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360-Degree Feedback: Definition, Best Practices & Examples 2025
Published on:
September 19, 2025
Traditional one-on-one reviews between manager and employee often miss the full context of daily workplace interactions. This gap is precisely what 360-degree feedback addresses.
360-degree feedback is an evaluation method that provides a holistic and multifaceted understanding of performance, skills, and team impact. It moves beyond a single perspective to provide richer, actionable insights.
We recognize the value of 360-degree feedback as a strategic tool shaping leadership, enhancing teamwork, and aligning individual and organizational growth.
With that, we created this article to explore the benefits, practical examples, and best practices of 360-degree feedback to help your organization fully utilize it to drive organizational success.
360-degree feedback is a performance evaluation method that collects input from multiple sources around an employee's work environment. Instead of relying on just one perspective, 360-degree feedback gives you insights from managers, peers, direct reports, and even external stakeholders.
The "360-degree" name reflects the comprehensive nature of this feedback process. Just like a full circle, it captures perspectives from every angle of an employee's professional interactions. The typical feedback sources include:
Compared to traditional manager-only reviews, 360-degree feedback provides a broader and more behaviorally focused evaluation from multiple perspectives. They differ significantly in both scope and depth, summarized in the table below:
A practical example of 360-degree feedback’s value comes from Cox Communications. They use 360-degree evaluations for new managers to signal organizational support and investment in their success.
Karen Bennett, Cox’s EVP and Chief People Officer, explains that though some managers might initially feel apprehensive, they soon recognize the process as a supportive tool signaling the organization’s investment in their success.
Managers are also encouraged to thank contributors, which reinforces a culture of appreciation and commitment to growth.
Modern workplaces rely on complex networks of collaboration, far beyond what a single manager can fully observe. This makes it difficult to capture the complete picture of an employee's true impact through traditional performance reviews.
In response, 360-degree feedback offers a holistic view that reflects the realities of today’s teamwork-driven environments. Here’s a list of statistics from highly credentialed resources, further outlining the importance of 360 feedback in the modern workplace:
The advantages of implementing 360-degree feedback extend far beyond traditional performance evaluation. Organizations see measurable improvements across multiple areas when they adopt this modern approach to performance management.
Effective 360-degree feedback requires careful planning. Yet, according to SHRM, 79% of workers surveyed would opt out if given the choice, and 74% view the results as unfair or biased.
Following best practices is crucial to build trust, ensure fairness, and unlock the full benefits of 360 feedback. Here are key best practices for successful implementation in 2025:
Before you even start, you need to establish a solid foundation. This means clearly defining the purpose of the feedback and ensuring the process is built on trust. For feedback to be genuine and useful, it must be decoupled from pay and promotion decisions.
When people know their honest input won't negatively impact a colleague's career or their own, they're more likely to provide valuable insights. Your framework should also guarantee complete anonymity. Participants must trust that their feedback won't be traced back to them, which is especially important for candid input about managers or sensitive issues..
Anonymous employee feedback is essential for honest, actionable insights. Participants must trust that their input won't be traced back to them, especially when providing feedback about managers or sensitive performance issues.
Use a feedback software that guarantees anonymity and clearly communicates privacy protections to all participants. Teamflect is a great example of such software. We built our platform with the understanding that a trust foundation is critical for collecting meaningful feedback.
Choose feedback providers who have regular, meaningful interactions with the person being evaluated. Quality matters more than quantity when selecting reviewers.
Typically include 3 to 5 people from each category (peers, direct reports, etc.) who can provide specific, relevant observations about the employee's performance and behavior.
Design questions that align with your organization's competency framework and the specific role being evaluated. Mix behavioral questions with skills-based assessments for comprehensive insights.
Focus on observable behaviors rather than personality traits. This approach provides more actionable feedback and reduces subjective bias in responses.
Train both feedback providers and recipients on how to give and receive constructive feedback effectively. This preparation significantly improves the quality of insights generated through the process.
Offer resources and support for interpreting results and creating development plans based on the feedback received.
The real value of 360 feedback comes from what happens after data collection. Work with employees to create specific, measurable action plans based on their feedback results.
Set follow-up checkpoints to review progress and adjust development strategies as needed. Without this implementation phase, even the best feedback becomes meaningless.
Don't limit 360 feedback to annual cycles. Learning how to create a feedback culture means making comprehensive input a regular part of your organizational rhythm.
Integrate informal 360 feedback opportunities throughout the year to support ongoing development and relationship building.
Effective questions focus on specific behaviors and competencies rather than general impressions. Here are practical 360-degree feedback examples organized by key skill areas.
Communication Skills
Collaboration and Teamwork
Leadership and Decision-Making
Adaptability and Problem-Solving
Growth and Development
The best and easiest way to implement 360-degree feedback is to use the right tool. There are plenty of incredible feedback platforms out there but when it comes to integrating 360-degree feedback into Microsoft Teams and Outlook, we strongly recommend that you try the highest-rated performance management solution in the Microsoft Teams App Store: Teamflect.
Whether you are inside the Microsoft Teams App Store or the Outlook App Store, simply search for Teamflect.
Since Teamflect uses your Microsoft Account to log-in and draws your organizational chart directly from Entra ID (Formerly Azure AD), you won’t need to spend any extra time setting up or adding users manually!
Once you’ve added Teamflect as an app inside Teams, you need to choose the feedback module and go to the tab “My 360-Feedback”. From there you can reach all of your feedback templates that are ongoing or previously conducted surveys.
360-Degree feedback inside Teamflect is comprised of three main sections:
The self-assessment section involves the individual the particular 360-degree feedback cycle is centered around answering feedback questions about themselves and contributing with their own perspective.
The “Feedback Providers” section includes feedback received from:
When a feedback request is sent, the feedback providers receive an easy-to-complete 360-degree feedback template through Microsoft Teams or Outlook and deliver their feedback with ease. Once complete the only step left is analysis.
Once the surveys have been filled out you’ll be presented with an in depth analysis of the results to your 360-degree feedback.
While you can read the results yourself, you can also choose to summarize the results with our built-in AI feature and make the process easier and more efficient.
360-degree feedback can be integrated into different facets of performance management with ease to provide leaders and employees alike with a more complete perspective on each other.
When using a complete performance management solution like Teamflect, you can integrate 360-degree employee review questions into performance appraisal, integrating perspectives from direct reports, peers, external parties, and managers, into an individual’s performance appraisal.
360-degree feedback provides the comprehensive insights your organization needs to develop talent and improve performance across all levels.
Teamflect makes implementing 360 feedback simple and effective within your existing Microsoft Teams and Outlook workflow. With anonymous feedback collection, AI-powered analysis, and seamless integration with your current tools, you can start gathering meaningful insights immediately.
Schedule a demo with us today and see how 360-degree feedback can improve performance management in your organization.
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