Author: Kylee Stone

360 degree feedback, often termed as multirater feedback, is one of the modern methods of sharing feedback with employees. Due to its popularity, it has been adopted by organizations globally. Some of the global practitioners include organizations such as Amazon, GE, IBM, PepsiCo., etc. In one of our previous articles, we have highlighted the benefits of using 360 feedback. In this article, we will share tips on how to frame questions for the 360 degree survey. But before we delve deeper into the tips, let us take a look at what is 360 degree feedback.

Why 360 Degree Feedback?

In a 360 degree feedback or multirater assessment, numerous stakeholders share anonymous and constructive feedback about the reviewee. The stakeholders involved are direct reports and managers, peers, vendors, consumers, etc. It is a more comprehensive and unbiased process when compared to a traditional one. It helps reviewees to identify their strengths, weaknesses, blindspots, and gaps. Also, it improves working relationships, enhances employee performance, and increases self-awareness.

360 degree feedback acts as a great tool to identify training needs, opens up areas of improvement for the employees, and adds up to the overall employee experience. But often, organizations fail to get any actionable insights from these processes. Managers and HRs fail to ask the correct questions in the 360 feedback survey. The results of a 360 degree feedback depend to a great extent on the questions asked in the survey.

Here are three simple tips to guide you while framing questions for a 360 degree feedback survey.

Focus On Qualities

The questions in the survey should focus on the qualities/skills/characteristics which you want your employees to exhibit. It should align with the company’s vision, mission, and goals. Some of the skills on which the survey questions could focus are:

• Leadership skills
• Problem-solving
• Interpersonal Skills
• Motivation
• Efficiency
• Engagement
• Teamwork

Here’s an example of a simple question using the skills ‘teamwork’ and ‘interpersonal skills’; ‘Does the employee exhibit teamwork and interpersonal skills while working with the team?‘.

The reviewer should have the option to rate the reviewee on a five or six-degree rating scale with the options such as: Never, Rarely, Occasionally, Often, Always, and No Opportunity To Observe. These distinct and clear options help in generating concrete and relevant data.

Also Read: The Importance Of 360 Degree Feedback For Healthcare

Create Structured Questions

Structured questions generate clear and definitive answers when compared to open-ended questions. Open-ended questions are vague, generate lots of information, and are entirely subjective in nature.

Here is an example of a structured question: Do you think the employee exhibits leadership qualities at work?
This question emphasizes a behavioral characteristic that impacts a person’s work.

And here is an example of a poorly thought-out question: Do you think the employee likes working with others?
While this question also focuses on behaviour, but is too vague to answer and is subject to interpretation.

Customized Job Role Centric Questions

To make the most out of a 360 degree feedback process, the questions of the survey should not only focus on skills and qualities but also on the job role of the reviewee. Using a standard survey template may save the time of the manager or the HR who is developing the process, but it will not be useful for many employees. A standard form may not be applicable for all. When creating a survey for employees of different designations, take suggestions or inputs from managers or team leads. It will result in the creation of a customizable and relevant template, which will be more useful.

Also Read: Know What Features To Look For In A 360 Degree Feedback Software

Do you want to know how Engagedly can help you with 360 Degree Feedback? Then request a live demo.

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Employee turnover is a common problem for all organizations around the world. When an employee leaves an organization, it affects the team and the organization. A recent study by Gallup shows that the cost of replacing an individual employee can range from one-half to two times their annual salary.

As a manager, are you worried about the rising number of goodbye lunches in your team? Let us help you with the real reasons why your employees are leaving the organization.

Employees Don’t Feel Appreciated

According to a recent study, 69% of employees would work harder if they received appreciation for their efforts.

One of the many reasons why your employees leave is that they feel underappreciated or not appreciated for their work. Everyone likes appreciation for their hard work. When there is a lack of appreciation, employees don’t feel motivated, become disengaged, and the morale becomes low.

Appreciation can be in the form of simple praises, rewards, lunches or outings, promotions, gift cards, and hikes. It will make your employees happy and encourage them to work hard.

Also Read: Employee Recognition & Rewards During COVID19

Lack Of Autonomy In Work

Your employees need to know that you trust them. Give them autonomy and allow them to work on their own. When your employees are continuously micro-managed and scrutinized, not only their morale goes down, they also become disengaged. It ultimately affects their productivity. Don’t breathe down their back and allow them to work independently.

While some employees need autonomy, others might need a little guidance when they work. Conduct frequent check-ins and feedback for them and guide them and provide feedback whenever necessary.

No Scope Of Future Development

Employees often find themselves to have reached stagnation. They start looking for new opportunities as they don’t have any room to grow in the same organization. When they get a chance to leave the current organization, they do so in the first instance.

Conduct one-on-one with your team members to know their personal and professional development plans. Set up stay interviews to understand what they look forward to at work every day. Develop learning and training opportunities for your employees so that they can develop their overall skills. It gives them an impression that the organization cares for their development too.

Also Read: 5 Reasons Why You Need A Performance Management Software

Not An Open Culture

Often employees leave because organizations practice a close culture policy. In a closed culture organization, employee inputs and concerns are not valued and given importance. It makes them feel alienated and disconnected from the organization. To solve this, create feedback and communication channels for employees through which they can interact with senior leaders to give their inputs and raise their concerns. Conduct weekly or bi-monthly meetings, and make them part of the decision-making process. A frequent one-on-one meeting with your employees will help you understand their concerns, inputs, and grievances.
Many Real-Time Performance Management Softwares comes with built-in feedback and survey modules. They act as a great tool to collect information from the employees.

