When some organizations begin preliminary research into the use of multi-rater feedback, they first look at the technology they will use. Since most 360-degree feedback is done online, this is understandable.
However, what surprises me is how many organizations and individuals do not realize that 360-degree feedback is about facts and personal change. Technology is a logical process; the emotion in 360 is not logical.
I have had the opportunity to participate in 360-degree feedback in companies I have worked for in the past. At the beginning, I didn't realize what I was getting into. I was a 360 novice. I didn't really understand what I was going to experience. When I received the feedback report and the coaching person explained to me the SARA model of reactions to feedback, I couldn't stop laughing. I felt so clearly that I was going through these four stages that it really seemed ridiculous to me.
I went into the 360-degree feedback experience not knowing what to expect. I wasn't sure what my colleagues, managers and aces thought about my greatest strengths and areas of greatest opportunity. When it came time to review the feedback, I was both curious and excited. I was finally going to know how my stakeholders saw me . . . but did I really want to know? When I opened my 360 feedback report, the results surprised me.
Sometimes I think the SARA model is a bit extreme. My emotions were not as volatile and fluctuating as in the SARA model, but I certainly experienced emotional ups and downs as I tried to digest the feedback presented in the report in a very appealing way. Instead of shock, anger, resistance and acceptance, I felt the following: Amazement, denial, making excuses and submission.
Sometimes I wonder if my reaction to my first 360-feedback experience was strange. I would bet that I am not alone in experiencing these feelings. As I understand it, most people experience these emotional ebbs and flows to some extent. For some it only lasts a few minutes, for others this feedback remains a sensitive and difficult topic months or even years later. Besides that, the other thing I realized is that this is how learning happens; this is how we grow. Whether it is a disagreement that shows us to change our behavior or a consensus that tells us we are on the right track, this feeling drives us to action (or keeps us in action).
How did your first 360-degree experience go? Did you challenge the results (i.e. did you make excuses in your mind for the feedback your evaluators gave you), or were you open and embracing and saw the feedback your evaluators gave you as an opportunity to improve?
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