A topic we often discuss with clients is where the responsibility should lie with regard the 360 degree feedback debrief; this being the face-to-face session where the recipient explores and discusses their 360 feedback report.
We would say ideally that the debrief should be conducted by someone outside of that person's line management; this could be someone from HR, L & D or someone external to the company, with the caveat that whomever it is should be suitably skilled/trained.
However, we recognise that this is not always practically possible; the internal resources within HR and L & D just cannot dedicate the time required to take all recipients through a 90 minute debrief, and the budget doesn't stretch to external facilitation.
So it falls to the line manager, which prompts the question; how should a line manager debrief a 360 degree feedback report? The first answer must be again, with skill; line managers need to be effectively trained to conduct such a debrief conversation.
The challenges for line managers in conducting debriefs are numerous; their feedback is in the report, they can find it hard to switch from 'performance review' mode, they can find themselves jumping in with solutions to development areas which haven't been fully explored.
Line managers need to step back within a debrief; their role is to be curious, ask questions which raise awareness not ask for rationale, listen intently, trust in the recipient and not jump to resolution.
It's a different mode of thinking and a significant 'gear shift' downwards; only for 90 minutes, but it can make the world of difference to the outcome.
The latest news regarding the Department of Education (DoE) new approach to underperforming teachers is slightly depressing; it is introducing measures which will allow them to be sacked within a term.
I don't dispute that underperformance is an issue in any organisation and in teaching the effects of such poor performance can have far reaching consequences for the pupils and the school.
However, in a similar vein to the argument for 'Protected Conversations' (a post on this can be read here), the response of Government seems to be weighted in favour of punitive measures rather than a desire to improve the situation i.e. find a way sack employees more easily, remove the red-tape that binds employers, etc.
Michael Gove speaks of headteachers being able to intervene when there are 'alarm bells ringing and red lights flashing' over a teacher's incompetence; I think it's rare that incompetence is truly the root cause, more likely it is weak management, poor training, lack of support, systemic issues, absence of regular feedback and confidence.
A mindset which believes that there is a lot of incompetent teachers out there will reach for the solutions we are seeing implemented by the DoE, but it misses the opportunity to introduce real measures which will help teachers improve where there is underperformance, which has to be a better alternative to sacking them.
I really recommend reading the following article in a New Zealand online website www.stuff.co.nz/sport/opinion/6195646/The-myth-of-team-culture . It is well written and well though through. At first read, the author is so convinced of his own view that you find yourself agreeing with him. And even on the second or third read I did find myself wondering whether 360 degree feedback really is useful for team sports.
The ultimate issue I have with the article is that it falls for a classic "either or" structure. In summary he says either you have sportsmen (forgive me following his male assumption!) taking responsibility on the field or you have people working to develop performance goals, team culture, or consider the mental side of the game. He sees these as conflicting goals. I believe you can have both.
It strikes me that regular performance reviews and regular feedback sessions (360 degree feedback in this context really is just having team feedback sessions I'd guess) are sensible parts of delivering a high performing team. That underneath this process each team member is responsible for their own contribution and performance fits well with such work not against it.
So, while I sympathise with some of his general sentiments of overly pampered sports stars I don't subscribe to the argument that working on teamwork, having well defined goals, and working on the team culture works against high achievement.
Clive Woodward's autobiography/book on England winning the World cup (Winning!) and the excellent book "Sacred Hoops" by Phil Jackson; coach of Chicago Bulls and LA Lakers show how great coaches and leaders balance team management, leadership and culture with letting great individuals thrive.
We would first like to wish all our readers, colleagues, partners and clients a Happy New Year and hope that you enjoyed a restful break.
With our New Year resolutions, comes a new website which offers us the opportunity to share much more about 360 degree feedback and performance appraisal in 2012.
As ever, we have interesting free whitepapers to download around the topics of implementing both 360 feedback and performance management processes from end-to-end; our 360 whitepaper in particular has complete new sections on 360 reporting which is a critical element of the whole experience.
In addition, you can now request online system demonstrations of both our 360 degree appraisal and performance review solutions; just register your details with a preferred date and we will come back to you with available times.
Similarly, with the ongoing success of our seminar and webinar series, we have now provided a registration page such that anyone can reserve a place at these and be informed in advance of general release.
We look forward to speaking and meeting with many more of you this coming year and thank you for your continued interest and support; Happy New Year!
This is the final piece of the CIPD presentation I made earlier this year relating to how to create a better performance appraisal process and more 'feedback rich' organisation; the first two elements regarding 'Context' and 'Mindset' have been covered in earlier posts.
Duncan Brown of the Institute of Employment Studies (IES) makes excellent reference in his article regarding performance management as to how, despite good intention and ambition, organisations fail through poor practice and delivery.