You Are Not Managing Well

“Most people don’t quit their jobs; they quit their managers,” says Wendy Duarte Duckrey, vice president of recruiting at JPMorgan Chase.

A manager might have years of experience to reach the position, but they often lack the people skills required to be a successful one. It is one of the most crucial factors which drives away your employees to other organizations. As a manager, focus on identifying your strengths and weakness. Conduct 360 degree feedback or anonymous surveys to know what your team members think about you. A manager who has the willingness to change can be a great asset to improve employee engagement and keep the motivation level of your employees high. But one who is not ready to change and resists taking inputs from others will harm the development of the organization in the long run.

Also Read: Tips To Manage Stress Of Your Remote Team

Missing Work-Life Balance

Overloading your best performers is not the solution to get your work done; you should know when to stop! Being overworked is one of the prime reasons why employees leave the organization, especially the high performing ones. Overworking leaves the employee tired and stressed. It results in lower productivity and engagement. Additionally, it not only affects their mental health but also their physical health. It will lower their self-esteem and will force the employee to quit the organization.

But when employees have to overwork, they should get an option to take paid time off and have flexible work hours.

Do you want to know how Engagedly can help you with Employee Retention? Then request a live demo.

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Nothing affects the employees and the organization more than workplace negativity. It drains energy and diverts the focus of the employees from their work. With time it creates disengagement, lowers productivity, and increases employee turnover. Moreover, it has a negative impact on their morale.

If you are an HR or a manager and feel that your workplace has become toxic or negative, then here are seven ways that you can consider to safeguard your organization from such issues.

Also Read: How To Retain Your Top Talent?

Trust Your Employees

“A study conducted in 88 retail stores in Canada by professors from York University in Toronto and the University of British Columbia in Vancouver indicated that when employees feel trusted, they are more likely to perform better.”

Trust and respect are crucial building blocks for a healthy work environment. As a manager or an HR, show that you trust and respect your employees from the day you hire them. On the other hand, when employees feel that they have to earn your trust and prove themselves, it creates a sense of cut-throat competition amongst the employees. When competition becomes unhealthy, it creates a negative work environment.

In organizations where the element of trusts exists, it leads to the creation of a healthy and friendly work environment and reduces workplace negativity.

Control Over Job Role

“As per research, 70% of employees complain of not having enough autonomy or control over their job role.”

Often managers, supervisors, and organizations tend to micromanage their employees. They end up deciding on their employee’s behalf without taking their inputs or consulting them. It leads to a sense of distrust and negativity between the employee and the organization. So to avoid this and reduce workplace negativity, employees should be trusted with their job roles and allowed to make their own decisions. This gives employees an opportunity to learn and gain confidence, even if they make mistakes.

Also Read: Tips To Manage Stress Of Your Remote Team

Opportunity To Express

Employees, at times, know more about the company than their HRs and managers might think. But often, their opinions and suggestions are ignored and not taken into consideration. When their opinions and thoughts are not valued, they feel oppressed. It results in a negative work environment.

As an HR manager, create a platform for your employees so that they can express themselves freely. Develop simple surveys so that they can express their opinions on work hours, salary, dress codes, working conditions, or other factors that impact their work. It will make the employees feel that the organization not only cares about the work but also about them. This will help in the creation of a happy and positive work environment where everyone is free to express their concerns and opinions.

Avoid Favoritism

Partiality and biases are quite common in the workplace. Managers and supervisors are biased toward their employees knowingly or unknowingly. But to avoid unhealthy and unwanted competition, HRs and managers should avoid any act of favoritism at all costs. Every employee should be given equal work opportunity and responsibility irrespective of their caste, creed, sex, religion, or orientation. This will ensure that the organization strictly follows labor laws and company policies.

Also Read: Want To Know Why Your Employees Leave? Here’s Why

Don’t Be A Part

As a manager or a leader, if you overhear negative conversations, avoid being a part of them. Steer away from the negative conversation to something positive that is more useful and valuable for everyone. When negative conversations and topics are encouraged, they spread like wildfire and affect everyone working in the organization.

Avoid Work Overload

Employees, when overloaded with work, become stressed, anxious, and disengaged. It results in a decrease in their productivity, lowers their morale, and affects their physical and mental health. It makes them grumpy and makes them have a negative outlook towards their work. To avoid this, leaders and managers should set realistic and achievable goals and monitor their employee’s progress. They should avoid their employees from burning out and motivate them whenever possible.

Recognize Your Employees

Make sure you reward and recognize your employees for their achievements. This makes them feel that their contribution is valued, and it will encourage them to perform better. It helps in giving a boost to their morale and has a positive impact on their productivity. Moreover, it drives employee engagement and retention. Employees work harder with greater dedication for rewards and recognition. They will have a positive outlook on the organization’s future and helps in creating a healthy work culture and reduce workplace negativity.

A simple “Thank You” or “You did a great job!” does a great job in making your employees feel appreciated.

Also Read: Employee Rewards and Recognition During COVID-19

Do you want to know how Engagedly can help you with your workplace culture? Request for a live demo!

