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Remember the last time you heard a car backfire? It probably scared you. "Who's shooting at me?" People have the same kind of fear about feedback.

We've all seen individuals suddenly, without warning, explode at someone with whom they're upset. If that's feedback, it certainly gives feedback a bad name. It's frightening.

So if you're planning to bring 360-degree feedback into your workplace, there's reason to wonder whether people will embrace it, or run for the hills.

The key answer to that concern is two words: executive leadership.

Feedback Vs Culture

Let's face it, frank feedback is not valued in every organization. It feels safer to tell people whatever we guess they want to hear. If we see an individual going off the tracks, it's tempting to avert our eyes and say nothing.

And it's definitely more comfortable not to hear loud scary noises from other people about changes they think we should make.

That's why organizations formalize feedback. It allows them to control it, with feedback coming from only one direction, from responsible manager to subordinate.

When you invite feedback from all directions, it can be a shock to the organization. People get anxious about what they will hear.

Responders worry about crossing the thin line between honesty and brutality. And they wonder whether they'll be punished for being frank.

Ask Your Leaders To Lead

So if you want employees to give their trust and dedication to feedback, your leaders must put their reputations to work.

They should take every opportunity to explain that feedback is not the flavor of the month, but a policy that will make the workplace more productive and satisfying.

Generally, 360-degree feedback is most successful when the first people to use it are the executive group. That provides more credibility than a thousand well-crafted memos.

And when leaders talk about their own experience with feedback, it has tremendous positive power: "I got feedback from the people around me. I thought it would be upsetting. But they told me honestly where I needed to improve my skills, and now I'm working on it."

Hearing that, even employees who are easily frightened by loud noises, are likely to give 360-degree feedback an honest try.

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