We might have set the importance of feedback in the context of performance management correctly and adopted the right frame of mind as we come to do it, but without a process which is easy to implement and follow, organisations will fail to create something sustainable.
Case studies revealed some success with a performance management, performance review and feedback process which:
- Clearly linked to the organisation's purpose and against a broad scorecard of performance.
- Had a focus on the reviewing line managers who have to implement the process HR design.
- Concentrated on the conversation; benefits of a strength-based approach to performance conversations and reviews, building on employees' strengths and energy levels.
Considering all the three elements of context, mindset and process, as one comes to design and implement a performance appraisal project, is a useful guide to help increase success and longevity.
Never one to underplay the power of 360 degree feedback (!), this Green Left article highlights how psychopathic traits are more likely found in corporate managers than the general population.
Through a study by University of British Columbia, including close scrutiny of performance reviews and 360 degree feedback of a selection of individuals identified as management material, it was revealed that on a test looking at psychopathic traits, they were 20 times more likely to exhibit these then the general population.
Heart warming stuff; that lack of empathy you keep noting in your line manager is the very thing which got them to the top...
There are more and more articles focussed on the new generation of graduates and school leavers entering work, often termed 'Generation Y' employees, and the implications on Performance Appraisals and Performance Management.
Despite making me feel very old, although falling somewhere just within the 'Gen X' bracket, the article did make some interesting points that highlight how a convergence of familiarity with technology coupled with a desire to have regular feedback, means that 'Gen-Y'ers' will expect a very different kind of management in the future.
It will become less and less acceptable to sit down at the end of the year and conduct a single 'Annual Appraisal'; already we are seeing our clients implementing 'Interim Reviews', 'Project Reviews' and alike, which happen throughout the year.
The transition to online performance review systems will make this process infinitely more easy than a paper-based process, and employees will expect this to become the norm, especially when technology is so prevalent in other areas of their life.
Taking this further, the ability to have web-based applications accessible from anywhere, is leading our performance appraisal solutions to now offer a 'Performance Journal' or 'Activity Log' which acts as a simple open document which both an individual and their line manager can complete throughout the year.
They add activities, acheivements, thoughts, apsirations, so that when they come to complete the necessary annual appraisal form, it is no longer a chore but simply an opportunity to reflect and easily consolidate into a better representation of their work during the year.
Gen-Y'ers will help line managers re-evaluate how they should properly performance manage for organisational success.
A recent project had me very closely involved in not only the design and introduction of an online 360 degree feedback solution, but also in advising the client as to how such a system should be talked about with their employees.
We are very passionate about the fact that introducing 360 degree feedback as a process or even migrating a performance review system on-line will only succeed if you manage to communicate the benefits and allay the concerns of your staff.
Implementing these new processes constitutes a significant change for many people, and as with any change in an organisation, it has to be well managed.
That means you need to consistently, clearly and regularly communicate the change; why it is happening, how it will happen, and what the benefits are to both the individual, the line manager and the company as a whole.
As soon as you look at introducing on-line 360 degree feedback and performance appraisals in this way, you are already well on your way to having a successful launch that will ensure the organisation reaps the most from the practice.
I caught sight of another recent survey which was looking at successful initiatives within organisations which were believed to boost productivity.
Training for Managers was highest on the list, closely followed by performance management - this is a theme I have seen emerge in many surveys, and again highlights the critcial role of this managerial practice as a means of ensuring employees work to the best of their ability.
As with 360 degree feedback though, doing it is one thing, doing it efficiently through the use of web-based technology is another, but doing it effectively requires a mindset whereby managers realise that good performance management isn't just an annual review, or a form filing exercise, but rather a series of meaningful conversations with their team members that allow them to explore how they could improve, change and develop to maximise their contribution.
Just two months into the New Year, and many of my resolutions have floundered by the wayside; February is a great month for a personal interim performance review!
Rather than castigate myself too much, I took solace in reading this recent post from Psyblog which I always find interesting; it examined some common strategies that people use in trying to achieve their resolutions and goals.
What is interesting is how many of those often well-known and adhered to strategies may actually work against us; for my part, willpower is never enough..!
Still, an interim performance review is there to look at what is going well, what is not going so well, and make the necessary adjustments; time to start sharing my goals and recording the piecemeal progress!
With all the different customised performance appraisals solutions we delivered in 2010 and those projects we are about to start in this year, we can see some new trends developing in what organisations want to achieve through the performance review process.
1. There is more and more emphasis on competencies within the process; the desire to assess how people behave as well as what they achieve - furthermore, feedback on these competencies is being solicited from more than just the Line Manager.
