human resource management only, but
now the objective of 360 degree performance appraisal is to collect anonymous feedback about
the employee from their superiors, colleagues and peers also from the customer. This holistic
approach helps to evaluate performance and well-being of employee who is working for the
organization.
360 Degree Performance Appraisal Process

The steps of 360 degree feedback process may slightly vary from organization to organization.
However the schedule of the 360 degree feedback process remains quite same. A timeline has been
identified for 360 degree performance review which includes different steps which organization
has to follow. The step starts with the communication about 360 degree
performance appraisal method and it ends at the re-evaluation of participants.
1. Communicating the 360 degree performance review- It is very crucial to communicate the
entire process to the stakeholders of the organization. The purpose and objective of 360 degree
performance appraisal process should be clearly mentioned and explained to each and every
participant. Also the process through which the feedback will be gathered and how the feedback
will be utilized should be clearly conveyed to the stakeholders.
Time required- This process could take 2-3 weeks to communicate about the appraisal system.
This can be done through in personal meeting with supervisors, managers, leaders and employees.
Also it can be communicated through emails and employees should be encouraged to come
forward if they have any queries related to 360 degree performance appraisal process.

2. Selection of raters- The selection of rater is one of the most important steps in 360 degree
performance appraisal system. We have to choose enough number of participants in order to
receive data which is relevant and comprehensive. The number of raters will depend on the
employee’s job profile and working relationship.
Time required- This process generally takes one to two weeks. The rater will include supervisors,
direct reports, peers and perhaps some customers or clients.

3. Distribution of survey- Organizations can use online 360 degree feedback system which will
allow a quicker distribution of questionnaire among the employees. The participants will receive
an email with the link of questionnaire and notification. They can click on the link, start and
complete the 360 degree review.
Time required- This may take one week in order to distribute survey among all the employees.

4. Submission of questionnaire- Once the survey is distributed, the participant will complete the
survey online. The completed review will be provided to the evaluator. This process can take the
longest time. The time required to submit a questionnaire depends on the number of raters which
are involved, the job profile of employee and organization. It is highly recommended that a
particular deadline should be assigned to the participant in order to quickly finish the process.
Time required- This process should take to 2-4 weeks in order to get completed feedback from the
participant.

5. Completion of report- Once the review is been collected through the questionnaire method a
confidential report is being produced. It depends on the delivery plan of organization sometimes
once the report is ready it is directly sent to the participants or the result is been given through one-
one feedback session.
Time required- if you are using an online system this very quick to produce the report, sometimes
it takes 1 to 2 days.

6. Facilitation of feedback- It is recommended that the feedback should be given in a confidential

manner by arranging the meeting with employee’s manager or coach. This meeting will allow a
great understanding about the feedback report and also provides an opportunity to discuss the
strength of the employee and areas which need to be improved.
Time required- It depends on the in depth of the feedback session generally a meeting can last for
1 to 2 hours for each employee.

7. Completion of development plan- Once review is done the development plan should be
created for each of the participant based on the feedback reviews received through 360
degree evaluation. It is important to develop an actionable plan which will help to improve the
employee. The areas where the improvement is required should be identified as key areas based
on which a training programs, workshop, coaching, conferences or mentoring should be arranged
for the employee. The development of such plan helps employees to improve quickly.
Time required- Generally completion of development program could take one to two weeks

8. Re- evaluating- 360 degree feedback system is not one of event; once you start the process it is
important to see the consequences of the process. Specific goals and opportunities are outlined in
the development program; it does make sense to check the progress. The re-evaluation of
participant will enable the organization to see the changes and the area in which the employees are
actually improved.
Time required- This process should be carried out after 8 to 12 months of 360 degree performance
appraisal.
360 degree feedback questionnaire

The questionnaire for 360 degree feedback depends on the job profile of employee. However there
are some topics such as leadership, interpersonal skills, problem solving attitude, motivation and
efficiency of employees which can be judged by the colleagues, peers, supervisor as well as client.
For such points there are few questionnaires which can be used. Check out the sample 360 degree
feedback questionnaire-

Leadership
• Do you think this employee exhibit the quality of leadership in the role which he or
her play for the organization?
• How positively this employee contributes through his leadership skills?
• Do you think the employee should improve his leadership quality?
Interpersonal skills
• When you interact with this employee do you think the interpersonal skills which were
demonstrated were satisfactory?
• Do you experience any sort of problem while interacting with this employee?
• Do you recommend any improvement in the interpersonal skills and relationship
development skill of the employee?
Problem solving attitude
• Do you observe that this employee effectively solved problem?
• What are the skills which this employee has demonstrated in order to solve the
problem?
• Do you think this employee has less problem solving skills and the employee need to
work to improve the skills?
Motivation
• Do you observe that this employee appeared motivated towards his work-related task,
job or relationships?
• How committed and motivated do you think this employee is with regards to success
of the organization?
• Have you ever experienced any issues related to the motivation level of the
employees?
Efficiency
• Do you think the work method and approach used by the employee are effective,
efficient and improving?
• Do you suggest any areas of improvement for this employee?
 • These are some areas in which the questions can be raised in order to improve the
effectiveness of 360 degree feedback system. These questions will help the employees
to respond about their issues and things which they appreciate about their colleagues
and peers. These questions will promote ease of sharing of information among the
employees.
The significance of 360-degree performance appraisal

