The method
How it works
A round takes a few weeks. You choose the people, a mentor you trust reads what they write, and it ends with a conversation. Here's what happens for each person, who sees what, and what happens to the data.
The round at a glance
Step by step, for each role
The Feedback Seeker is the person asking for feedback. If that's you, this is your round.
Sign in with your email
We send you a link. There's no password to remember.
Reflect on yourself, if you like
Answer the same three questions about yourself. Only your mentor sees this, as context for your conversation.
Build your circle
Choose at least 8 people, ideally 10 to 12, with at least 2 each from your leaders, peers, team and people outside your organisation. You then confirm that at least two of them will challenge you. Nobody records who they are.
Choose your mentor and write your note
Name your manager, coach or mentor, add a personal note to your invitation, and pick a target date, two weeks ahead unless you change it.
Let your mentor review your circleOptional
By default, your mentor looks at your circle before anyone is invited and can suggest changes, which you accept or decline. You can skip this. Your mentor then only accepts the role, and invitations go out as soon as they do.
Wait while your circle responds
You see how many have responded, and who is still outstanding or done. Taking part and declining look the same, and you never see which comments are whose. You can send reminders.
Read your summary, then talk
When your mentor sends it, read your summary and meet to talk it through. Once you've had the conversation, either of you marks the round complete.
About the circle review
The mentor's review of the circle is optional, but it's on by default and we recommend it. A second pair of eyes often spots a missing perspective, or a circle that's too comfortable. If the Seeker skips it, the mentor still reads all the feedback and reviews the summary before the Seeker sees it.
Every round needs
- A mentor. They read the feedback first and shape the summary.
- At least 5 responses. With fewer, a summary could point to individuals, so it isn't produced.
Who sees what
Exactly what each person in a round can see. We publish the same table on our Privacy page.
| Information | Seeker | Mentor | Contributor | Platform staff |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Names, emails and perspectives of the people in the circle | Yes | Yes | No | NoNo admin screen for reading rounds |
| Who the Seeker expects to challenge them | Not recorded | Not recorded | No | No |
| The Seeker's confirmation that challenging voices are included (yes or no) | Yes | Yes | No | No |
| How many have responded, and how many are outstanding | Yes | Yes | No | No |
| Which people are outstanding or done (taking part and declining look the same, with no times) | Yes | Yes | No | No |
| Whether someone declined rather than took part | No | No | Their own only | No |
| Comments, exactly as written | No | YesWithout names | Their own onlyUntil they submit | No |
| Who wrote which comment | NoUnless they chose to share their name | NoUnless they chose to share their name | Not applicable | No |
| Comments shared in full, with a name, by a contributor who chose to | YesWhen the summary is released | YesBefore the summary is released | Their own onlyTheir own choice | No |
| Positive quotes from any question, word for word, approved by the mentor | Yes | Yes | Not applicable | No |
| Critical or development comments, word for word | NoParaphrased themes only | Yes | Not applicable | No |
| Which perspective a comment came from | NoOnly in report themes, under strict rules | YesA tag on each comment, never passed on to the Seeker | Not applicable | No |
| The mentor's draft report and AI versions | No | Yes | No | No |
| The final summary | Yes | Yes | No | No |
Names, emails and perspectives of the people in the circle
- Seeker
- Yes
- Mentor
- Yes
- Contributor
- No
- Platform staff
- NoNo admin screen for reading rounds
Who the Seeker expects to challenge them
- Seeker
- Not recorded
- Mentor
- Not recorded
- Contributor
- No
- Platform staff
- No
The Seeker's confirmation that challenging voices are included (yes or no)
- Seeker
- Yes
- Mentor
- Yes
- Contributor
- No
- Platform staff
- No
How many have responded, and how many are outstanding
- Seeker
- Yes
- Mentor
- Yes
- Contributor
- No
- Platform staff
- No
Which people are outstanding or done (taking part and declining look the same, with no times)
- Seeker
- Yes
- Mentor
- Yes
- Contributor
- No
- Platform staff
- No
Whether someone declined rather than took part
- Seeker
- No
- Mentor
- No
- Contributor
- Their own only
- Platform staff
- No
Comments, exactly as written
- Seeker
- No
- Mentor
- YesWithout names
- Contributor
- Their own onlyUntil they submit
- Platform staff
- No
Who wrote which comment
- Seeker
- NoUnless they chose to share their name
- Mentor
- NoUnless they chose to share their name
- Contributor
- Not applicable
- Platform staff
- No
Comments shared in full, with a name, by a contributor who chose to
- Seeker
- YesWhen the summary is released
- Mentor
- YesBefore the summary is released
- Contributor
- Their own onlyTheir own choice
- Platform staff
- No
Positive quotes from any question, word for word, approved by the mentor
- Seeker
- Yes
- Mentor
- Yes
- Contributor
- Not applicable
- Platform staff
- No
Critical or development comments, word for word
- Seeker
- NoParaphrased themes only
- Mentor
- Yes
- Contributor
- Not applicable
- Platform staff
- No
Which perspective a comment came from
- Seeker
- NoOnly in report themes, under strict rules
- Mentor
- YesA tag on each comment, never passed on to the Seeker
- Contributor
- Not applicable
- Platform staff
- No
The mentor's draft report and AI versions
- Seeker
- No
- Mentor
- Yes
- Contributor
- No
- Platform staff
- No
The final summary
- Seeker
- Yes
- Mentor
- Yes
- Contributor
- No
- Platform staff
- No
Platform staff: there is no screen for reading rounds, and we don't access round data in normal operation. Whoever runs the service could still reach stored data technically, so our Privacy page explains how that risk is handled.
