360 feedback and performance reviews

I watched the end of Wednesday night's Champions League game in the UK between Lyon and Liverpool.  Liverpool conceded a goal in the last few minutes which made their chances of progressing in their favoured competition most unlikely.  Within 10 minutes of the end of the game, their captain Jamie Carragher - a rare scouse in the Liverpool team - was asked a series of questions on what had happened in the game.

The question that threw him the most (he was admirably cool while looking devastated) was "was it a loss of concentration that led to the goal being conceded?".  The question would have assigned fault to two of Carragher's colleagues.  Carragher answered after a brief confused look with "it looked like the ball was just bouncing around and then it the next thing I knew it was in the net.  We'll have to look at it later to see what happened".

In the midst of a standard well-oiled interview by a great professional this answer demonstrated the folly of trying to work out what went wrong so soon after the event.  We are often encouraged as managers to ensure that performance appraisal occurs at the time of the event, while everything is fresh in their mind.  But here the "manager" (captain) was ill-equipped to give feedback.

You can take "in the moment" feedback too far.  I recommend a day or two after the event, when the emotion has subsided yet memories are fresh.  A short period of reflection allows for a considered performance appraisal rather than a reactive one.  If you were one of those central defenders devastated by defeat you would not have been receptive to your captain pointing out your fault 10 minutes after the game.  But after a day or so, that same performance feedback delivered well would allow you to develop and avoid the same mistake twice.

Performance appraisal and feedback can be difficult.  Timing of the feedback really matters.

Brendan

I was asked at a recent marketing seminar : what is your ideal 360 degree feedback client?  It is a great question - extremely helpful from a marketing perspective but also helpful for thinking about the service you offer.

So, are you our ideal client?  If you are, then I believe you would have one or more of the following characteristics.

• Your primary focus is the individual in the 360
• You believe that 360 feedback offers a great chance to start a conversation with a recipient which can lead to them taking responsibility for their own development
• You have your own ideas and welcome our expertise
• Either you want us to take the process on for you or you have the administrative support ready in-house
• You're a small team wanting a big intervention or a large organisation needing a smooth, easy-to-use, process

I 'm sure I could think of more but when I look at our current clients, all of whom we rely on to be our referees for us, they all fit into one or more of those categories.

If you recognise yourself then get in touch.

Brendan

Often, new starters are excluded from 360 degree feedback.  The reasoning goes that they are too new for others to have formed a valid opinion of them.  At the extreme of the first few weeks, I agree.  But, after a few months I believe that tailored 360 degree feedback would be very helpful. 

People are forming impressions of you very early - some of those impressions will stick whether they are valid or not.  The earlier that you can get useful feedback the sooner you can tackle the impression you are giving.

If you consider introducing 360 degree feedback for new starters then you should of course take care on the questions - perhaps a full competency framework would not apply yet.  But, consider using 360 feedback as a tool around the 6 month period.

Brendan

A number of our clients have been asking us to draw broader conclusions for their organisation from a 360 degree feedback implementation.  This is a very useful trend.  Having run 360 for a key set of people in an organisation there is a real opportunity to draw out broader learning and development needs.

We support this process by drawing on summary reports, analysis of narrative responses, and the conversations that were held with 360 recipients around their report.  Rather than relying on simple statistical analysis this brings out the real narrative from the 360 feedback.  A report of our findings supports a management discussion that we attend.

I confess to this being one of the most enjoyable elements of our service.  It offers a real opportunity to make a difference in an organisation and makes proper use of the information that has been gathered in the 360 degree feedback exercise.  It rings the last drop of return from the investment.

Brendan

With three separate performance review projects I have been reminded of one of the great benefits of reviewing performance.  Often, performance appraisal projects focus on objective setting and development plans.  But, one of the key reasons that employee's want performance reviews is to give them the opportunity to discuss the past year and what they've done well.

There is a real tendency to skip over this - both in the performance appraisal meeting and in the documentation that supports the meeting.  But, is it too much to ask of a manager that they take a bit of time to review what has gone well and give praise where it is due?

In a recent exercise on working out the employee objectives for a performance appraisal process there was a passionate argument from those contributing to ensure that the opportunity to talk about what went well in the day-to-day job in the past year was recorded and valued.  To my own discredit it took a number of people saying this for the message to get home properly.

Brendan

Here is an excerpt from our recently published white paper on how to successfully implement performance appraisals in your organisation.

Purpose

An oft-missed step. For many organisations, performance appraisals are a given – often written into the company's procedures manual. Because we rarely decide whether to do
performance appraisals we sometimes forgot to ask “why are we doing this?”.

