Blog Post

Strengths-based learning requires “knowing your strengths and investing in others’ strengths” to build better teams and develop leadership skills. This approach can lead to significant increases in traditional markers of organizational success like productivity, retention, and customer satisfaction. Focusing on strengths helps businesses and employees alike.  Only 13% of today’s workforce is engaged at work but that number rises dramatically to 67% when managers focus on employees’ strengths.  

360 degree assessments offer well-rounded feedback that helps managers develop an engaged strengths-based culture.

SurveyConnect’s approach to 360 degree assessments emphasizes a balanced approach; if fact we recommend the following open-ended questions for a 360 review:

“ What do you value most about working with this person?” and “What would make this person more effective in their job?”

When participants are reviewing their 360 individual reports, they look for themes in these areas – it is as important to play to strengths as it is to focus on potential ineffective areas of performance.  There are key advantages to looking at  strengths through a 360 degree lens:

•           By identifying what your employees are good at, you can move the right person into team projects and new positions. Making these decisions based on strengths allows the employees to feel more competent and develops more efficiency. 
•       These reviews are especially helpful for developing high-performing employees because the resulting action plans challenge them. Employees that show passion and independence thrive in a strengths-based culture.
•       One of the biggest criticisms of the annual review and feedback process is that it makes employees suspicious and defensive. Focusing on strengths helps to encourage rather than critique and discourage them.
•       One of the most commonly praised benefits of 360 degree review is its ability to promote self-awareness in employees who typically self-rate alongside peer, manager, and subordinate ratings. This comparison offers individuals several different perspectives on their behaviors and skills. They can use this set of data to refer to when deciding how to prioritize their goals and how best to use their strengths.

360 degree assessments offer the feedback needed to support a strengths-based culture. Both the human and business side of Human Resources benefit from this approach.

Related Posts

Learn more about SurveyConnect's approach to giving feedback  

Sample SurveyConnect's simple to read, balanced reports 

References

1. Strengths-Based Employee Development Business Results I Gallup
2. The Emerging Practice of Strength-Based Recruitment I Nicky Garcea