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Spin Around in a Circle

Make 360° Feedback Work for You

HAVING CAPTURED YOUR LEADERSHIP lessons and analyzed your working relationships, you’re ready to take the next step: gathering feedback from others on how they’re experiencing your leadership. Do you know what others think of your leadership style? What are your strengths and opportunities as a leader? How do others really feel about working for you? Do you know the answers to these questions? You may think you do. But there’s only one way to find out for sure. There’s an old leadership adage that says “If you want to know how well you’re leading, turn around and see if anyone’s following you.” You’ll never get the full picture of your leadership if you’re always looking forward. From time to time, you need to turn around and make sure your people are still behind you. And while you’re at it, try to get a sense of their feelings about your leadership.

This is the idea behind the greatest leadership assessment tool ever invented: 360° feedback. The 360° process involves a formal collection of input from your direct reports, peers, and managers on your leadership style and behaviors. The feedback is generally gathered using a quantitative survey, and most 360° tools involve the solicitation of written comments, which are usually presented anonymously. The data and the written comments are compiled into a comprehensive, personalized report (generally by a professional consulting firm), which is then given to you and debriefed, typically by a human resources or leadership development professional. Whether it’s conducted formally or informally, the 360° process is a great way to confirm what you’re doing right, discover possible blind spots, and get suggestions for improving your leadership skills. It’s hard to think of a more efficient and effective assessment process.

Getting the Most Out of Your 360° Feedback

Looking at your leadership through the eyes of others demands courage and a willingness to absorb some potentially negative feedback. The first time you get 360° feedback can be a little scary, frankly. It’s natural to be somewhat defensive about the data, initially. I remember staring at the cover of my first 360° feedback report and feeling nervous about opening it. I was definitely worried about what others had to say about me. However, once I started to absorb the data and read the written comments, I relaxed and started to appreciate the feedback. Turns out I was doing many things right, but I also got a lot of useful, constructive feedback that helped me to improve. I’ve now completed the 360° process several times, and each time it has proven extremely helpful in directing my continued development. Whether you’re in a large company or a small organization, you have to be willing to look in the mirror and find out how you’re showing up as a leader. It can be frightening, no doubt—and you probably won’t like everything people have to say about you. Recognize that this is normal; try to push through it and accept the feedback for what it is: the reality of how others experience your leadership.

The bottom line is that 360° feedback can be one of your best development experiences if you commit to four fundamental principles. First, you have to select people who will provide brutally honest feedback. Ask your manager to help you choose a variety of raters; the key is to go beyond selecting just those who will say great things about you. Be sure to include people you’ve had a few disagreements with in the past so that you get an accurate, well-rounded view of your leadership style. Yes, that means the person down the hall that you don’t exactly get along with; if you’re going to do this effectively, you need to go all in. When you request feedback, ask your respondents to be as honest as possible, and thank them afterward for their input.

Second, you need to keep an open mind and really listen to the feedback. Review the numerical charts, and look for patterns and nuances in the data. Strengths can be leveraged to develop weaknesses, so don’t discount what respondents say you do well—learning what others think you’re exceptional at is just as important as learning what they think you need to improve on. Look closely at how different rater groups respond; you may be showing up as a leader in one way to your peers and in a completely different way to your direct reports. Be aware of blind spots—areas where you feel you’re effective, yet others disagree. Finally, read the written comments carefully. Typically, this is where the truth lies; the context and real-world examples make the feedback come alive, and you can learn a lot from the level of passion that goes into these comments. Be aware that your first reaction is likely to be defensive, which can easily close you off to some very important development suggestions. Remember that feedback is a gift; you need to see it as an opportunity to improve, not as something to be avoided or discounted.

Third, be sure to turn the feedback into an actionable development plan. Pinpoint the two or three highest priority development areas that you want to improve, and identify specific behaviors that others rated either the same or differently than you did (see Figure 2). Type up your development plan, share it with your boss, and ask for coaching as you work toward your improvement goals. It’s difficult for others to notice improvement if you haven’t told them what you’re going to be working on, so share the plan with your direct reports and peers, too. The best way to make significant improvement is to communicate your stated goals (for more on development plans, see Chapter 12).

Finally, ask for support and continued feedback from your immediate network. Thank your raters and request ongoing input as you work on your new leadership behaviors. Give them permission to call you on a lack of effort or a regression from your desired development path. Ask your boss about the 360° feedback process in your organization. If the tool is available, volunteer to go through the process. If your organization doesn’t currently utilize this tool, ask HR or your manager to help you access one of the many excellent 360° instruments available online. If that’s not possible, ask a few of your close colleagues for direct feedback—simply ask: “How can I be a better leader?”

If you’ve done a 360°, you know how valuable the process can be. If you haven’t, give it a try—you won’t regret it. After all, you can’t develop yourself in a vacuum; you need other people to give you feedback and support your plans for improvement. Besides, it’s one of the best ways of finding out if anyone’s truly following your leadership!

Bootstrap Takeaways

Make 360° Feedback Work for You

1. Initiate a 360° process for yourself to establish a baseline of your leadership style and behaviors.

2. Pay close attention to what people say about you—manage your defensiveness and embrace the feedback!

3. Thank your feedback providers and enlist them in your development plan going forward. Give people a reason to root for you by being a gracious recipient of their input.