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Feedback is an essential for employee engagement and retention in every organization. It motivates the employees and boosts their morale. But, the top-down or the manager-employee feedback approach often seems to be incomplete and biased, so many organizations are opting for the 360 degree feedback process. Continue reading “Busting the Myths of 360 Degree Feedback”

High Performance Teams or (HPTs) form the core of every successful organization. They are a group of actively engaged and goal-focused individuals who work collaboratively in a team with shared values and vision to produce exceptional results for the organization. They outperform other teams and are more valuable. Additionally, they are more engaged and highly productive at work.

Also Read: High Performing Teams In Healthcare

But creating a high performance team requires a lot of effort and perseverance. It is not a one-time activity, and they need to be nurtured over time so that they perform consistently.

Here are a few simple tips which will help you build a high performance team!

The Right Team Composition 

This is one of the most crucial steps toward building a high performance team. The correct team composition is instrumental in determining the success of every individual on the team.

HR, recruiters, talent acquisition specialists, and managers play a big role in building the right team. They identify and screen the right talent for the organization and are responsible for creating a diverse culture by selecting a unique mix of people based on their age, sex, race, skills, mindset, and backgrounds. In addition to this, they need to ensure that the team is of the right size.

A recent report by McKinsey&Company indicates that the ideal team size should be somewhere between 6 to 10. When the team is too small, they make incorrect decisions due to a lack of diversity and bandwidth. Also, it becomes a difficult job to choose someone during succession planning. On the other hand, when too many members are on the team, it becomes difficult to coordinate and reduces productivity.

Also Read: 5 Best Tips To Reduce Employee Turnover

Team Dynamics

“Coming together is a beginning, staying together is progress, and working together is success.” — Henry Ford, founder of Ford Motor Company. 

Putting together a high performance team is not just selecting a group of individuals for the team and wishing that they would perform their best. It is only the first step, and there is much more to that. For the team to collaborate well and work seamlessly like a well-oiled machine, team dynamics is critical.

Team dynamics give direction to the team and influence their performance and behavior. It depends on how well employees interact with each other and work in synergy towards achieving a common goal. Moreover, they should share the same vision, have effective communication, and should be willing to take risks and innovate. A dynamic team will not only make the team more productive but will also keep the employees engaged.

Conflict Management

Conflicts can be quite common among employees when working as a team. When individuals with different values, ideas, and experiences come together to work as a team, then disagreements and differences in opinions are inevitable. It can lead to conflicts. But what separates a high performance team from an average or poor one is the art of handling the conflicts constructively.

Conflicts should be acknowledged and resolved on time tactfully. If not handled correctly, it impacts team performance and reduces overall productivity.

Also Read: Teamwork Challenges Because Of Performance Reviews

Effective Communication

Communication is imperative for the success of a high performance team. For the team to work seamlessly, communication needs to be on time and effective. Managers must foster an environment where everyone is encouraged to interact and communicate with each other. Each employee should feel free to voice their opinions and express their concerns. When everyone communicates freely, there is an exchange of thoughts and ideas that leads to innovation. It helps employees to stay motivated and engaged in their work.

Identify Non-Performers

A high performance team will continue to function as one as long as all its members are performing well. But at times, it is normal for an individual not to do so well and their performance to fall. For managers, it is essential to identify those poor performers on time. If not identified, their performance will have an impact on the team dynamics and bring down the productivity of the team. Managers and leaders can follow a few simple steps to identify poor performers and help them improve their performance.

• Have frequent check-ins with employees to track their performance
• Conduct 360 degree feedback to identify blind spots and gaps
• Share positive or constructive feedback on time
• Motivate and encourage employees with rewards and recognition
• Hear to employee concerns and issues and help them fix it
• Organize knowledge sharing and training sessions for your employees

Do you want to know how Engagedly can help you build a high performance team? Then request for a live demo.

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In a survey conducted by Harvard Business Review, 72% of employees agreed that their performance would improve if they receive feedback from their managers.

Feedback, although not always easy to share, is one of the most powerful tools in the managerial toolbox. Whether positive or negative, it arms employees with a guide that helps them to focus, shape, and direct their actions towards success. Employee feedback has numerous benefits, so if done right, it has a positive impact on the employee and the organization.

As a manager, you need to not only share feedback but also need to know how to share it. But before learning about tips on how to share feedback, let us look at some of the benefits.

Also Read: Tips To Manage Stress Of Your Remote Team

The Benefits of Sharing Feedback

• Helps in improving employee engagement 
• Feedback motivates employees
• It is a tool for continuous improvement and learning
• Feedback improves performance
• Increases retention of employees
• Helps in increasing self-awareness
  

It goes without saying that giving feedback to your employees is very important. So it becomes crucial that feedback is shared correctly and is useful to them. Here are some pointers for you to keep in mind while sharing feedback.

Avoid The ‘Sandwich’ Approach

Feedback, whether positive or constructive criticism, should be relevant and shared clearly with the employee. Often, ‘compliment sandwiches’ are used while delivering criticism so that the employee doesn’t feel overwhelmed. This strategy involves fitting constructive criticism between positive praises and compliments. But doing so not only undermines the value of the actual feedback but also leaves the employees confused.

Also Read: Now More Than Ever: The Need For Staff Appreciation

Focus on Behaviour

While sharing feedback, the focus should be on the behaviour of the employee or what they do instead of emphasizing their character. Identify behaviours or actions that you wish to reinforce throughout the organization that also resonates with your company culture. Elucidate its importance to your employee and what effect it will have on the team and the organization.

