The large financial service firm mentioned in short essay question 8 . 40 has decided to implement a 360-degree feedback system. Please give the firm recommendations on what characteristics it should look for in a good 360-feedback system

What will be an ideal response?

The recommendation is that the firm look for a system with the following characteristics:
• Anonymity. In good systems, feedback is anonymous and confidential.
• Observation of employee performance. Only those with good knowledge and firsthand experience with the person being rated should participate in the process.
• Feedback interpretation. Good systems allow the person being rated to discuss the feedback received with a person interested in the employee's development.
• Follow-up. Once feedback is received, it is essential that a developmental plan is created right away.
• Use for developmental purposes only. The information collected should not be used for making reward allocations or any other administrative decisions.
• Avoidance of survey fatigue. Survey fatigue can be avoided if individuals are not asked to rate too many employees at the same time.
• Emphasis on behaviors. Focusing on behaviors can lead to the identification of concrete actions the person rated can take to improve performance.
• Raters go beyond ratings. In addition to providing scores on the various dimensions, raters should also provide written descriptive feedback that gives detailed and constructive comments on how to improve performance.
• Raters are trained. Mainly, this includes skills to discriminate good from poor performance and how to provide feedback in a constructive manner.