This article provides a comprehensive guide on configuring the process for a multi-source feedback system using EFS Leadership. It covers various aspects of setting up and managing feedback roles, statuses, and the feedback center.
Planning and Organization Tips
Proper planning is crucial for a successful multi-source feedback process. Consider the following aspects:
Dashboards and Reports
- Results Presentation: Plan how to present feedback results, using dashboards or reports, access levels, and availability phases.
- Additional Documents: Plan additional documents like general info or data privacy, access levels, and availability phases.
- Downloads: Organize downloads in the feedback center or as DIN A4 PDF dashboards.
Role Distribution
- Defining Roles: Identify participant groups, list access rights, and allocate roles.
- Participant Access Rights: Plan roles’ access to feedback center content, dialogs, reports, and dashboards. Determine access phases and specific permissions.
Process Progress
- Determine Feedback Statuses: Match statuses to feedback process situations and define triggers for status changes.
- Data Access: Specify accessible data (e.g., questionnaires, reports) for each status.
- Centralized Changes: Decide if status changes should be triggered centrally for all feedback.
- Automated Changes: Plan automated status changes and email notifications for these changes.
Defining Reports
First, define the reports based on feedback results. This is essential to:
- Know which reports various groups will access when defining roles and rights.
- Provide additional documents (e.g., feedback process info, privacy protection) to users from the start.
Configuring Feedback Roles
Roles such as “self-assessment”, “superior”, “direct report”, or “peer” are specified at the project’s start. Each role gets a unique ID for participant allocation, e.g., during import. Roles can be labeled bilingually and have defined acronyms. Roles determine questionnaire/report access and feedback center or Data Voyager dashboard access. Define roles in Process configuration → Roles.
Overview of Existing Roles
You can view and edit the roles of your project in the menu Projects → {Selected project} → Process configuration on the Roles tab.
Roles in Standard Configuration
The following table presents the default roles available. The role “self-assessment” cannot be deleted. But the configuration can be modified.
The table lists each role along with the following information:
- ID: Unique identifier of the role.
- Role: Label and abbreviation.
- Gets questionnaire: Indicates if role occupants participate as feedback providers.
- Min / Max: Minimum and maximum feedback providers for focus persons.
- Reports: Indicates if and which report the role occupants receive.
| Role | Abbreviation | Meaning in standard configuration |
|---|---|---|
| Self-assessment | SA | The role occupants are the subjects of feedback, i.e. the focus persons, and they are evaluated by the feedback providers. If configured accordingly, they will themselves receive a self-assessment questionnaire.In each feedback constellation, there can be only one person allocated to this role. |
| Superior | SU | The role owner is the direct superior of the respective focus person.In each feedback constellation, there can be only one person allocated to this role. |
| Direct reports | DR | The role owners are subordinated managers or subordinated staff of the respective focus person. |
| Peers | PE | The role owners are on the same hierarchic level as the focus person. |
Creating Roles
- In Projects → {Selected project} → Process configuration, click Create role on the Roles tab.
- The system assigns an ID to the role.
- Select a label and abbreviation.
- Specify which reports participants with this role will receive.
- Click Save to confirm.
Changing the Allocation of Roles to Reports
To change role allocations to reports later:
- Go to the role overview.
- Click the Edit icon to open the editing dialog.
- In the “Allocation of role to report” section, find all defined reports.
- Change the allocation as needed.
Defining Report Groups
A report group aggregates several roles for analysis and report generation. For example, to create a report group “Direct reports / Peers” based on roles 3 “Direct reports” (DR) and 4 “Peers” (PE):
- Configure the roles “Direct reports” and “Peers” as described.
- Go to Projects → {Selected project} → Process configuration → Report definition → Report groups.
- Define the new role “Direct reports / Peers” with criteria:
- Minimum return rate
- Minimum number of answers per item
- In “The report group contains the following roles”, select “Direct reports” and “Peers”.
- Confirm by clicking on Save.
To generate a report, each feedback role must have sufficient returns, with a configurable minimum (recommended at least “3”) to maintain anonymity. This prevents identifying specific feedback providers through clever splitting. The role “Superior” is an exception, as its answers can be identified.
