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Performance Appraisal »

implement 360 degree performance appraisals in federal government

The federal government needs to move to 360 degree performance appraisals, in which more than just a person's boss opines about an employee's performance in his or her job. It is too easy for a boss to be subjective, without a check of getting the views of the employee's peers and subordinates. It's very easy, for example, for a manager or executive to look good to his or her boss, but be just an awful manager of his or her subordinates. Many higher-level executives never learn how badly their subordinate managers and executives are doing, because they do not care to gather input from the subordinates of their subordinates, or they do not have a systematic way to do so. 360 reviews require work and forethought to operate correctly, but if you have worked for awful bosses before, the opportunity cost of not evaluating them is quite high. Technology might be able to play a facilitating role in this, but OPM and the protectors of the merit system would need to devote a lot of thought and care to how to do this.

Submitted by ctb14 2 years ago

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Comments (5)

  1. tripp said:

    360 degree performance appraisals will make things worse. We already look to the individual too much as the source of problems. We need to realize that performance is 95% the system (work design, technology, management thinking, method, etc) and 5% is the individual. Why work on the 5%? PAs will only add more waste.

    2 years ago
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  2. Stephen Buckley said:

    I agree that individuals are very rarely

    the root-cause of poor performance.

    However, if "the system" is the problem, i.e.,

    it's making people act a certain way, then to

    find the root-cause in the system, you have to

    have a way to raise the issue for discussion.

    And that means talking about why a person

    (your boss) is doing something a certain way

    that is contributing to poor performance (or

    preventing better performance) by his/her

    employees.

    See my idea for raising "undiscussable" issues

    by allowing govt. employees to use anonymous

    online system:

    http://opengov.ideascale.com/akira/dtd/2481-4049

    vr,

    Stephen Buckley

    http://www.UStransparency.com

    2 years ago
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  3. tripp said:

    Sorry, focusing on the boss (still an individual) wrong thing righter. The root cause is the system. By studying the system we are discussing the "undiscussable" with better thinking. See www.newsystemsthinking.com for more info The problem is our thinking, not our people.

    If we have to resort to an anonymous system than the thinking hasn't changed. We are hiding from failure when the dialogue and emphasis should be to seek failure out.

    2 years ago
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  4. Tax Payer & Civil Servant said:

    Early in my federal career I had implemented a process whereby my staff could provide performance feedback directly to my supervisor during the rating period. It was anonymous. AFGE stepped in and stated that since it wasn't 'negotiated' the employees were not allowed to rate me so it was discontinued. AFGE even disclosed that when they interviewed the bargaining unit employees none of them took issue with participating in the 360 and they had never felt it was being used against them.

    I actually received very valuable and contructive feedback from my staff using this tool.

    I think everyone, not just managers, should have 360 reviews at rating periods. It's easy to weed out those that are showing favortism and/or those that have an 'issue' with the person. Maybe consider throwing out the high and low ratings and then average.

    2 years ago
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  5. william ward said:

    As a Chief Steward for AFGE i can tell you what the problem was. it wasnt that you wanted a system for input. It was that you did not negotiate it first with the Union. Even tho you may be a great Supervisor and would never use something like a 360 performance appraisal from one of your emloyees as a basis for reprisal that doesnt mean that there is not supervisors that would. i think it is a great idea and would be very helpful if it is done right with safe quards in place.

    2 years ago
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