Assessment Design
180 and 360 degree review questionnaires
180 degree assessment or review is commonly used for developmental purposes and often linked to performance reviews and appraisals. 360 degree review is also often used in this context, and for more detailed development reviews such as management and leadership development programmes.
The assessment methods are typically questionnaires, the design of which has a fundamental impact on the quality of the data gathered and the ability to interpret the feedback.
Sample question from a 360 degree review using a Frequency rating scale.
Design Approach
Our design service will help you maximise the benefits of these valuable review processes to improve performance and develop the potential of your staff, by addressing these key design considerations:
- Length of questionnaire. Reviewer fatigue, were reviewers are asked to complete very long questionnaires is a common pitfall of these reviews. It can be observed through a high proportion of median and not/applicable ratings and little detail provided in written comments. We design these out by creating differentiated questionnaires by reviewer group.
- Mix of rating and open questions. Rating style questions enable statistical analysis and direct comparisons to be made; open questions provide rich evidential feedback. We will ensure your questionnaire uses the appropriate mix of types of questions for the purpose of the assessment.
- Choice of suitable rating scale. Many of the available rating-scales are open to differences in interpretation when used in competence assessment, resulting to ambiguous or misleading feedback. For example a scale that asks the reviewer to rate how well the person performs a task, or whether they perform it to an acceptable standard are vulnerable to widely different perceptions of what good or acceptable performance is. We will ensure the rating-scale used allows reviewers to provide consistent, objective feedback.
As well as designing the questionnaires we can also help you implement or improve the assessment or review process.
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