The immediate benefits of 360 degree feedback system can be observed in terms of
teamwork, development of leadership and improved productivity of organization. It provides safe,
confidential and reliable way for colleagues to provide feedback. It also provides organization
valuable insights about the current leadership, how team mechanics works and overall culture of
the organization. 360 degree performance appraisal system provides powerful knowledge to the
leaders and hence helps them for the development of employees. The effectively used 360 degree
performance appraisal system boosts the confidence of employees and helps them to improve in
their performance. It also helps employee to become better leader and contributor for the
organization.
360 degree performance appraisal advantages and disadvantages

Similar to every system 360 degree performance appraisal also has some pro and cons. Let's take
a look at advantages and disadvantages of 360 degree performance appraisal system.

Advantages of 360 degree assessment

• This system provides a comprehensive view towards the performance of employees.
• It improves the credibility of the performance appraisal system
• The feedback from colleagues helps to strengthen the self development process of the
employee
• It also increases the responsibility and alertness of employee towards their clients.
• The different ideas coming from different raters combined provide more accurate 360
degree assessment.
• More persuasive opinions can be gathered from different participants.
• Here not only manager but colleagues are also responsible for assessment of staff
performance which empowers them.
• Employees get motivated who generally undervalue themselves.
 • Honest culture can be established among the organization using 360 degree
performance appraisal system.
Disadvantages of 360 degree assessment
• The process is very lengthy, complex and takes a lot of time.
• If the feedback got exchange among the employees it can create trouble and tension among
the staff.
• A lot of effort has to be placed in order to train the employee to effectively use the 360
degree appraisal system.
• It is very difficult to figure out the results.
• Some feedbacks are useless and need to be deleted carefully.
• A suspicious environment can be created in the organization as the information is not
available to everybody.
360 degree performance appraisal form

360 degree performance appraisal form sample

Instructions for the 360 Degree Performance Review:

Kindly respond to each statement provided in the respective categories on the pages. Use the
assessment system as provided after the instructions. If you have a lot of “U” response then it is
better to meet the HR department before submitting the review.

Comments: You can add comments after review of each section. In the comments you can provide
specific information or suggestion which you want to convey with clarity.
Assessment system:
5- Exceeds expectations – The performance demonstrated is beyond the standard expectation.
4 -Meets expectations – The performance meets the standard expectation from the employee.
3 -Meets most expectations – Average performance with some improvement required.
2-Needs improvement – Some responsibilities are effectively performed but serious improvement
is required in certain areas.
1 -Unsatisfactory – Performance below standard
U -Unknown – Rater is not aware of these skills of the employee.
2) CASE STUDY

The contemporary organizations are undergoing a transformation for coping against the changing
needs of the environment and excelling in the business by building up their adaptive capabilities
for managing change proactively. The traditional performance appraisal system did not suffice the
needs of the changing scenario as it was mainly used as a tool for employee evaluation in which
the managers were impelled to make subjective judgments about the performance and behavior of
the employees against the predetermined job standards.

The main objective of the performance appraisal system was to exercise control over the activities
of the employees through disciplinary actions and management of rewards and promotions. The
supervisors were expected to rate their employees on certain traits ranging between a scale of
unsatisfactory to outstanding performance and these ratings were susceptible to various errors like
central tendency, bias, halo effect, etc.

Performance appraisals were mostly carried out annually for measuring the degree of
accomplishment of an individual and were implemented on a top down basis in which the
supervisors had a major role to play in judging the performance of an employee without soliciting
active involvement of the employee. Performance appraisals were mostly discredited because it
was backward looking concentrating largely on the employee’s inabilities and flaws over a period
of a year instead of looking forward by identifying the development needs of the employees and
improving them. Traditionally, the performance appraisals were organized in a bureaucratic
manner and suffered from unnecessary delays in decisions and corruption. Performance appraisals
were mostly narrowly focused and functioned in isolation without bearing any linkage with the
overall organizational vision or goals. The side effects of the performance appraisal system was it
generated skepticism amongst the managers and the employees on any new initiative of the HR.

