An in-depth and far-reaching interview with MultiRater Surveys’ Managing Director, Mark Purbrick, drills deeply into how the right 360 degree assessment tool can help to find, recruit, and retain the very best talent in this difficult market.
Companies face challenges in keeping and motivating staff at the moment. The “Great Resignation” and “Quiet Quitting” movements are impacting on businesses across all sectors and industries, while at the same time very low unemployment is making it difficult to find the right people to fill a gap.
As Mark says in his interview on SourceForge, retention in the current workplace environment – and having a positive company reputation to boost recruitment – comes down to having a deep understanding of the dynamics at play. This is particularly true of the relationships that managers and leaders have with their staff.
“The benefit of utilising a 360 degree survey is that you can obtain a snapshot of three things within the organisation: how business leaders and managers view themselves, their strengths and development areas and how their direct reports view them,” Mark said in the interview.
“This is one of the only ways to form a complete picture of workplace dynamics. In addition, it provides the opportunity to address cultural and leadership issues before they result in good people quitting.”
Often leaders don’t realise when their employees and reports don’t view them in a positive manner. For example, one common point of contrast is that a leader might think that they’re flexible and instil trust in their staff, but the employees feel like they’re being stifled and micromanaged. These conflicts are difficult to be transparent about in the normal feedback loops within a workplace, which is why the 360 degree assessment tool is such a valuable resource. Anonymous and designed around constructive feedback, this tool can help you resolve the gap between what a leader thinks of themselves, and what their employees think of their work.
This kind of information often comes out during the exit survey, but by then it’s too late, and criticism of management can be easier to overlook when managers can dismiss it as a final complaint of an aggrieved employee. To minimise churn and ensure a positive, transparent, and productive working environment, it’s important to stay on top of the culture, and that means a continual feedback loop that avoids blame or retribution, and allows members at all levels of the organisation to continue to grow, develop their skills, and contribute to the company culture.
Contact MultiRater Surveys today to discuss what a 360 degree assessment tool can do for your business, and read the full and in-depth interview with Mark on SourceForge here.