Job descriptions are a useful starting point for (but by no means the full extent of) establishing feedback criteria, as are customer/staff survey findings in which expectations/needs/priorities of appraisee performance are indicated or implied.

A 360 degree appraisal template typically contains these column headings or fields, also shown in the template example below:

• Key skill/capability type (eg communications, planning, reporting, creativity and problem solving, etc - whatever the relevant key skills and capabilities are for the role in question).
• Skill component/element (eg 'active listening and understanding' [within a 'communications' key skill], or 'generates ideas/options' [within a 'creativity/problem solving' key skill]). The number of elements per key skill varies - for some key skills there could be just one element; for others there could be five or six, which I'd recommend be the maximum. Break down the key skill if there are more than six elements - big lists and groups are less easy to work with.
• question number (purely for reference and ease of analysis)
• specific feedback question (relating to skill component, eg does the person take care to listen and understand properly when you/others are speaking to him/her? [for the active listening skill])
• tick-box or grade box (ideally a,b,c,d or excellent, good, not good, poor, or rate out of 5 or 10 - N.B. clarification and definitions of ratings system to participants and respondents is crucial, especially if analysing or comparing results within a group, when obviously consistency of interpretation of scoring is important)

Alan Chapman
http://www.businessballs.com/performanceappraisals.htm

See also:

• Free 360 degree appraisals form template in MS Word format
• Free 360 degree appraisals form template in MS Excel format
• Training analysis tool in pdf format