How to Use 360-Degree Feedback to Support Mentee Growth

One of the most powerful tools in mentoring isn’t giving advice—it’s helping your mentee understand how others see them.

That’s where 360-degree feedback comes in.

Unlike traditional feedback, which often flows from manager to employee, 360-degree feedback gathers insights from multiple sources: peers, supervisors, direct reports, and sometimes even clients. This full-circle view offers a clearer, more honest picture of strengths, blind spots, and growth opportunities.

In a mentoring relationship, this becomes a goldmine of insights. Used with care, it builds trust, opens dialogue, and creates a clear path to growth. And that’s exactly what we’re diving into today. As a mentor, you can help your mentee make sense of this feedback, turn it into a development plan, and use it to grow with confidence and clarity.

What Is 360-Degree Feedback?

360-degree feedback is a structured way to gather input from those who regularly work with your mentee. It includes observations on communication, leadership, collaboration, emotional intelligence, decision-making, and more.

Unlike a traditional performance review, your mentee gets a complete view of how they are perceived from multiple sources. This tool captures a diversity of voices. This might include their boss, peers, direct reports, and cross-functional colleagues. The result? A much more well-rounded picture of behavior, strengths, and development needs.  That’s a game changer.

It’s not about judgment—it’s about perspective.

Why It Matters in Mentoring

Mentoring is about growth—and growth starts with awareness. The mentee may believe they’re great at communication, but their team might feel differently. Or they might underestimate how much others respect their calm under pressure.

Here’s what 360-degree feedback brings to the table:

• Broader Insight: Different people see different behaviors. Your feedback will highlight those consistent behaviors observed, good or bad. This helps identify themes your mentee might overlook.

  
  

• Self-Awareness: Reveals blind spots your mentee may not notice. Many people over- or under-estimate their abilities. Real-world observations bring clarity.

  
  

• Hidden Strengths: Your mentee may discover things they do well that they hadn’t considered strengths.

  
  

• Targeted Growth and Development: This includes possible leadership potential and the ability to target development areas. Once you know what’s working—and what isn’t—you can tailor your mentoring sessions around real opportunities for improvement.

  
  

And in a mentoring relationship, it creates a shared roadmap you can explore together.

How to Introduce It to Your Mentee

Start with context and reassurance. Explain that this process is meant to support their growth—not evaluate their worth.

You might say:

This tool will give us a more complete picture of how you’re doing. It helps us understand how others experience you—what they appreciate, where they’d like to see you grow, and what you might not be seeing yet. We’ll use it to shape our work together. As we set intentional goals—not to judge or criticize.”

Then walk them through what to expect:

• Who will be giving feedback

• What kind of questions they’ll answer

• How the results will be shared

• What you’ll do with that information together

Building a Feedback Tool

If your company already uses a structured feedback tool, great. If not, you can build a simple and effective one. Keep it simple but meaningful. Use a combination of:

• Rating scales (e.g., 1–5) to assess core skills

• Open-ended questions for context and real examples

Key areas might include:

• Communication clarity

• Collaboration

• Problem-solving

• Leadership potential

• Accountability

• Emotional intelligence

Example questions:

“How does this individual respond to feedback, especially under pressure?”

“What strengths does this person bring to the team?”

“In what areas could they be more effective?”

“How do they respond to feedback or conflict?”

“How well do they lead, support, or collaborate with others?”

From Chapter 3 of The Mentoring Blueprint, you’ll find a ready-made 360-degree template that mentors can adapt for any role. It also includes a scoring worksheet, so you can spot trends and outliers quickly. You can also build your own template using Google Forms or Survey Monkey.

Choosing the Right Feedback Participants

Your mentee should gather input from a diverse set of voices. You want a balanced mix of people who work with your mentee closely:

• A manager or supervisor

• 2-3 Peers they regularly collaborate with

• 1-2 Direct reports (if applicable)

• Cross-functional partners or clients if they work externally

Aim for at least 6–8 respondents to balance the view. If the group is too small, feedback might skew personal or vague. Too large, and it becomes overwhelming.

