360° Assessment
360° Multi-Rater Assessment & Feedback
Developing Your Most Valuable Assets
What is a 360º Assessment?
A 360º assessment provides structured multi-source feedback on an individual’s performance. Sources who provide feedback typically include bosses, peers, direct reports, customers and other stakeholders. Also, a self-assessment is completed by the person himself/herself. Each rater answers a set of competency-based questions based on his/her experience with the individual being rated.
In addition to ratings, each rater is requested to provide written comments to add further depth and context to the ratings. Data from raters are aggregated by respondent groups (e.g., bosses, peers, direct reports, etc.) and feedback reports are generated to provide the data to rated individuals in a structured format. Administrative procedures are set up in such a way as to guarantee that all feedback provided by raters (except supervisors) is both confidential and anonymous.
Why are 360º Assessments Valuable?
Most people have “blind spots.” They don’t see themselves as others see them. For this reason, they often don’t understand the impact their actions have on others. Feedback is essential to improving performance. To continually develop and hone their capabilities, people need to know what their boss, peers, team members, and other key people want from them.
A 360º assessment complements other systems of feedback such as performance appraisals and day-to-day feedback from bosses and others with whom they work. It enhances other sources of feedback by providing an individual with feedback from those who are in a position to closely observe day-to-day behavior and provide an assessment of strengths and opportunities for improvement. Armed with this knowledge, 360 participants can create a development plan to improve performance and interpersonal effectiveness. Often, 360 participants work with their bosses to create development plans so the plans are grounded in the organizational context in which the participant works.
In addition, 360º assessments are often utilized by organizations for succession planning and workforce planning purposes.
Design & Administrative Issues
Leadership Associates works closely with our clients to determine the structure of the 360º assessment process as well as in customizing the assessment instrument to the specific goals and objectives of the organization. We develop 360° assessment processes by taking a strategic approach to identifying and assessing the behaviors that support a high-performance organization. This approach is based on understanding our clients’ business strategy and then defining the competencies and behaviors that are most critical to achieving the business strategy.
Assessments are typically administered via the internet. Results are compiled and reports are generated. The feedback report contains detailed item-by-item data as well as summaries by competency area, broken out by boss, direct reports, peers, etc.
Assessment feedback can be delivered to 360 participants individually or in groups. It is very important, however, that participants receive their feedback in a structured setting where they have the support of a trained professional who will guide their interpretation and action planning based on the assessment data. Follow-up is crucial to successful implementation of 360° assessment. Involvement by each participant’s boss is critical. Follow-up coaching, encouragement, and feedback on developmental areas will ensure the long-term benefit of the process.
Getting Started
We will normally begin with a no-cost and no obligation get-acquainted meeting. We'll want to hear about your goals, needs and issues, and you will want to get comfortable with us.
Our next step will include examining your organization's business strategy to understand the challenges people must deal with to be successful. We then collaborate with key members of your organization to develop a strategic competency model (and/or review your existing competency model) in light of these challenges, emphasizing the most important capabilities and behaviors. We will then design the 360 assessment around the critical behaviors that have the greatest impact on results.