Why 360 Degree Feedback Fails [ Reasons ]

According to a statistical study and research, seventy-five percent of feedback respondents prefer to be involved in a feedback and have believed that feedback is a valuable tool for improvement. Though feedback indeed is essential for knowing the sides of the employees, employers, owners, and clients, it should be acquainted with the main goal and purpose of the organization of why they are using Feedback Forms and documents.

360 Feedback Programs are commonly being promoted in various institutions, groups, and companies nowadays. Though any feedback would be helpful, such as a Customer Feedback, there are also a few downsides for specific feedback programs which include the 360 Degree Feedback. Here are the ten reasons why this type of feedback seems to gradually result in a failure:

• Zero assistance and support. Asking for a feedback, such as a 360 Degree Employee Feedback, may demand a lot of resources and assistance to be provided by the head supervisors and officers of a company. Without the full support of these people, the respondents may take their answers for granted due to their knowledge that the feedback was only done for compliance with particular laws and not for the benefit that it may contribute to their company and organization.
• Not goal oriented. Feedback Forms are used to gather data and information about what can be done for improvement, however, if the goals were not set up right to the correct motion, the forms will be useless. An example is when using a specified 360 Degree Service Feedback Form wherein the goal should focus on rating the services that the employee was able to provide to his clients and whether he had met the service expectations of the client or not. Goal orientation should be properly stated and laid down to set the course of the feedback program.
• Less involvement. The respondents’ involvement will vary on how the higher officials provided support which means that this third reason is a ripple effect of the first one. Due to less involvement from the target audience or respondents, the people who are responsible for collecting and computing the results of the feedback will have a hard time figuring out what the range of answers and outcome the respondents aim for their group. To involve the respondents, the support team, as well as the bosses, must communicate well and provide sufficient information about the incoming feedback program.
• Confidentiality issues. Keeping one’s identity as an anonymous person is important to most respondents especially teachers who are assigned to answer and rate their co-teachers in a 360 Degree Teacher Feedback Form. Most respondents in a feedback prefer being named anonymous to protect their positions and identity from being held liable for sanctions and penalties that the feedback subject or the person being stated in the feedback will face. The respondents will most likely have lesser fear to provide a feedback than being named on the form. However, the downside of allowing the respondents to be anonymous is that it promotes tough and inappropriate comments in the form.
• Obscure questions. Good and proper data will only be gathered from the answers of appropriate questions. The questions must meet and communicate effectively with equal understanding to the targeted audience and respondents of a feedback. Though Feedback Forms may also include an attachment of a Questionnaire Form, the questions should be specific on one subject each to avoid causing vagueness and uncertainty for the respondents.
• Inappropriate timing. Feedback can aid anyone to know the issues and problems which can be solved by possible suggestions, however promoting respondents to answer a feedback form at a business peak or busy hour will cause the respondents to randomly pick answers. To avoid this scenario, the feedback personnel must schedule a meeting ahead and provide a Notice Form to the respondents to inform them about the program.
• Prizes and sanctions. Completing a Feedback Form, such as an Interview Feedback Form can either make or break an applicant’s chance of employment. Since respondents know that there will possible results which may affect a known individual, they will be providing good ratings due to their fear of being the cause of that person’s sanctions, or, on the other hand, will be the cause of an individual’s promotion.
• Negative follow ups. Merely gathering a feedback will not aid an improvement if the answers and the outcome will not meet a follow-up action from the feedback personnel. An example for this is when a Product Feedback will be granted to a number of respondents, the people gathering the feedback must use the information and do a follow-up experiment or improve the taste or structure of their product. Contacting and promoting another set of Feedback Forms for the next months about the product must be done and observed accordingly to assure that the needs of the clients are being met by the company.
• Personal comments. Feelings and emotions may be essential for a Counseling Feedback, however, the comments relating to the effectiveness of the involved people on 360 Degree Feedback Forms must be based on technical observations and not merely on how the respondents or users feel about the activity. Most comments written on a feedback form are outcomes of a relationship between the parties and often result to unnecessary and unhelpful data being collected by the feedback personnel.
• The idea of “One size fits all”. Most people who create a feedback form perceives that the document can cater different people with varying positions in life. However, the reality of things is that a layout for one feedback form may not meet the needs of a person but may hold the required areas of the other. This last reason for a failing 360 Degree Feedback Program will be avoided by doing an extensive survey among the people whom the feedback will be used and addressed.

Feedback Forms, regardless if it is for gathering event feedback or a patient feedback, are helpful documents for attaining and reaching out to new ideas and solutions. Nonetheless, creating a Feedback Form and Program must focus on the ability of the respondents to answer the document and not simply on the needs and requirement of a company.