First, we recommend that you explicitly separate the organisational objectives from the personal development objectives. While they overlap and of course it could be argued that they are the same, this split allows you to meet the two stakeholders needs openly.

Organisational objectives for performance appraisals

• Clarifying and defining performance expectations
• Facilitating communication and involvement
• Allocating financial rewards
• Determining promotion
• Motivating employees
• Controlling employees actions
• Succession planning
• Cultural change initiatives
• Training needs analysis

Individual objectives for performance appraisals

• Identify training needs
• Identify development requirements
• Gain feedback on performance
• Promote own capabilities to organisation
• Understand expectations

It may be that you do not agree with these lists and almost certainly you would have other objectives to add. Our point is that the building of this list is crucial for it is the yardstick against which you can evaluate your current processes, any changes you design and the final implementation.



Brendan

To download this performance appraisal white paper please click on this link.

I've just completed a 360 degree feedback analysis report for a client.  The analysis covers themes that have come out from the 360 feedback reports and the debrief sessions that we held of the recipients.  Most of the report is high level recommendations of the next steps that should be taken.  Effectively, the client is looking to maximise the benefits from the exercise.

As part of the analysis, I've looked at the questionnaire to ensure it has performed well as a method of gathering feedback.  One part of that analysis is to look at where we have a large number of "not applicable"s selected by respondents.

In general, if one respondent group (often peers) answers not applicable more than 20-25% of the time then I suggest you consider taking that question out of the pool of behaviours next time for that respondent group.  This tightens the questionnaire, improves the report, and reduces the burden on the respondents.

However, sometimes "not applicable" is more useful.  If the question you are asking really should be a behaviour that his group can respond on then "not applicable" can mean "not evidenced".  And that can be interesting.  Why are the direct reports unable to comment on delegation?  Why are the peers saying "not applicable" to sharing of knowledge?

Analysing the general output of 360 degree feedback iss always worthwhile - it gives you the opportunity to improve your next 360 and it offers you the opportunity to draw out the big lessons at a group level.


Brendan

This is the title of our latest white paper.  Here, I've provided the introduction and structure of that paper.  Please download our performance appraisal white paper if this looks of interest to you.

Introduction

Performance appraisals promote a lot of commentary. Most commentators propose one solution and suggest all others are wrong (and invariably suggest that all managers are evil). In this white paper we have taken a different route. We are not without opinion, however our most common finding having worked with a large number of clients is that performance appraisals are generally a good thing but what works for one client does not
work for the other. A dogmatic approach to performance appraisals is likely to leave you unable to implement anything.

Structure

So, this white paper works by first giving some background on each topic area, some thoughts, even some suggested reading, and then it lays out the decisions you should be making. We believe this route ensures that a well-considered performance appraisal is implemented but does not pretend to know what the best appraisal process is for you.

The document is structured in the order that we would recommend you think about performance appraisals. You don't have to but its the way we work!



Brendan

Download the white paper from this link

Our performance appraisal white paper is now available. 

The white paper offers our thoughts on the options that are open to you as you look to implement performance appraisals within your organisation.  Rather than a prescriptive or opinionated view of what you should do the paper accepts that each organisation has different needs of the performance review process and simply looks to give our experience of what works well and the options you should consider.

You can access your copy of the paper by visiting this link.

Brendan

When debriefing a competitive individual, I'm often asked - what did everyone else score? Or, I find the recipient desperately trying to get all of their "scores" as high as possible.

Rather than trying to be great at everything - an outcome that if copied by everyone in an organisation would result in a set of identikits causing havoc - 360 degree feedback offers an opportunity to understand the impact of your behaviour on others and then to choose where you act differently. 

When debriefing, I sometimes ask the recipient; "Does this matter?"  This can particularly help when the recipient is at risk of trying to change too much.  It helps to prioritise and it also helps to acknowledge that no matter how tailored a set of questions have been asked of your respondents, some items just don't matter as much as others.  It can also introduce an organisational or tactical bias to the debate.  It may be desirable to improve on a particular competency but if the organisational focus and need is elsewhere, then it can wait for now.

360 degree feedback is much more about awareness and choices than it is about seeking perfection or high scores.

Brendan

I was working on the wording of a 360 degree feedback questionnaire and in an idle aside I came to think of how the way we word the question and the order of them can lead to a different response.  Which got me hunting the internet for a Yes, Prime Minister (UK sitcom) episode.  Here is the dialogue.