The Secret to Giving Constructive Criticism highlights two examples of sharing feedback.

Example 1: When you interrupt me in front of a client, it causes a problem.

Example 2: Your arrogance is causing a problem.

The first example is more impactful and acceptable to the employees as it focuses on the behavior and highlights the problem instead of personality.

Also Read: Know The Benefits Of 360 Degree Feedback For Educators

Share It Often

“Continuous improvement is better than delayed perfection”- Mark Twain.

Make feedback a regular activity at your organization for it to work effectively. Managers and leaders often treat feedback as a formal process and do it at the time of performance reviews. Feedback works best when it is given at the moment and as close to the event as possible. The fresher the feedback, the more impactful it is. While frequent feedback will help you praise good work, at the same time, it will help you guide those who need it.

Be Specific and Concise

As mentioned above, feedback should not only be shared often and on time, but it should also be specific and concise for it to be effective. When feedback is specific, it helps employees to understand what they should keep on doing and what they should avoid for the success of the organization. Specific and concise feedback is a lot more helpful to the employees when they receive constructive criticism or negative feedback from their managers.

Example 1: Manager: “Jack, your presentation could have been in more detail.”

In the above example, Jack’s manager expresses concern but is not clear about what the presentation lacked or what he could have done to improve it.

Example 2: Manager: “Jack, your presentation was incomplete. You could have included the marketing leads received from SQLs and MQLs and added graphs to make it more insightful.”

The example above clearly outlines how Jack could have improved the presentation. It is specific and concise.

Also Read: Employee Rewards and Recognition For An Engaged Workforce

Don’t Miss to Follow Up

Following up with your employees is one of the crucial steps for the feedback to be effective. Being a manager, you are not only responsible for sharing feedback but also instrumental in making sure that your employees work on it. From time to time, connect with your employees to understand how they are progressing and whether they need any help. It will help to appreciate those who have achieved success and help those who need it. It will motivate employees and encourage them to work harder.

Also Read: Employee Performance Management During COVID-19

Do you want to know how Engagedly can help you with Employee Feedback? Then request for a live demo.

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“Our teachers deserve better feedback.” – Bill Gates (Co-founder of Microsoft). Continue reading “Know The Benefits Of 360 Degree Feedback For Educators”

“Clients do not come first.  Employees come first.  If you take care of your employees, they will take care of the clients.” – Sir Richard Branson, Owner Virgin Group.

Employee engagement has been the topic of discussion, both pre-COVID and amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Engaged employees are motivated, happy, satisfied, and find fulfillment in their job. It results in higher productivity of the employees and the success of the organization. But employee engagement is not a one-time activity and needs to be worked upon. Before diving into the ways to improve employee engagement, let’s take a look at its definition and importance.

What is Employee Engagement?

When you would search for the term ‘Employee Engagement’ you would probably get multiple definitions for it, but Forbes defines it very simply and precisely. As per Forbes, employee engagement is the emotional commitment that an employee has towards the organization and its goals.

But often, employee engagement is ignored and not given enough priority by organizations. A recent study by Gallup(a global analytics and organization consulting firm, providing solutions to problems of the organization) highlights some significant statistics on employee engagement which reflects its importance and shows why it shouldn’t be ignored.

• Their studies depict that 85% of employees are not actively engaged at work. These figures are a worldwide count
• 70% of engaged employees understand better how to meet customer needs while only 17% of non-engaged employees feel the same
• Almost 90% of employers think that employees leave for a better salary, but only 12% of employees actually do so

Also Read: The Importance Of Employee Engagement In Healthcare

It is crucial to keep your employees engaged and motivated now more than ever for the obvious reasons. Here are five key employee engagement practices or strategies that can be followed, not only during this pandemic but also once employees are back to work.

Employee Well-Being

According to Harvard Business Review, employers who invested in the well being of their employees saw three times the return of their money spent.

One factor which continues to be a high priority for all organizations is employee well-being. Not only physical health but mental health also needs to be given equal importance when employee well-being is in conversation. With the pandemic being around for almost a year, it can be pretty usual for everyone to feel stressed and anxious. When organizations care for the well-being of their employees, it results in improved employee engagement and increased productivity. It is because when employees are mentally and physically healthy, they remain motivated and there is reduced absenteeism.

Also Read: Work Stress? 5 Easy Ways To Tackle It

Frequent Feedback

Feedback drives employee engagement and helps in their continuous improvement. Both positive and constructive feedback are known to help them grow and keep them motivated. Encourage frequent check-ins and share regular feedback by connecting with your employees over an email or a video call.

Also, encourage your employees to share any feedback or concerns which they might be facing while working remotely.

More Emphasis on Recognition

As mentioned earlier in the article, it has been quite some time now that everyone is working from home. But not everyone has still adjusted to this, and with multiple distractions at home, employees are likely to get disengaged. One of the best ways to keep them motivated and improve employee engagement is by rewarding and recognizing your remote employees for their wins. It will show the employees that you not only care for them when they are working from office but also when they aren’t. Moreover, any form of recognition is said to have a long-lasting effect on the employees and improve manager-employee relationships.

Also Read: Employee Rewards and Recognition For An Engaged Workforce

Focus on Employee Development 

As per LinkedIn 2020 Workforce Learning Report, 94% of employees would stay with a company if they invested in their training and development. 

