This is a program that is about change and most people fear change more than anything else in the world. The change with 360 feedback comes from having not only the people over you critiquing your performance but from those who are your subordinates. This program can be a positive change if implemented correctly. The most common way to receiving 360 feedback is to use an outside consultant, use an in house program or find a program that is comprehensive enough to give insight into flaws in your system, people and organization.  The 360 degree feedback program does this.

If you use an outside consultant for 360 feedback you do not get the full scope of what is wrong in the business. You need to know where the breakdown in your company is and this could lead to hiring several consultants with various expertise. The 360 degree feedback program is designed to show flaws not just in the performance of key personnel but if the flaws are organizational it will show this too. Your business has three general areas where problems could occur and in each area of the business the 360 feedback can show you what is needed and how to go about making the changes without ruffling too many feathers.

One if not the most difficult area to give feedback is management style. When a restructuring occurs you will have changes in mission, vision, pay systems and the hiring and firing procedures. These changes are not about you directly but they can be felt by you personally. This is where getting 360 feedback becomes critical. This type of evaluation system must be handled with care. The data is of a sensitive nature and there could be negative fallout from the employees on the receiving end.

While not every business is ran the same, the 360 feedback implementation options can be tailored to any company’s needs. Each of the following ways of implementing 360 feedback is progressively more aggressive.

1. Outsourcing the 360 feedback to a consultant and sending the management team for training. There are drawbacks to this approach namely the surveys given to collect information on the management team will often be given to those who only have good things to say about the individual in question. It foster resentments within the management team and the ones who come back may be changed but what of the ones left behind. The old habits and system are all still there and eventually it will bring the company performance level back to the status quo.

2. In-House- this approach to 360 feedback gives the entire management team an evaluation. This approach is favored for two reasons. The evaluations are given by all subordinates not just the ones singled out by the person being evaluated and the program can reach every rung on the organization’s ladder. This means upper level management as well as the person who was hired entry level a few days ago.

3. This final approach not only encompasses all of the procedures in the second approach but also adds another dimension. This approach allows the management team to use the feedback to address “system issues” within the company. This will help the overall implementation of new ideas and procedures that the senior team is making.

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