Sir Humphrey Appleby: Mr. Woolley, are you worried about the rise in crime among teenagers?
Bernard Woolley: Yes.
Sir Humphrey Appleby: Do you think there is lack of discipline and vigorous training in our Comprehensive Schools?
Bernard Woolley: Yes.
Sir Humphrey Appleby: Do you think young people welcome some structure and leadership in their lives?
Bernard Woolley: Yes.
Sir Humphrey Appleby: Do they respond to a challenge?
Bernard Woolley: Yes.
Sir Humphrey Appleby: Might you be in favour of reintroducing National Service?
Bernard Woolley: Er, I might be.
Sir Humphrey Appleby: Yes or no?
Bernard Woolley: Yes.
Sir Humphrey Appleby: Of course, after all you've said you can't say no to that. On the other hand, the surveys can reach opposite conclusions.
[survey two]
Sir Humphrey Appleby: Mr. Woolley, are you worried about the danger of war?
Bernard Woolley: Yes.
Sir Humphrey Appleby: Are you unhappy about the growth of armaments?
Bernard Woolley: Yes.
Sir Humphrey Appleby: Do you think there's a danger in giving young people guns and teaching them how to kill?
Bernard Woolley: Yes.
Sir Humphrey Appleby: Do you think it's wrong to force people to take arms against their will?
Bernard Woolley: Yes.
Sir Humphrey Appleby: Would you oppose the reintroduction of conscription?
Bernard Woolley: Yes.
[does a double-take]
Sir Humphrey Appleby: There you are, Bernard. The perfectly balanced sample.

Now, this is an obvious extreme but sometimes, particularly on employee surveys but occasionally on 360 degree feedback questionnaires I see the line of thinking of the survey writer shown up in the order and shape of the questions.

Brendan

Although much of our work leads to some online appraisal system, we do find ourselves designing paper forms from time-to-time.  I have been creating a paper performance appraisal form for a client today and it was interesting looking at what works on paper compared to what works online.

Here are my tips for paper-based performance appraisal forms.  Some obvious, some less so

• Think even more about the flow of the process - the order matters more on paper - before you get down to the detail.
• Lists of options are hard to implement (very easy on-line) so be selective about using them.  If you do - then use checklists.
• You need to leave lots of space for the written comments (there's no scroll bar on paper), so better to have a smaller number of fields to complete than you would have online
• Branding/design still matters.  Paper is dull (in every sense) so a bit of design can lift the process all the more
• Put instructional text on a separate document.  Its really easy to clutter up a paper form.  You can get away with one key tip per page at the bottom.

Brendan

A very thorough article on the origins, benefits, and process of 360 feedback can be found on Armando Justo's blog.

If you are a little short of time, I have drawn forward the four findings of what makes 360 feedback successful:


1,2, and 4 are part of our standard 360 degree feedback process. 

Item 3 is something that we handle partly through communication but this article has highlighted a personal concern that too often the rating standards of participants are not consistent.  We don't use averages too often (partly for this reason) but even so we will be looking at our processes, reporting structures, and communications to pick this item up more thoroughly and increase the accuracy of our feedback processes.  Great blog post - useful learning points.

Brendan

I just read this blog post on 360 feedback that broadly concludes that it is a waste of time. 

I generally like posts like these because they make me challenge my own thinking.  But then, the first part says that 360 only confirms the manager's original prejudices.  Frankly that is simplistic nonsense.  First, 360 is for the recipient, not the manager.  Second, 360 normally challenges all readers of the report : the recipient, the debriefer, and of course the manager.  Finally, if a manager does have incorrect prejudices what do we advocate - ignore them and hope they go away.

The second point is worse.  It suggests that people should just be left be - hoping that their moment will arrive.  360 feedback isn't about driving people against hard targets and trying to get star performance every minute of the day - it is about looking at how people work and encouraging them to reflect on their behaviours.  Talking to people about how things are going, looking at the impact their behaviour has on others and developing them is a good thing surely?

And, why it challenges diversity is beyond me.  I can see a theoretical problem: we generate identikit employees by reviewing all the same behaviours, but really in practice I can't think of any instance because people are not identikits.  How they interpret a particular behaviour, respond to it, and look to deliver it is very different. 

I'll assume that this was just a controversial post to illicit interest - if so, then it worked on me.  If not, then I'll just move on.

Brendan

An interest online article shows research that women underestimate their bosses opinion of their performance (it later confirms that this underestimation is not limited to their boss relationship).  This is not a stereotypical article - there is some very interesting insights which are certainly new to me.  I can't confirm the merit of this research but what does interest me is that 360 feedback was used to determine the issue.