In the present scenario, the organizations have shifted their focus from performance appraisals to
performance management as a result of internationalization of human resources and globalization
of business. The functions of HRM have become far more complicated as today the major focus
of strategic HRM practices is on the management of talent by implementing such development
programmes which enhance the competencies of the employees. The performance management
approach focuses more on observed behaviors and concrete results based on the previously
established smart objectives. By adopting techniques like Management by Objectives (MBO),
smart objectives are established in terms of either facts and figures and in the entire process the
superior plays the role of a coach or a facilitator. The objectives are mutually decided at the
beginning of the performance season and serve as a standard of performance for evaluation. In this
method, the employees can offer a feedback on their contributions by filling up a self appraisal
form. Performance management is a much broader term in comparison with performance appraisal
as it deals with a gamut of activities which performance appraisals never deal with. This system is
a strategic and an integrated approach which aims at building successful organizations by
developing high performance teams and individuals and improving the performance of people.
This process starts when a job is defined. Performance management emphasizes on front end
planning instead of looking backward unlike performance appraisals and the focus is on ongoing
dialogue instead of appraisal documents and ratings. Thus, performance management may be
regarded as a continuous process.

Objectives Of Performance Management System

Here are the 5 major objectives of performance management system:

1. Setting and defining goals to fulfill organizational objectives

Goal setting is the most lucrative ways for initiating better performance among employees.

It has been constantly demonstrated that effective goal setting:

• Allows employees to focus on what’s important.

• Alignment of individual objectives with the business objectives.

• Optimizes employees’ individual performance.

• Helps to identify the key result areas and work upon improving it.

An efficient performance management system will place goal setting as one of its integral
requirements.

As a manager, set goals which benefit both- employee performance and business performance.

Related article: Tips For Setting Effective SMART Goals

2. Setting the right expectations for managers and employees

An efficient performance management system will attempt to set clear expectations from both
managers and employees.

As a manager, it’s crucial that you place manageable expectations from your employee.

Don’t expect a poor performer to start giving good results right away. Or a star performer to stay
consistent every other week.

Similarly holding managers to high expectations will only bring in poor management decisions.
To set expectations that’ll actually bring in some results:

• Define the expectations of your employees in clear terms. Let employees know exactly
what is your expectations from them.

• Back up the reasoning behind the expectation. Explain how these expectations will help
in fulfilling the business objectives.

• Document expectations. Don’t let it be a word by mouth interaction. Have a specific

spreadsheet or document about what to do and who is responsible for it. You might want
to use a tool such as Airtable or pick one of the many Airtable alternatives that'd be a
better fit for your business.

• Once employees know of their own roles, responsibilities, and accountabilities they are
more likely to be more consistent and productive.

This will facilitate better business performance. Furthermore, it will encourage the personal
development of the employee.

3. Effective communication between individuals and teams

Changing workplace dynamics is bringing a cultural shift to today’s workplace.

Consequently, communication has started playing an essential part in it.

A company with a good culture of communication results in employees who are engaged and
alignment of individual objectives with business objectives.

It is essential that team members know what their other team members are up to- their objectives,
succession planning, and ideas- to fulfill the project.

A team which lacks in communication among its team members lack the bonding that is ideally
required in a high performing team.

Some tips to build a communication active environment:

• Firstly team leaders or managers should take out the time to indulge in one-on-one
interactions with the team members.

• Continuous feedback and coaching to build a workforce with varied skills to foster
further career development. One way to do this is through performance appraisals or
performance reviews.

• Additionally, conduct frequent team building activities.

• Promote collaboration and communication as an essential part of your workplace culture.

 • Also, use appropriate and helpful business communication tools.

4. Set Performance Standards

The most important objectives of performance management are to set performance standards.

An organization should set performance standards and performance plans for evaluating employee
performance.

Every job has certain performance standards that has to be met. Failure to accomplish the
performance standards can mean the following things:

• A lack of effort on the employees’ part.

• Usually having set more unrealistic standards for the said job.

• Consequently, not enough resources were available to complete the task.

• In particular, a failure of cooperation or collaboration from the team or manager.

Here’s the thing.

You might never know what the reason for failure is without any performance management
system.

An effective performance management system will be able to highlight what’s lacking and what
deserves credit.

The strengths and weaknesses of your company will become more evident and hence easier to
improve or rectify.

5. Determining individual training and performance plans

Another essential objective of a performance management system does is to identify the training
and development needs of its workforce.

It promotes personal growth and advancement in the career of the employees by helping them
acquire the desired knowledge and skills.

A well-executed performance plan provides your employees with personal development

opportunities on how to increase their skills.

Here’s how you can create an effective employee performance plan to foster career development:
• Firstly, ask your employees on what skills, training or course they require to execute
their job perfectly.

• Then create a training plan and budget.

• Additionally, decide how can the new training skills be applied in some key result areas.

• Lastly, set up some organizational objectives to apply these new found skills