The moderating role of 360-degree appraisal between engagement and innovative behaviors

Purpose: Engaged employees are a critical asset in any business. This is largely because engaged employees tend to proffer innovative solutions to complex problems in the workplace. The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between engagement and innovation as moderated by the use of 360-degree evaluation. Design/methodology/approach: A survey targeting employees in Lebanon solicited their perceptions of 360-degree evaluation, engagement and innovative behaviors along with a statement as to whether their firm used 360-degree evaluations or not. Structural equation modeling (SEM) was used to test the moderating effect of 360-degree evaluations on the latent variables of engagement and three facets of innovation. Findings: SEM results show that 360-degree evaluations serve to enhance engaged employees’ innovative work behavior. However, ideation (creation and implementation) behaviors are more strongly influenced by the presence of 360-degree evaluation as compared to their “tangible” counterpart (technology and financial resource use). Research limitations/implications: Respondents selected for this research were randomly sampled employees in Lebanon. A stronger study strategy would be to study paired departments within organizations – one implementing 360-degree evaluation and another not implementing it. Practical implications: Managers, seeking to engender and strengthen innovative behaviors in engaged employees, should utilize 360-degree evaluation processes. Furthermore, the 360-degree evaluations should be designed to probe both tangible (technology and financial resource use) and intangible (idea generation and implementation) facets of innovation. Originality/value: This study yields a deeper understanding of the relationship between engagement and innovative behaviors in the workplace along with managerial insights into the design and use of 360-degree evaluation.