When you think of professional development in any military organization, you probably think of someone coarsely yelling at an individual in order to motivate them, and not a 360 degree assessment program. However, the reality is the exact opposite.

Retired Senior Chief Officer Jim Murphy recently discussed the U.S. Navy’s culture of professional development on usni.org. He commented that “constructive criticism from peers and subordinates provides new viewpoints and recommendations to assist professionals in their pursuit of continuous improvement.”

He went on to discuss how this culture has fostered a great deal of success in the Navy and how it helped lead to the development of 360 degree reviews.

Bill Ackerly of the Army’s Mission Command Center of Public Affairs recently echoed Murphy’s sentiments, saying in a news article that the Army is implementing a “new leader development program in the Army’s Multi-Source Assessment and Feedback.”

This is yet another 360 degree assessment program. That is great for the military, but will it work for your organization? The answer to this question is a resounding yes. Here’s why!

Your employees don’t like to show up to work every day not knowing whether or not they have performed well enough to earn that much sought-after promotion, or if they are on the cusp of being fired.

The water cooler rumor mill should not be an employee’s primary source for this information. This causes the wrong messages to be disseminated in the worst possible way. On the other hand, 360 degree feedback allows your employees to gain a comprehensive understanding of what they are doing right and wrong, and how their actions affect the team.

How can a person improve if they don’t know where to start? Most performance review systems only tell people what they are doing wrong and then demand that they find a way to fix it.

A 360 degree form connects people with a path to improving every skill necessary for success within an organization. This helps employee development happen at a much faster rate.

As Jim Murphy said, 360 degree evaluations include constructive criticism from not only supervisors, but also peers and subordinates. This breaks down the wall that normally stands between people and performance assessments, because it may be easy to perceive your boss as having an out of touch perspective.

A 360 degree approach allows people to see how they are affecting peers and can get them back in touch with how their actions affect their subordinates.

You don’t have to be a part of the military for your organization to enjoy the benefits of 360 degree assessments. At Grapevine Evaluations, our feedback tool is trusted across a broad range of industries. If you are looking to improve your employee evaluations, please schedule a one-on-one demo with us today!