2. Longer term development needs and career aspirations are more prevalent in appraisal forms as organisations seek to manage their talent more effectively, retain people and promote from within.
3. There is a greater understanding of how setting objectives is absolutely key in the whole process; poorly set objectives lead to a poor perfomance appraisal process - we are seeing more guidance in this section of the form.
4. There is more attention being given to interim performance appraisals, be they quarterly or more, with some ability to capture achievements and progress in a performance journal or log within the online system all throughout the year.
5. The global nature of many of our clients means that multi-lingual capabilities within our systems is becoming increasingly common and something we have gleaned much experience of in the last few years.
All in all, these snapshot trends show an increasing desire on the part of organisations to really get to grips with the performance management cycle, as they look to satisfy the needs of both the individual and the organisation and make it work for all concerned.
We've been doing a lot of translating recently. Both translating our 360 degree feeedback system and our performance appraisal service. This reflects us gaining new clients that operate on a worldwide basis and also that some of our existing clients are broadening the reach of their system.
Generally our clients have English as their business language with much of their internal documents and meetings written or held in English. So, why translate the 360 feedback and performance appraisal?
I certainly do not believe that they should be translated as a matter of course. It adds a complexity and level of work that should only be undertaken where it is justified. However, in many cases translating is beneficial. Here's why.
Most organisations spend a great deal of time gettiing the wording right on their competency framework, questionnaire or performance appraisal form. Much time is spent getting the precise nuance right. Where this is the case, often someone working outside of their native language is going to struggle to pick up this nuance.
One sensible option or compromise is to only translate the 360 questionnaire or the performance appraisal form. Leave the main body of the system in English if all of those participating are used to working in English day-to-day. The key element of the process - the completing of the form or questionnaire is then completed in the individual's native language ensuring the feedback is accurate and as required.
An additional point is that it is important to translate into your organisations' language as well as the country language. One person's performance appraisal is another's annual review. We translate first into the language (e.g. Spanish) and then we translate into the words that are relevant for the client.
One of the most important aspects of a performance appraisal form is that it tends to be used by manager's as an aide memoire during the annual appraisal meeting.
We can all picture a manager with the performance appraisal form in front of them talking things through with the employee. We may prefer them to do something different but we'd probably accept that the uncertain manager will use the form as a prop during the meeting.
With this in mind, how we structure the appraisal form; the words we use, and the questions we ask can positively influence the conversation from afar. We are the experts in performance appraisal, not the manager, so this is our big chance.
For example, by using a simple "look back", "look forward", "plan development" structure we can immediately help the manager to structure their thoughts. Hopefully they will then review last year's performance, set targets for the coming year and consider what development the individual needs based on last year's performance and this year's targets.
You can follow this approach through into the detail of the form - have in the back of your mind ... "how will the manager use this".
An interesting article in a Canadian publication called 'The Globe and Mail' which offered the insights of an organisational psychologist on what the 10 traits top leaders possess; the data was extracted from 10 years worth of Performance Reviews across high level executives.
The different traits are categorised into intangibles that help in good decision making, how they impact the people they lead and finally those which drive a leader towards greatness.
Of the first group, it is that of 'Wisdom' which caught my eye having written a post on this topic a few months ago and the fact it is cited by the author as the one factor which is essential to success in many of the others.
It is described as that ability to intelligently apply all of the knowledge which is available to help make decisions, assessing current conditions, and ensure any learning is brought forward to be used in future scenarios.
A further call to have 'Wisdom' as a key competency to be incorporated in leadership 360 degree feedback assessment in the future!
There has a been a debate about Talent Management for sometime now, 'What does it mean?', 'Who is our talent?', 'Is is management or development?' - this is somewhat unsuprising given that there are still some common misconceptions around what good old Performance Review is.
A case in point was a recent conversation where an individual considered performance review to be a 'disciplinary thing' - this may be down to his particular experience in the organisation in which he was working, a belief left unchallenged over time or the meaning he attaches to those words.
It highlights an important point about how the meaning of words and the concepts they seek to describe can be understood in a myriad different ways; what is said, may be what is heard, but the meaning attached may be very much at odds with our own.
When we come to debrief 360 degree feedback, we must realise that recipients will attach a different meaning to our own when reading the report, so our role must be to understand their meaning; asking 'So what do you take that statement to mean?' can be an interesting way to help an individual reflect on how they are seeing the world.
I think we're all more receptive to feedback at different times. 360 degree feedback is no different - there are times when the recipient is ready to take on board how others see them and other times when it is less appropriate. This represents a challenge to HR teams that are looking to implement 360 feedback across a broad population of people. What to do?