Check actual returns in the statistics in the focus persons overview.
Configuring Feedback Statuses
Feedback statuses map complex workflows in EFS Leadership, describing the progress of the overall feedback process (Feedback phase → Reporting phase → Closure of process) and individual participants (Feedback phase → Feedback finished) in a specific feedback constellation.
Feedback Statuses in Detail
The table below lists the default feedback statuses. Processes related to these statuses depend on the specific feedback scenario. The “Default scenario” column describes the process in a default multi-source project without customization.
- Default statuses are fixed; only labels can be changed.
- The sequence of statuses is defined by the ID.
- Additional user-defined statuses should be between 5 (“Initial”) and 100 (“Process closed”).
- Only additional user-defined statuses can be deleted.
| ID | Label | Default scenario |
|---|---|---|
| 5 | Initial | The initial status of the feedback.When the focus person gets the invitation, he or she can log in to the feedback center. |
| 10 | Password changed | The focus person has logged in to the feedback center and changed the initial password. |
| 20 | Validation | The focus person has to validate the selected feedback providers. |
| 30 | Approved | The selected feedback providers have been approved. |
| 50 | Feedback | The feedback providers are invited to the feedback and complete the questionnaire.If the return is not satisfactory, reminders are sent.The focus person can access the return data and the dashboard. |
| 55 | Feedback finished | The feedback providers cannot access the questionnaire anymore, i.e. the result data of the feedback cannot change anymore.Usually, the focus person is still able to access the return data and the dashboard.Project management prepares the reports for download. |
| 60 | Reporting | The focus person and maybe other report recipients as well can download the reports in the feedback center. |
| 65 | Reporting finished | |
| 100 | Process closed | The feedback process is completely finished. The persons involved cannot access the reports in the feedback center anymore.If all feedback in the project has reached this phase, project management can finish the project. |
Overview of the Existing Feedback Statuses
You can view the feedback statuses of your feedback process in the Projects → {Selected project} → Process configuration menu on the Feedback status tab.
Creating Additional Feedback Statuses
In Projects → {Selected project} → Process configuration, open the Feedback status tab.
- In the last blank line, enter the ID, German, and English labels for the new status.
- Click Save to confirm.
- The status will be inserted according to its ID.
Changing the Feedback Status
Statuses can be changed in several places:
Manually:
- Set participants of all or selected waves to another status: Participant administration → “Actions” drop-down list.
- Set all or selected focus persons to another status: Participant administration → {Selected wave} → “Actions” drop-down list.
- Change the status of a single focus person: Participant administration → {Selected wave} → Edit focus person → Process information.
Automatically:
- Set all participants of a specific wave to another status.
- Set participants of a specific wave with specific statuses to another status.
Automating Status Changes
Set up automated status changes at predefined dates for efficient process management.
- Open Participant administration → Wave.
- Find the wave you want to modify and click the Edit wave icon.
- Click on Define status change.
- Specify the execution date.
- Select the “From status” (all or specific statuses).
- Set the “To status” (additional fields may appear based on this selection).
- Optionally, enter your email address to receive a notification.
- Confirm with Define status change.
Using Statuses for Access Control
During report definition, specify the status participants must have to download the report. Access to data and features in the feedback center depends on participants’ statuses.
Setting up and Configuring the Feedback Center
Multi-source feedback includes a default feedback center, which can serve as a central login for participants or a download platform, depending on the feedback process.
- TIVIAN typically sets up and configures the feedback center.
- Custom feedback processes often require special programming, which TIVIAN offers for a fee.
FAQ
What is the purpose of feedback roles?
Feedback roles define the functions and access rights of different participants in the feedback process, such as self-assessment, superior, direct reports, and peers.
How can I automate status changes in the feedback process?
You can set up automated status changes at predefined dates using the “Define status change” feature in the Wave settings of the Participant administration menu.
What are report groups and why are they useful?
Report groups aggregate multiple roles for analysis and report generation. They are useful for modifying role definitions or combining results from different roles when individual returns are too low.