June 30th, 2009 | Published in Measuring Performance
360-degree feedback and six-monthly reviews have been introduced to make performance management more effective.
In this article from People Management, the group HR Director at RBS talks about growing too fast, getting the right people in place, and how 360 Degree Feedback is going to drive behaviour and change in the company.
June 11th, 2009 | Published in 360 Degree Feedback, Employee engagement, Measuring Performance, Training Management, Work Life Balance, motivation
This article has some compelling reasons why we need to know our weaknesses and why we need to get feedback from people around us.
Our brains are designed to overlook our own flaws and weaknesses and to feel more confident about our skills than is realistic (how many people do you know who think they’re a much better driver than average?…I know an awful lot of them, inculding myself!).  This being the case, feedback from others on specific areas and behaviours is essential if we are going to improve, whether in work or elsewhere.Â
 So for organisations, making sure that people get structured, focused 360 Degree Feedback is even more important, because the success and maybe even the survival of the organisation depends on people performing at their best, and knowing where they need to improve.
June 9th, 2009 | Published in 360 Degree Feedback, Employee engagement, Measuring Performance, Training Management, Work Life Balance, motivation | 1 Comment
If you’ve been following The Apprentice, as we have been here at Track, you’ll remember the interview episode (Episode 11). I was struck by how often the candidates talked about the feedback they had received throughout the series, how they felt, and what they were going to do about it.Â
May 19th, 2009 | Published in Measuring Performance | 1 Comment
Whilst browsing for gossip about the current series of The Apprentice (the Track team are a bit obsessed with TA), I found this old article by Charlie Brooker (warning, don’t read the full article if you don’t like bad language).
Here’s a flavour :
“Clearly, no one’s ever taken them aside and said, “Er, you sound like a bit of a bell-end here. Perhaps you ought to sit down and be quiet.” What they need is a good slagging off.
Being slagged off is good for you. It thickens the skin and strengthens the backbone.
And every week, without fail, various world-weary travellers will stop by to tell me I’m not as good as I used to be, or wasn’t any good to start with, or have bored them into the afterlife, or can’t write, or can’t think, or should stop typing immediately and drown myself in the bath, assuming I can manage that, which I probably can’t, what with being so rubbish and all.
Now, when you read stuff like that, your brain does two things at once: on the one hand, it marvels at the haughty self-importance of the failing human sneer who bothered writing it. And on the other, it agrees with every word they say….”
As an L&D professional I believe that feedback should be positive and constructive, and we always advise our clients to give their employees lots of support around the feedback process, not use it as a stick to beat them with.
But maybe Charlie does have a point here…sometimes the feedback you hate the most is the one that has a real grain of truth about it. And maybe that’s the feedback that’s going to make the most difference to your work, and maybe even your life….?
May 18th, 2009 | Published in Measuring Performance
We’re very excited at Track today. After months of development and testing, a pre-launch test with some of our friends and colleagues last week, and some tweaks and additions to the buttons and the Help files, I’m delighted to say that Empower 360 is now officially launched!
Aware of the changes in the current world of learning, development and performance review, we’ve based Empower 360 on our own online system that we’ve been providing to our client since 2004. But we’ve now built a special version for L&D and HR professionals, that you can set up easily, quickly and either with your own or our standards competencies and questions.
You just type in your 360 questions, set your timetable, type in the names of your 360 participants (reviewees, the people who are going to get feedback), press the button, and it’s happening! Requests for feedback go out automatically when reviewees choose their reviewers, so there’s nothing for you to do. You can track progress and see what feedback’s come in.
And best of all, the final report is generated automatically, so all you have to do is bring it up on the screen and print it.
Prices start at £35 per person, extremely good value.
We’re offering lots of goodies for anyone who wants to try out Empower 360 for free. There’s an offer of a Flip portable camcorder on the website, and an Amazon voucher if you contact us direct and register for a trial.
Go on, give it a go, and tell us what you think.
May 7th, 2009 | Published in Measuring Performance
We’re delighted to say that today saw the pre-launch phase of Track’s new Empower 360 - an online, professional quality 360 Degree Feedback that’s customisable, really easy to use and won’t max out your budget. More news will follow shortly.
April 15th, 2009 | Published in Measuring Performance
In this piece, the writer speculates about the health effects of (negative) feedback.
As with most human actions, there are good ways of giving feedback and terrible ways….the quick, sharp comment that we’re all guilty of sometimes isn’t good feedback. In fact, saying “Why on earth did you do it that way?!” doesn’t qualify as feedback at all!.
That doesn’t mean feedback is not a good idea though. Without feedback, how do we know how we’re doing?
- Feedback is not about general snide comments, put-downs or verbal abuse, or having your ideas rejected…it’s about giving someone an example of a specific thing they did or said and its effect, which can be good or bad.
- Feedback can also be very positive, encouraging and motivating. It can also be incredibly helpful if it’s specific and given immediately.
- Finally, with regard to the study, I would question a study that can relate performance changes to a specific activity (in this case feedback). Also, if one third of all studies showed a one-third decline, can we assume that two-thirds showed an improvement…?
April 1st, 2009 | Published in Measuring Performance
In this two-part article on coaching and mentoring for lawyers, the writer discusses the billable hours pressure that lawyers work under, and how coaching and mentoring can both increase engagement and help to improve performance.
“What you do with your billable time is revenue. What you do with your non-billable time is your future.â€
- David Maister
To measure and manage performance with smart 360 Degree Feedback and Appraisal for legal professionals, visit us at Empower Legal, or contact us on 020 7206 7279 for a free trial for you and your colleagues.
March 17th, 2009 | Published in Measuring Performance
I’ve written before about the importance of saying thanks for feedback, and how it helps your relationships and encourages your colleagues to give you more feedback in the future.
In this video clip from Neil Kirby, one of Britain’s Top Coaches, Neil explains (with the help of several pairs of socks!), how saying thank you also helps you to reflect and build your own positive mindset.
For more information, and to vote for Britain’s Top Coach, go to Britain’s Next Top Coach.
March 17th, 2009 | Published in Measuring Performance
The dangerous 360 appraisal and where was HR? The FSA and the banking crisis
Read this article in Personnel Today by clicking on the link, and see our response below:
It’s not the 360 Degree Feedback itself that’s dangerous here, but rather, as you point out, its use as a box ticking exercise.
The bigger issue of course is the incestous relationship between the bankers and the regulator, which was made so patently obvious in the recent news about James Crosby.
Being clear on purpose, relationships and outcomes is critical if 360 Degree Feedback is going to be meaningful. But don’t criticise the hammer if the workman’s not up to the job!