Timeline
A typical round gives the circle about two weeks to respond; the Seeker can choose anything from 7 to 30 days. Reminders go only to people who haven't finished, and each one has a link to stop them.
Start
Invitations go out
Day 3
A gentle reminder
Halfway
A second reminder
2 days before
A reminder before the target date
Target date
A reminder on the day
3 days after
A final reminder, then weekly, at most twice more
Late feedback is still welcome, so the link stays open after the target date. Collection ends when everyone has responded or declined, or when the mentor decides to start. The mentor then shapes the summary and sends it, and the Seeker and mentor meet to talk.
What happens to your data
From the first word a contributor types to the day raw feedback is deleted.
Written
Answers save as contributors write, encrypted. Drafts are deleted on submit, or when the round stops collecting.
Separated
On submit, answers are stored with no link to the person who wrote them. Nothing in our database can connect the two afterwards.
Read
The mentor reads every comment exactly as written, without names.
Summarised
AI groups comments into themes and drafts the summary; the mentor shapes and approves it. The AI provider doesn't train on this content.
Deleted
Raw feedback is deleted 30 days after the conversation is marked held, or 90 days after the summary is released if it never is. It's gone from backups within 30 days.
Kept
The summary stays with the Seeker and mentor for as long as the Seeker has an account.
Guide for Seekers
Choosing your circle
Your circle is the people whose view of you matters most. Pick people who see you from different sides, and who will be honest with you rather than just kind. You'll need at least 8 people, with at least 2 from each perspective; 10 to 12 is ideal, and the most is 20.
Leaders
At least 2 · ideally 2–3
Your manager, their manager, senior people you work for. Include someone other than your own manager. Your mentor can count as one of your leaders.
Peers
At least 2 · ideally 2–3
People at a similar level, across the organisation, not just in your own team. Include at least one person from another part of the organisation who relies on your work, or whose work you rely on.
Team
At least 2 · ideally 3–4
People who work for you, and others in your team you work closely with every day. If someone is in your own team, put them here; if they're elsewhere in the organisation, put them in Peers.
External
At least 2 · ideally 2–3
Clients, partners or suppliers, at any level. Pick people who have worked with you recently enough to give real examples. A former colleague who knows your work well also counts.
Mix the comfortable with the candid
It's natural to think first of people you get on with. They matter, but a circle made only of them tells you what you already know. Mix people who rate you with people who see you at your least effective, and people who work with you closely with people who see you from a distance.
Recent is better
Choose people who have worked with you in the last year or so. Feedback about how you work now is more useful than feedback about who you were three roles ago. Someone who knew you well a while back can still help, as long as they can give real examples.
Why two challenging voices
Include at least two people you find challenging: perhaps you expect different things from each other, the relationship has been difficult, or you simply work in very different ways. They often see what others don't, which is why they're worth asking. Before your circle is sent on, you confirm that you've included them. You're never asked who they are, and nothing in Feedback Assist records it.
Common mistakes
- Only friends. Warm feedback is pleasant to read, but it rarely shows you anything new.
- Only your own team. You miss how you come across to people who don't work alongside you every day.
- Only senior people. Leaders see your results; the people around you every day see how you get them.
- Only your manager among your leaders. Add at least one other person whose opinion of your work counts.
Once invitations have gone out, you can add people but not remove them, so the circle can't be narrowed later. Take your time before you send.
Guide for Seekers
Choosing a mentor
Your mentor is the person you trust to read your feedback first. Every round has one. It can be your manager, a coach or a mentor.
What your mentor does
- Reviews your circle before invitations go out, if you ask them to. This is the default, and you can skip it.
- Reads every comment exactly as written, without names, seeing which part of the circle each came from.
- Shapes the AI-drafted summary and chooses which positive quotes to include.
- Holds one conversation with you to talk it through.
The time it takes
Reviewing a circle takes a few minutes. Most of the work comes once feedback closes: usually an hour or two to read the comments and shape the summary, then up to an hour for the conversation.
Contributors are told who your mentor is before they write anything, so choose someone they'll trust with their words.
Your manager, or someone outside your reporting line?
Your manager knows your work and may seem the obvious choice. But your team may soften what they write if they know their boss will read it word for word. A coach or mentor outside your reporting line often gets franker feedback. The choice is yours.
What makes a good mentor
- Discreet: they keep what they read to themselves.
- Fair: they weigh the feedback without taking sides.
- Willing to say hard things kindly.
- Has time in the next month.