The best practice that we see is to run 360 degree feedback during the following times
Just prior to training- as part of the package
As part of a coaching initiative
At a sensible time in the annual review process (often 6 months either side of the appraisal meeting)
As part of succession planning / career management. E.g. during promotion reviews, after 6 months in a new role
You can think of others - the idea is to consider when recipients are most likely to take the 360 degree feedback on board. Probably when they're not too busy with other things and when they are actively interested in their own development.
Picking up on my last post, emphasizing the importance of setting well-formed objectives, it has been interesting to note through our training programmes, just how difficult this step in the performance appraisal cycle proves to be for many line managers.
Undertaking a training session on how to set well-formed objectives probably wouldn’t feature highly in most line managers priorities, but we are seeing more and more that this module helps unlock some of the difficulties line managers struggle with further down the line; most notably, giving positive and negative feedback, coaching conversations and critically the end-of-year performance review meeting.
One of the key difficulties in setting ‘good’ objectives is a superficial attempt to apply the SMART template; the term is so ubiquitous that the temptation is to run through it without thinking through what it really means.
For example, is it ‘R’ for relevant or realistic? If it is realistic, what is the difference between that and achievable? What measures are appropriate? Is it enough to detail the tasks and activities or should the goal be solely outcome oriented?
Without this clarity (and practice), what results is a murky version of a SMART goal, which is nebulous and has enough ambiguity to make an honest assessment of performance almost impossible and performance appraisals a challenging task.
Love them or loathe them? Performance appraisals seem to engender strong feelings in both camps, with firm advocates for structured performance reviews seeing them as a productive and valuable process both for the individual and organisation, and as many seeing them a necessary evil that could be replaced by a blank sheet of paper and a chat.
Such polarity probably represents the very different experiences people have had both as an appraisee and an appraiser; it can go horribly worng, but it can also go spectularly right.
Setting ones own experience to one side and thinking through the purpose of performance appraisals objectively, one should come to the conclusion that an appraisal process, whether it be highly structured or very loose, is useful if it serves to improve the performance of an individual and by implication the organisation.
What we would see as the first critical step in an appraisal process improving performance would be well-formed objectives; SMART or otherwise, objectives are the key - with them, the whole process of performance management has robust foundations, but without them, all subsequent steps in the process such as coaching conversations, giving feedback, and ultimately the performance review, teeter on a house of cards.
A quick note to announce some new performance appraisal training programmes that we believe will support our online performance review systems.
Performance Planning This programme helps Line Managers become skilled in setting well-formed (or SMART) objectives and outcomes for their team; it covers what objectives seek to do, the different types of objectives which suit different job roles, what a well-formed objective looks like and finally how to write and set these in a performance planning meeting at the beginning of the year.
Performance Conversations This programme helps Line Managers become skilled in handling those all important conversations that should happen all year round; setting some great objectives at the performance planning stage is not enough, what is required is the ability to review and modify objectives throughout the year, offer positive and negative feedback and be able to coach individuals to success.
Performance Appraisals This programme helps Line Managers tackle the end-of-year appraisal; as an event, it needs to be well prepared for, structured and followed up effectively. Delegates will learn how performance appraisals form part of a wider performance management cycle, core skills required in the appraisal and a logical structure to follow. If any of these programmes are of interest and you would like to know more then just drop me an email at john@bowlandsolutions.com.
360 degree feedback deliberately generates data from a range of sources - it creates more data than a standard performance appraisal. Annual performance appraisals are also starting to commonly seek information from a range of sources - it reflects a move to more networked organisations and less structured boss->subordinate relationships.
That all makes sense to me - it is a sensible growth in data. But when it comes to the annual performance appraisal working out what is worth measuring is important. I've been thinking about this a lot as I've been looking recently as my wife develops a new business promoting deals and discounts for days out in the UK.
Her website has Google analytics that tells her how many people visit the site, which pages are popular, etc. The blog http://blog.topdogdays.com tells her how many people have subscribed to the blog. Her twitter service http://www.twitter.com/topdogdays tells her how many people are following her. Amazon tell her how many people have bought a book having visited the site, and google tell her how many people have clicked on an advert on the site. Data, data, everywhere. Eventually all of this data can distract from the purpose of the business and managing it. But it is highly seductive and of course in the early days it is great feedback.
For all of us when reviewing performance - or setting the targets for next year - it is critical to boil down the measures to the key performance indicators. A term that makes a lot of sense but is often abused. We need to watch the key performance indicators - not all of them. In a previous life, I ran a call centre operation. We had stats coming at us from all directions - all that really mattered was 1) did we answer the calls and 2) did we provide a great service when we did. Ring time, call duration, "not ready" time, and hundreds of other numbers were indicators but not key indicators.
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