Reviewing the Results Together

Once the feedback is collected, don’t just send the report. Schedule a time to walk through it together. It’s important to meet in a safe, supportive environment to discuss it.

Start by identifying:

Patterns: Are there repeated mentions of strengths or gaps?

Consensus: Are different groups seeing the same behaviors?

Surprises: What caught your mentee by surprise?

Begin with strengths. Help them celebrate what’s working:

• “It looks like your team really values your reliability and organization.”

•  “You’re seen as calm under pressure—does that surprise you?”

Then, gently shift to areas for development:

• ·“Several people mentioned they’d like to hear your ideas more in meetings. What do you think about that?”

• “There’s a pattern around follow-through on deadlines. Let’s unpack that a little.”

Encourage Self-Reflection

Ask your mentee:

• “What surprised you most?”

• “Which feedback aligns with your own self-view?”

• “How do you want to grow from here?”

It’s important that you normalize vulnerability. Remind your mentee that feedback is a gift—one they can grow from with guidance and intention.

Approach it as a conversation:

“Let’s look at this together and find areas to explore—not to dwell on the negative, but to look for growth.”

Help them focus on a few key takeaways, such as:

• “You’re widely seen as reliable, but people are unsure about your ability to lead team discussions.”

• “Your peers value your insights but want you to speak up more.”

Turning Feedback into Action

Now that you’ve identified the focus areas, it’s time to act.

• Highlight 2–3 Focus Areas (Themes)

  Pull out the top 2–3 areas that matter most to their current or future role. Maybe it’s communication clarity, leadership presence, or cross-team collaboration.

• Create SMART Goals

  Tie these themes to measurable goals. For example:

- “Facilitate at least one team meeting per month and gather feedback afterward.”_

-“Reach out to three people in other departments this quarter to collaborate on shared goals.”

-“Practice leading the next three team meetings and ask for real-time feedback afterward.”

• Build in Checkpoints

  Use mentoring sessions to revisit goals, reflect on progress, and adjust as needed. Use the follow-up template (also in Chapter 3) to revisit these goals each month. This keeps progress visible and momentum strong.

Real-World Examples

Lisa, a project manager

Lisa’s feedback revealed that while her team loved her reliability, other departments didn’t know her well. She wasn’t being considered for leadership roles because her influence didn’t extend beyond her team.

Together, we created visibility goals:

• Volunteer to lead cross-team meetings

• Join a company-wide committee

• Share project wins in public forums

Three months later, she was asked to co-lead a high-visibility initiative.

Andre, a new supervisor

Andre’s direct reports saw him as competent but distant. He rarely checked in and only gave formal feedback.

His mentoring goals became:

• Schedule weekly 1:1s with each team member

• Add informal “coffee chats” to his routine

• Use follow-up templates to document feedback loops

This improved morale and led to a stronger team connection—and better results.

Keep Feedback Confidential—but Useful

Remind your mentee that confidentiality builds trust. Feedback should never be shared without permission or used in punitive ways. It’s a gift—meant to guide, not punish.

You can even create a one-page feedback summary to track:

• Key strengths they want to maintain

• Areas of improvement and why they matter

• New habits or actions they’ll take based on feedback

Use this as a benchmark to compare future feedback and measure growth.

Final Thoughts: A Mirror for Growth

Feedback can be hard to hear—but this 360-degree feedback is one of the most valuable tools in mentoring. It shows your mentee how they’re seen, where they shine, and where they can stretch.

When used with care and strategy, it becomes more than a report—it becomes a mirror for growth.

As a mentor, you have the unique role of walking alongside your mentee as they absorb and respond to this input. You’re not just handing them that mirror—you’re helping them interpret the reflection and build the next version of themselves with confidence.

Coming Up in Our Next Blog:

In our final post in this series, we’ll explore how to introduce strategic thinking into your mentoring conversations. We’ll go beyond immediate wins and look at how to prepare them for long-term leadership and career visioning.