About Your 360 Degree Appraisal

A 360 degree appraisal is something that more organizations are carrying out because they believe that the review and feedback received from a number of different perspectives is more valuable than a single viewpoint which may be entirely subjective. This is also known as Multi-Rater Appraisal, Peer Group Appraisal and 360⁰ Feedback.

Generally, the aims of any performance appraisal are to:

• Give employees feedback on their performance
• Identify any relevant employee training needs
• Document the basis used to decide and provide salary increases or rewards
• Establish a basis for personnel decisions such as promotions or discretionary bonuses, etc.
• Provide an opportunity to identify organizational priorities
• Facilitate meaningful communication between employee and employer

This page explains what a 360 degree appraisal is and how you can set up the necessary conditions to use one. If you are an employee going through such an appraisal, this will help you to understand the process and remove any concerns you may have about being appraised in this way, by showing you some of the areas to be assessed and the questions asked.

What Is A 360 Degree Appraisal?

A 360 degree appraisal is the report generated by compiling the perspectives of a number of selected raters and would involve the person themselves, their manager, selected peers and people that the person manages.

Everybody is asked to complete a 360 degree appraisal questionnaire that allows them to score and comment on the person. Because these assessments provide 360 degree responses, a more rounded view of performance is created which helps in conducting fair performance appraisals. It also helps to assess the key skills of the person and any areas of improvement.

Typical Assessment Questions

The typical areas of assessment for 360 degree appraisals may cover the extent to which the individual performs in these areas:

1. Technical Ability: Troubleshooting skill; performance of practical/technical procedures.

2. Project Management: Management of complex infrastructure problems; appropriate use of resources.

3. Reliability: Conscientious and reliable; available for advice and help when needed; time management.

4. Professional Development: Commitment to improving quality of service; keeps up-to-date with relevant knowledge and skills.

5. Teaching and Training: Contributes to the education and supervision of junior colleagues and peers.

6. Verbal Communication: Spoken English; communication with colleagues, clients, families and vendors.

7. Empathy and Respect: Is polite, considerate and respectful to clients and colleagues of all levels; professionalism and conscientiousness.

8. Team Player: Values the skills and contributions of multidisciplinary team members.

9. Leadership: Takes the leadership role when circumstances require; delegates according to ability.

Fair appraisal can motivate the employees to perform better by reinforcing their trust and loyalty. It also helps the organisations to retain their best employees by rewarding them suitably. Performance appraisals are vital for career and succession planning of the individual and the organization. Impartial and unbiased appraisals help in workforce encouragement, behavior development, and alignment of individual and organisational goals.In the context of performance evaluation, or 360 degree appraisal / performance appraisal, positive feedback should be delivered to reinforce good performance, whereas negative feedback should be intended to correct or improve poor performance.

360⁰ Feedback

360 Degree Feedback is a method of assessment that can enrich an organization's human resources through the identification of individuals' personal development needs, improved feedback and teamwork, and better career development. 360 feedback is an excellent beginning for coaching, whether the coaching is done by a consultant, by the person's manager, or done jointly.

360 feedback is designed to help people with their development, and as such, its the people-element that creates the most value in the process.

360 Degree Feedback is a method of assessment that can enrich an organisation's human resources through the identification of individuals' personal development needs, improved feedback and teamwork, and better career development and the questionnaire rules can improve the quality of feedback by, for example, requiring that a minimum number of questions are answered, and a minimum percentage of critical feedback, or of positive feedback. Questionnaires also typically include one or more open-ended questions to solicit written feedback.

I also agree fully that once a 360 degree feedback report has been completed on an individual it means nothing unless the individual reviews the report and their manager uses it to challenge them on specific weaknesses/ strengths which in turn should aid in creating a personal development plan.

You can now download the "Phrases for Performance Appraisals Guidebook" and use the exact phrases that professionals use to write their concise and powerful appraisals

You are here: 360 Degree Appraisal

Return to People Management or continue to Performance Appraisal for more valuable insights, or go on to read more detailed information about how your work skills can be analyzed and used to your advantage in your employee review or annual appraisal.

You might also want to visit Employee Review for more information about how to analyze your review after its taken place - especially if you don't think it went too well.

You can also search this site for more about a performance appraisal, or the whole of the web from here.

Now, planning your career and all of the next steps is the most crucial part. Go back to Your Career Change home page.

Take time to decide all of the things you want from your career before you make your move. Follow this link for help with your Career Decisions.