360 feedback could of course have been used to counter the problem.  As well as raising self-awareness, 360 degree feedback also improves your awareness of how others see you.  This can often be very revealing in the positive impact you are having and give confidence in your interaction with those around you.

The article is well worth a glance.

Brendan

Interesting article in Personnel Today - which describes the behaviours that we want from our managers.  80% of people want their managers to use 360 degree feedback to evaluate their talents.

How interesting!  Now, as we supply 360 degree feedback services we like the look of that statistic for our own purposes - but what drives it, I wonder.  Let me come up with my ideas.

• More than ever, people believe their manager does not have a full view of them
• 360 degree feedback is viewed as fair and accurate (historic worries about it being used in a negative way have gone)
• More people have had 360 feedback in previous jobs and want it again in thier new role
• People want to give feedback on their manager - not negatively, they just want the opportunity.

The statistic reminds me of the Centre for Creative Leadership statistic research that says that most people are "feedback poor".  If this rings a bell with you - then get in touch via the blog or website or email on enquiries@bowlandsolutions.com; we would love to have the opportunity to support you in getting 360 feedback going in your organisation.


Brendan

I was presenting at a forum yesterday and I got one of those great insightful questions - "why are we doing this?".  The questioner raised this perfectly - I had been advising on how to use 360 feedback and he wanted to first know why do we do 360 degree appraisals in the first place.

Here was my answer (I know the text book answer - here is why I think you should do it for real)

• Being self aware is a great starting point for most training / coaching / other personal development.  360 feedback is brilliant and giving people the information to increase self awareness.
• 360 feedback identifies blind spots that build up for people and stops them progressing.
• 360 degree appraisal shows people their strengths so it gives them the correct base from which to tackle development
• A well trained person can have a great conversation with you if they have a great 360 degree feedback report in front of them.  This is incredibly powerful.
• For an organisation, a series of 360 degree feedback reports gives them a deep insight into where people need support to grow and improve performance.

(For anyone who attended - I've added the last one to the list now that I've had time to think it through!).

We have recently worked with a law firm for whom we have provided a full 360 service together with a HR consultant.  That process has been a wonderful initiative to be a part of and has reminded me how powerful a tool 360 degree feedback really is.  But, I hope I never forget to ask myself "why are we doing this?".

Brendan

Performance related pay is an emotive topic.  It is sometimes argued that if you want to make performance appraisals really difficult then you should link them to pay.  But many people feel that linking pay to performance is just plain fair.  We often contribute to our client's discussion on these topics but we have to be very pragmatic here and work with our clients on their goals.

So, I started to draw up 4 outcomes that we could judge a performance related pay (PRP) implementation against.  That way, when we are working on a performance review implementation with a client - we at least have some objective measure.  This is what we came up with

• The PRP should lead to individuals motivated to achieve targets that will improve the organisation and meet the organisation strategy (it should deliver)
• The correct people should get the correct rewards (it should be fair)
• The PRP process should be efficient and deliver the benefits without using up those benefits in increased administrative burdern (it should be cost effective)
• The process should be robust and stand scrutiny from external parties particularly on equality (it should be legally sound)

I believe this is a great checklist for anyone looking at PRP.  It has become part of soon-to-be-published performance appraisal white paper.  If you want to receive a copy of that white paper please contact us via the blog our our website and simply subscribe to the newsletter.

Brendan

Please forgive the lack of humility in this post - I want to illustrate a point and this is the best way!

Yesterday  I was recommended on linkedIn.  The person; Bob Bell, is someone who I have known for some time and I had previously recommended his work.  Bob wrote


It is an odd thing reading positive feedback about yourself.  I found it had a number of effects.

• It reminded me of what I was good at
• It made me want to live up to that feedback
• It gave me a general lift

In 360 degree feedback you see a good amount of positive feedback and when debriefing the feedback we often take a lot of time to ensure that the recipient picks up the positive feedback rather than just hunting down the negative.  It is also a great reminder that in performance appraisal processes in general there should be a balance of feedback.  Not just because it is soft and fluffy but because it has real positive benefits for the recipient.

Brendan

I'm now hosting a discussiong group on www.hrzone.co.uk .  The discussion group is concentrated on Performance Appraisals and 360 degree feedback.  Together with other avenues, we are using the discussion group as a method to of listening to the issues that people are facing and to continue to generate best practice.

Feel free to join the group (you have to join hrzone first - its free, useful and worthwhile) at www.hrzone.co.uk/group/performance-appraisals-and-360-degree-feedback


Brendan