Apart from employee recognition and feedback, professional development and career training have a significant impact on employee engagement. With the economy not being so stable currently, it would be a sign of relief when they see that organizations are investing in their development. Employees will appreciate the efforts and will stay with the organization for a longer time.

Flexible Working

“We think, mistakenly, that success is the result of the amount of time we put in at work, instead of the quality of time we put in.” Arianna Huffington, co-founder of Huffington Post.

Organizations are no longer focussing on strict 9 – 5 working hours; instead, they have started providing flexible working hours to their employees. Flexible working hours give employees a sense of control by choosing when, how, and where to work. It improves their work-life balance and gives them a chance to attend to personal commitments in between work.

Although some of the customer-centric job roles are finding it hard to have flexible working hours, it has already become the new normal for others and is there to stay.

Do you want to know how Engagedly can help you with Employee Engagement? Then request for a live demo.

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As per a study conducted by Johns Hopkins Medicine, it indicated that one-third of the deaths are due to medical errors. It also highlighted that many of these errors were caused due to inefficient team coordination. Continue reading “High Performing Teams In Healthcare”

“People work for money but go the extra mile for recognition, praise and rewards” — Dale Carnegie, Leadership Training Guru and Author.

Everyone loves to be recognized and rewarded for their efforts, be it at work, among friends, or at home. It gives them an affirmation that what they do is acknowledged and valued. Studies reveal that rewards and recognition programs work wonders for employees when it comes to boosting their motivation and improving employee engagement. When employees are motivated and engaged, they put in more effort into the work they do. It results in increased productivity of the employee and the organization, and helps in achieving short-term and long-term goals.

Also Read: Employee Recognition & Rewards During COVID-19

But often, employee rewards and recognition programs fail to create any sustainable impact on the employees. The programs are not rightly structured and unknowingly harm the organization. Here are five key reasons why your employee rewards and recognition program is proving to be ineffective.

Employees Work Only For The Reward

Employees are engaged and highly motivated to work when they know they will be rewarded or recognized for it. But once they are rewarded, the level of excitement falls. Moreover, once when an employee receives recognition or reward, it affects the motivation of other employees too. If organizations are not careful, then employee reward and recognition programs will condition employees to work only for getting rewarded.

Recognizing and rewarding your employees do bring the best out of them, as it keeps them motivated. But this shouldn’t be the only yardstick for them to give their best, instead, they should consistently focus on improving their performance without the presence of any external reward.

Also Read: Club Reviews With Social Recognition To Enhance Engagement

One Size Doesn’t Fit All

Organizations often assume that they know what is best for their employees. But this is not the case when it comes to rewarding their employees. Even the rewards which appear to be most desirable do not work for everyone.

Here are some examples:

• Many organizations offer leaves as incentives to their employees. But it will only be useful to those who need to take leaves or who have exhausted their leaves. It will be of no use to those who already have many leaves
• Organizations often offer promotions as a reward. But many employees tend to avoid it when it involves shifting to a different location or giving up overtime hours

Irrelevant employee rewards and recognition results in employees putting in less effort. To avoid this, it is advisable to include employee suggestions and opinions to design your reward and recognition program.

Also Read: Is Employee Recognition Only About Employee Perks?

Late Recognition Doesn’t Count

Many organizations miss out on the fact that a delayed employee reward or recognition program does no good to improve the motivation of the employees. Recognizing employees half-yearly, annually, or even monthly reduces the consistency and enthusiasm to work, whereas a timely reward or recognition has a positive impact on their work. Using tools like Engagedly, you can reward and recognize your employees instantly by giving them public praise and awarding them points for their work.

Not Everything Should Be About the Numbers

Does your organization still reward only those who are fetching the numbers? Then we would suggest this is the correct time to change your approach towards your employee rewards and recognition process. In many organizations, rewards and recognition programs focus on specific narrow goals. A good example will be of car dealerships, where salespeople with the highest sales get monthly incentives. Such incentives or rewards result in unhealthy cutthroat competition among team members. Moreover, other important aspects of work, such as teamwork, integrity, company principles, etc. are ignored. As a consequence, the quality of work gets affected over time.

Also Read: Planning To Set OKRs For Your Sales Team?

Your Employees Aren’t Creative or Risk Takers Anymore

When it is concerned with getting recognized or rewarded, most employees take the tried and tested route to achieve the end results. The fear of failure prevents them from trying out new or innovative approaches at work. If they fail or lose, it affects their motivation and causes disengagement. Consequently, it curbs innovation, creativity and risk-taking among employees.

Plan and design your employee rewards and recognition activities in such a way that it not only focuses on end-results but also takes into consideration innovation and risk-taking by employees.

Engagedly is offering a suite of products part of its Remote Work Toolkit free to any organisation, until Sept 30th, 2020. 

The Coronavirus has affected the way we work today and for months to come. Unprecedented events require unprecedented measures. We at Engagedly believe it is our responsibility as socially conscious corporate citizens to help equip organisations with additional tools and resources during this time of crisis.

