Unbiased 360º Reviews

Business leaders and CEOs rarely embody the change they wish to see in their team. The best leaders I know are not just open to feedback, they welcome it and design processes in the business to ensure that feedback is given in both directions: up AND down.

The best CEOs I know regularly commission outside consultants to perform an anonymous 360º review of their work.

If an executive or leader has never had this experience before, it can be VERY difficult for them to hear the brutal truth about what’s not working. You can want it, you can be open to the feedback, but it doesn’t mean the pill will be any easier to swallow.

Who, What, When, Where, and Why?

WHO will be subject of the 360 review?

WHAT are the business details; size, stage, growth, any recent or upcoming key milestones?

WHEN does this need to be done?

WHERE will reviews happen, remotely and online, in person?

WHY is one of the most critical questions as it’ll be important to know where the drive to run a 360 evaluation originated.

Anonymous and Obfuscated

It’s important for the feedback to remain anonymous in order to reduce the risk of backlash or retaliation. Getting the hard truth makes people feel uncomfortable and can lead to undesired reactions.

Obfuscating allows the raw information to be passed along but not in the voice of the reviewer. In smaller organizations, people learn employee vernacular and could easily identify the reviewer if the quotes were given verbatim.

By keeping reviews anonymous and quotes obfuscated, reviewers will be far more comfortable to share what is truly going on and how they are feeling in their work environment and when dealing with the leader(s) who are the subject of this review.

Final Report: Reviews, Data, and Recommendations

At the end of the review process, I’ll present a full and detailed report in person to the subject of the review. We’ll discuss and it as well as the recommended changes that came out of it.

It is recommended to have a follow up sessions with the team and the reviewee about 6-10 weeks to see how changes are going.