Robert Burns’ poetry isn’t to everyone’s taste. But we’ve got to admit he was well ahead of the game. This week, we’ve been reading obituaries of Stan Lee, creator of superheroes. Not even Spiderman, though, has the gift to see himself as others see him.
In the world of business, 360 – degree appraisals have been fashionable for some time, so long as your firm has the resources and sees you and your role as important enough.
These exercises can be fraught with risk: nuggets of gold can be unearthed to help us improve, but the surrounding dross can be toxic. This all-round review can prompt questions like ‘Who said that about me?’ or ‘Why haven’t they said that to my face?’.
And the process can get a bad name if we suspect our bosses are using it to help them avoid telling us straight what they think themselves.
I’m an advocate for a different approach.
I don’t suggest this should replace the 360 – degree programme your firm’s going to put in place when it’s completed all that careful planning and budgeting. You might have a go at this, though, while you’re waiting for that programme to be piloted, rolled out and owned…
You don’t need to click on any links or email any surveys. You do, though, have to take a bit of time, and you need to think.
Up. What frustrates you about your boss? And what behaviours do you admire? Step back and weigh your thoughts. When you do this, you’re doing more than listing debits and credits for someone else, you’re also highlighting for yourself some habits that you think are important. Do you think your colleagues around you might find those same things relevant to their jobs, too?
Perhaps you feel your boss keeps you in the dark, falling down on communication?
Across. Taking that theme of Communication, how do you think your peers would rate you? Might they say about you those very same things you say about your manager? Be honest. Be frank. No one’s listening to your thoughts but you.
Down. Now take a different vantage point. Put yourself in the position of each person who reports to you. Take them one by one. In your mind’s eye, hand to them that very same telescope that you yourself had focused on your boss. What kind of deal does each individual get from you? Put yourself on the spot, and demand facts. What words would be used to describe you as a communicator? Good or bad, what’s the evidence?
When you’ve done this thinking, what are you now going to change to make things better?
You can cover all of this on a Tube journey to work. Or if your superpowers get you there more quickly that, just ask yourself one question: ‘What must it be like, working for me?’.