Do you want to know how Engagedly can help you with Employee Rewards and Recognition? Then request us for a live demo

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We all know this by now that 360 degree feedback programs can be very useful if they function seamlessly and  provide rounded perspectives on employees. However, often than not, 360 degree feedback programs fail because of a few glaring oversights on part of the people who drive them. And because of these simple oversights and misses, organizations might think 360 degree feedback programs do not offer enough payoff for the effort involved. When in reality, it is the process that needs to be tweaked, and not the program itself that needs to be junked.

Wondering what these lapses are? here are four common reasons why 360 degree feedback programs fail:

Also read:Here’s Why Your Employee Rewards & Recognition Fails

Unclear purpose:

Honestly, there are very few endeavours that pan out well if there is no set purpose or intention to it. One of the biggest mistakes that most people make with respect to 360 degree programs is not setting a clear purpose. Organizations tend to carry out 360 degree programs because it fetches a macro perspective of performances or because every other organization is conducting it. They fail to see that if it is conducted with a purpose, it can fetch very useful insights that can help drive company growth.

Most often, 360 degree programs are carried out once a year. Typically, they collect feedback about an employee from a variety of sources, which reduces the incidence of bias and can provide relevant insights into how well the employee works. It is prudent to figure out the purpose first and then implement the 360 feedback program. It becomes easier when you know what you want to do with the resulting information.

Meagre communication:

“Communication is the key to success” – we have heard this a million times!

Lack of communication can colossally mess up many undertakings, especially things like feedback programs. If a 360 feedback program is upcoming in the wings, then employees should be informed of it well in advance. You should arrange for short training sessions to make them understand how it will help them, how they should participate in it, etc. And most importantly, once the 360 feedback program is done, employees need to know that action will be taken.

Confidentiality matters!

No, we are not talking about the anonymity aspect here. Confidentiality is not the same as anonymity. If participants of a 360 degree program are not sure of how confidential their feedback is going to be or have previously been subjected to a breach of confidentiality, then naturally the results of the program will be skewed.

If you wish for a 360 degree program to run smoothly, then you need to ensure that the participants’ feedback remains confidential. And most importantly, communicate this fact to them. If they are not sure about how confidential the information is going to remain, that will affect the results of the program as well.

Also read:Club Reviews with Social Recognition to Enhance Engagement

No follow-up action:

When employees hear that a 360 degree feedback is going to be conducted, they are often eager to see some changes post program. Moreover, participants of the program also expect the same. There is no point in carrying out a 360 degree program if there will be no follow-up action plan after the program. Before the program, assure everyone that action will be taken. And once the program is done, take action. The action could be in many forms. For instance, some employees might receive additional responsibilities, or feedback they have shared about changing processes can be implemented.

Whatever plan of action is undertaken, the end result is that the change should be visible to employees or at the very least, communicated to them.

Now that you know where you might have been lacking in conducting an effective 360 degree feedback, let us know how many of these points you have implemented and what are the changes you see in the process. If you want to know how Engagedly can help you with 360 degree feedback, check out our module here.

Engagedly is offering a suite of products part of its Remote Work Toolkit free to any organisation, until Sept 30th, 2020. 

The Coronavirus has affected the way we work today and for months to come. Unprecedented events require unprecedented measures. We at Engagedly believe it is our responsibility as socially conscious corporate citizens to help equip organisations with additional tools and resources during this time of crisis.

Do you want to know how Engagedly can help you with seamless Performance Evaluation? Then request for a live demo.

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360 degree feedback, also popularly known as multirater feedback, is one of the modern methods of employee feedback in which sharing of feedback is limited not only to the managers but also involves a wide range of other stakeholders. These stakeholders may include managers, team leaders, management, peers, direct reports, vendors, and customers. When 360 degree feedback is implemented correctly, it helps in identifying the strengths and weaknesses of the employee and designing developmental plans. Moreover, it aids in self-development and uncovering useful employee insights. Continue reading “Know What Features To Look For In A 360 Feedback Software”

“At the very core of our humanity is our care for one another. Heartfelt appreciation provides sustenance for another day, especially in turbulent times.”

– Dana Ullom-Vucelich, CHRO, health care & senior services

Surviving and thriving through this pandemic, is not an easy task. We all know that by now. So now more than ever, businesses have got to understand how important it is to keep their employees happily engaged. To drive employee experience successfully, you need to transform your rewards and recognition culture into a virtual appreciation culture.

How do you do that? It’s not too difficult. Here are some easy and effective ideas for staff appreciation that you can cultivate in your organization:

Also read: Using OKRs In Startups To Measure Success

Make Rewards and Recognition exciting

An article in O.C.Tanner on Appreciation suggests the SAIL method, in order to understand how we can personalise recognition as per individual employees. In their words,

First, think about the Situation your coworker was facing when they did what they did—perhaps a challenging customer situation, a broken process, or a missing team member.

Next think about the Action they took. What specifically did your team member do that turned things around—such as staying with a patient, rescheduling a stuck traveler, filling in for a sick employee?

Next think about the Impact this team member had, the difference they made. Was it saving a customer relationship? Developing a faster process? Averting a crisis?

Finally, Link what they did back to the purpose of your team or organisation.

Following this method can help in sharing a personalised appreciation, that makes it a lot more impactful and powerful at the same time. You can share this praise on the company wall, organization’s social platform or on email. Either ways, it is the content of the appreciation that makes the biggest impact in today’s scenario.

