If you are a leader and have done 360 feedback reviews with your people, you’ll know they cause joy and pain, all at the same time. Is there a better way? I think there is.
I just read a very interesting post by Marcus Buckingham on HBR.org about the fatal flaw with 360 reviews. He says, basically, that the fatal flaw with a 360 review is that the rater is rating someone else. He says the rater can only accurately rate themselves.
The better way, Buckingham suggests, would be to use the 360 feedback process as a way to collect data on how well a leaders team understands what’s going on in relation to say… vision. Then the leader would have tabulated results pertaining to how well his people understood what was going on. If the data showed people got it, great. If the data showed people didn’t get it, then the leader might pay attention to suggestions offered on ways to improve sustaining the vision.
I won’t attempt to re-write the whole blog, so I just have included my interpretation. It’s a great little piece. Read it by click on on Buckham’s picture below:
