Most people do not know or are not honest with themselves regarding their weaknesses. Many companies use a 360 degree assessment tool which is very effective in identifying an individual’s weakness irrespective of his personal belief. This tool is online, discreet, and administered by Human Resource (HR) Department. The questions covers all aspects of the subject person’s personality, management style, strengths, weaknesses, and performance. Each person was required to conduct a 360 degree assessment which meant he/she would identify 3-4 peers each for subordinates, supervisors and management people to conduct the assessment. HR would send the notice out requesting inputs from these people. The HR would review the results of the assessment with the subject person. Then the subject person was required to call a meeting with the raters and explain his/her actions to rectify any issues or weaknesses identified.
At times people says that they don’t care about the 360 degree feedback as it is easy to point out other’s mistakes and very difficult to praise others. They think that people always forget the good work done by others and remember only the bad part of the relationship so 360 degree feedback is not of much relevance. But this perception is wrong, if 70% or more is pointing out regarding certain weakness of yours then you need to take it very seriously.
Steps to manage this type of weaknesses
- Find a good mentor inside or outside your organization
- Someone with the experience to help you to gain more insight of your weakness
- Ensure you work really seriously and it must start reflecting in your work and attitude after a certain duration
- Work towards improving the quality, so that it can be sustained with regard to your assigned tasks.
As far as the perceptions of others (I worked on upward evaluation projects; those are enlightening), it’s important to remember that there is a difference between reality and the perception of reality. Or, as someone once said, “There’s three sides to every story – yours, mine and the truth.”
People who prefer to work with their current employer even if they feel there is no room for further growth, are the ones with the weakness “an inability to adapt”. At times in job interviews recruiters ask your strengths and weaknesses. They often come across as unsure as to why they are asking the question, but they do because it’s on the list (is that their greatest weakness?). Smart people play with words and choose a weakness which are actually their strength so that they can turn the interview in their favour. For example they say “I am very work focused, and at times I get so much involved in my work that I don’t pay attention to anyone around resulting in leaving an impression that I am too arrogant.” Some people say “I enjoy helping others and solving their problems and this at times delay the work assigned to me. “
Use your own discretion while listing out the weaknesses pointed out by others. If you want to prioritize, give highest priority to the ones mentioned by your peer levels as they are neither your team member nor your boss, thus their feedback would be the most genuine one. Work on the areas of improvement as it would help you a lot in the long run.
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