Implement extended appreciation

Who would have thought we will have to convert our private spaces into professional ones! But the pandemic has led us to do so. As we get a peep into employees’ private spaces through calls and video conferences, we can get a glimpse of families and pets, among other things. This creates a sense of deeper connection, if we allow so. So why not spice up the R&R programme to better suit our remote workers?

Think of tweaking your rewards and recognition programme to include family members. They’re making many adjustments, tackling different hurdles, yet working towards giving your coworker/employee the mental and physical space to work well. It’s important to be able to return the favour.

Encourage recognition from coworkers and peers

Due to the pandemic, we have to keep in mind that the appreciation process cannot remain as it was before. It needs to scale up and we must figure out various ways in which we can share positive feedback and praises. Recently we came across ALKU’s “T-Shirt Program”. It’s an interesting take on appreciation wherein they celebrate every time an employee achieves their company’s “Business and Personnel Development Principles.” When employees successfully represent one of ALKU’s principles, they get a T-shirt with a #hashtag showcasing that principle.

In the words of Rebecca Crossley, ALKU Marketing Manager

The best thing about this program is that it is employee-driven. Employees can nominate other employees for a t-shirt that represents one of ALKU’s business goals. Examples of T-shirts are #BeAPro, #PitchYourNiche, and #FollowMyLead. These nominations are posted to the company Slack channel so that everyone can celebrate the success, no matter how big or small.

Loop in the silent workers also

It is always easy to notice and recognise those who are vocal of their accomplishments. But they are not the only ones achieving. As a people leader you should take time out to notice, how many other employees or coworkers have been ploughing silently through, without demanding any attention or accolades. But just because they are silent, it does not necessarily indicate that they don’t care for appreciations or recognition. In fact, when you take time to recognize their contribution, without them having to highlight it, makes them feel valued. This can lead to enhanced employee engagement and employee retention.

Also read: How Important is Feedback in Today’s World?

Our intention behind sharing this article is very simple. We wish for you to remain more informed about the changing trends in employee appreciation and ideas as to how you can implement it in your organization. If you have more to add to this topic, we would love to know your thoughts as well. Feel free to drop in your comments below!

Engagedly is offering a suite of products part of its Remote Work Toolkit free to any organisation, until Sept 30th, 2020. 

The Coronavirus has affected the way we work today and for months to come. Unprecedented events require unprecedented measures. We at Engagedly believe it is our responsibility as socially conscious corporate citizens to help equip organisations with additional tools and resources during this time of crisis.

Do you want to know how Engagedly can help you with seamless Performance Evaluation? Then request for a live demo.

Request A Demo

360 degree feedback or multirater feedback, although termed as a modern method, has been a topic of research for over 45 years. One of its first research papers was published in 1974 and was titled; “Group feedback and group contingencies in modifying behavior of fifth graders”. Globally organizations have started using 360 degree feedback as the method of sharing feedback with their employees. It is more balanced, procured from multiple sources and helps in identifying areas of improvement. Moreover, it increases self-awareness, improves working relationships, and enhances the performance of the employee. GE, IBM, Amazon, PepsiCo. and many other organizations have already made a shift in their process of sharing feedback.

Also Read: Employee Feedback Matters More Than You Think

We are in the era of the startup boom, where new startups are emerging daily. But is everyone able to make it through? No, many are closing down their operations within a few years of their start. Some others are still following the traditional employee feedback practices and have a closed culture. Implementing a 360 degree feedback will not only promote an open culture in the startup but will also keep the employees engaged, which will drive employee retention. If you have not implemented it in your startup then here are some tips.

Check The Readiness

As per a study by Smith and Walker(2001), positive 360-degree feedback ratings of bank managers were correlated with customer loyalty.

Is your organization ready for a 360 degree feedback process yet? Before implementing any new process, it is important to assess how ready the organization and its employees are, for it. It is crucial in determining the success of a 360 degree feedback process. Before starting with the process, it is important to know how open everyone is to receive feedback from others. Managers and senior leaders might be hesitant to be part of a process where they will be evaluated by their direct reports. When you implement it for the first time, senior leadership needs to be on board with the plan. Leaders should understand the process to make it easier to pilot it down throughout the organization. In the following point, we will highlight how you can get everyone on board with the idea of implementing 360 degree feedback.

Also Read: Why Should You Start Practising 360 Degree Feedback?

Communication Is Important

Effective communication is the key to organizational success, as it helps businesses around the world to function smoothly. When you are implementing a 360 degree feedback process for the first time in your startup, it is important to communicate the: Why, How, and Whatof the process to all the stakeholders involved.

Communicate and conduct informative sessions on what is 360 degree feedback and why it should be implemented. Share the purpose, objective, and a timeline to implement the process in your organization. Inform everyone about the process of how the feedback will be collected and utilized. It will result in more transparency in the process, thus making it effective.

Select The Raters

As several stakeholders are involved, rater selection is one of the most important processes in 360 degree feedback. The list of raters involves a wide spectrum of people starting from managers, team leaders, peers, direct reports, customers, and vendors. It is recommended to select at least one superior, three-five peers, and six-eight direct reports; it will ensure that there is enough number of participants to receive relevant and comprehensive feedback data. In addition to this, it is also suggested that the raters should have at least six months of working relationship with the person being reviewed.

