We have already looked at one form of external feedback in Part 7 of this series –client/customer reviews. But, it doesn’t end with the end user. Some employees spend a good amount of time dealing with vendors and suppliers, who should be seen not as expendable commodities but as valued, trusted members of the extended team. Thus, employee evaluation forms from vendors and suppliers are another type of external feedback that comprises the 360-degree feedback paradigm. It can be a crucial clue into how well the employee plays with others.

As you know, the performance appraisal model is shifting to a more holistic approach whereby employees can be evaluated from multiple angles: by their peers, managers, subordinate staff, self-assessment, clients and customers, and vendors and suppliers. This 360 degree feedback can be a more accurate measure of an employee’s performance; after all, a supervisor might only witness a tiny percentage of their employees’ contribution compared to the vendors and suppliers they are responsible for dealing with every day.

Feedback from vendors and suppliers can be used as part of an overall strategy to reinforce organizational goals or values, or as a diagnostic tool for problems at the supply chain level. One of the things to assess before soliciting this kind of feedback is, Why? Don’t forget to diagnose your company’s needs first and make sure the climate is conducive (i.e. there are no anxiety-inducing downsizing or management transitions occurring) before introducing external feedback. Vendor/supplier employee evaluation forms can result in:

While there’s no doubt that vendors and suppliers will be pleased to provide feedback – in part because almost no one ever asks them to – there is still the question of what to ask. Employee evaluation forms concerning vendors cannot ask questions over which the employee has no control, such as issues of pricing or company purchasing policy. The questions, therefore, must be more behavioural in nature. Think of assessing:

With any kind of external employee evaluation forms, the value of the process may be lost to resistance unless the employee is offered professional help to interpret the results. But if the feedback is delivered by a positive HR professional who knows how to connect this data to the employee’s work goals, and demonstrate how vendors’ perceptions may be blocking her from reaching those goals, the employee will be motivated to change her behaviour for the better.