Also Read: Competencies For A 360 Degree Feedback Form

Onboard A Coach

Many startups and multinational organizations launch the 360 degree feedback successfully, but they fail to follow the process through till the end. This makes it necessary to have a coach who will guide throughout the 360 degree feedback process. Their role will involve training the raters and employees, analyzing reports, and making developmental plans for the employees. A coach can be someone internal such as the HR, the manager, or the team leader; or someone external who is trained in the 360 degree methodology.

It is recommended to have a designated coach for a startup in the initial stages of the implementation of 360 degree feedback.

Also Read: Role Of A Coach In 360 Degree Feedback

Invest In A 360 Degree Feedback Tool

Having a 360 degree feedback tool makes it easy to implement the process. Currently, multiple tools in the market have 360 degree feedback as part of their performance management suite, but it is important to select one which is easy to use, and requires no prior training. Go for a demo version of the tool before zeroing down on the final one. The tool should support simple customizations and should be robust at the same time. Moreover, there should be a 24*7 customer support team to help with any issues.

Also Read: 7 Essential Features Of A 360 Degree Feedback Tool

Action Plan

A new process, when implemented, will reap little results until there is an action plan associated with it. Once the feedback has been shared and the reports have been generated, the action plan should be worked upon. It should focus on the blindspots and the skill gaps that have been identified in the report. Employees, HRs, and managers should collaborate and work together in designing the action plan for the employee. Follow up should be conducted from time to time to know the progress of the employee.

Engagedly is offering a suite of products part of its Remote Work Toolkit free to any organisation, until Sept 30th, 2020. 

The Coronavirus has affected the way we work today and for months to come. Unprecedented events require unprecedented measures. We at Engagedly believe it is our responsibility as socially conscious corporate citizens to help equip organisations with additional tools and resources during this time of crisis.

Do you want to know how Engagedly can help you with your 360 degree feedback? Then request for a live demo

Request A Demo

“We all need people who will give us feedback. That’s how we improve.” – Bill Gates. Continue reading “Role Of A Coach In 360 Degree Feedback”

The US boasts the biggest health industry, consisting of 784,626 companies and it spends about twice what other countries do on healthcare. The global pandemic has now led to an increase in demand for healthcare, and it has become very vital to drive employee engagement, now more than ever.

Continue reading “The Importance Of Employee Engagement In Healthcare”

Have you been wondering why your 360 degree feedback process has not been reaping the kind of results you want it to? We have been researching on it too. And guess what we found! Accountability makes a BIG difference. We all know it by now that while 360 feedback does provide a wider picture of employee competence, it cannot replace performance appraisal. But they can definitely go hand in hand, and this collaboration can provide new insights into learning and development.

So what is this accountability aspect that we are talking about? It’s the necessity for each stakeholder involved in the process of 360 feedback to hold up their side of the responsibility.

According to an article published by Cambridge Core, they mention three main needs to establish accountability:

1. Ratee accountability to use results
2. Rater accountability for accuracy and usefulness
3. Organizational accountability for providing the resources that support behavioral change

You see, without each of these stakeholders taking up their roles seriously and playing out the part required, a 360 feedback process cannot fetch you the right results. Let us look into each point a little more closely.

Also read: Tips To Improve Productivity As A Remote Worker

Ratees accountability:

Receiving feedback is not always a nice experience, as its not always positive. But if we are not going to be open about it, we will not know where we lack and what we can improve in ourselves. As a result, we will become stagnant and less valuable to any organization. The main purpose of 360 degree feedback is development – both individual and organizational.

Knowing this scenario, all ratees should receive a training session so that they know how to receive feedback and inculcate them in their work life. If ratees are not going to take action on the results, there is no use of conducting such a process, and it will not yield any long or short-term growth. Ratees should be made privy to how they will benefit from utilising results in a healthy and productive manner.

Raters accountability:

The accountability factor does not just lie with the ratees only. Since time immemorial, we are aware of how raters’ perceptions and ratings are greatly affected by the work environment, work life politics, leniency, fear of repercussions, and other such factors. Most rating systems still suffer from the same political and psychometric forces.

For this very same reason, raters need to go through training sessions as well. They will automatically feel more accountable if they are aware that their inputs are greatly valued by the ratees as well as the company. As mentioned by Cambridge Core,

the raters should be made aware that,

“Feedback is an investment” – an investment whose quality will affect the rater because he/she will continue to work with the ratee, and the development of the ratee will benefit the rater, the team, and the organization. In that way, the investor can expect a return on his/her investment.

Also read: What Is Social Performance Management?

Organizational accountability:

Organizations, of course, have a much bigger role to play here. Starting from training each segment of stakeholders on their roles and responsibilities, investing in the software and setting up a seamless 360 degree feedback process, critical all-round communication and staffing, to keeping a track of how well the process is being utilised and is reaping results, organizational accountability plays the major role here.

So if you were thinking, just setting up a 360 degree feedback process is good enough, we have given you enough reasons to think it through again. For the feedback process to get you the right kind of results, these above mentioned factors cannot be overlooked. If you have thoughts to share on the same lines, feel free to comment below.

Engagedly is offering a suite of products part of its Remote Work Toolkit free to any organisation, until Sept 30th, 2020. 

The Coronavirus has affected the way we work today and for months to come. Unprecedented events require unprecedented measures. We at Engagedly believe it is our responsibility as socially conscious corporate citizens to help equip organisations with additional tools and resources during this time of crisis.

Do you want to know how Engagedly can help you with your performance management strategy? Then request for a live demo

Request A Demo