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APRIL 11, 2008

LARRY E. GREINER
ELIZABETH COLLINS

A Day in the Life of Alex Sander:
Driving in the Fast Lane at Landon Care Products
5:25 A.M.
Sweat dripped onto the handlebars of Alex Sander’s StairMaster. Sander was half an hour into a cardiovascular workout, while carrying on a conversation in the fitness center of the downtown condominium complex with a neighbor who was climbing steadily on his own StairMaster. At 32,
Alex was the newest, and youngest, product manager in the Toiletries Division of Landon Care
Products, Inc., a cosmetics products company headquartered in Connecticut. In just over one year with Landon, Alex had successfully rebranded two national skin care products. In January 2007,
Landon had been acquired by Avant-Garde, a multibillion-dollar European beauty company.
Alex: I’m getting my first 360° performance review today from my boss, Sam Glass. But I don’t have the time to waste on this exercise. I need every second to focus on my new Nourish product launch, the most challenging marketing assignment I’ve had so far. Avant-Garde sees
Landon as their ticket to market share in the United States. But everyone in Landon’s
Marketing Department is being 360’d this month, since the vice president of Avant-Garde’s
Consumer Products Division started pushing for them.
Neighbor: I’ve heard of 360’s, but the biotechnology firm where I work sticks to a traditional review system. How do they actually play out?
Alex: It’s basically a feedback tool. You get input from supervisors, peers, direct reports, even customers—that’s why it’s called a 360°. Feedback from everybody, not just your boss.
I’d bet you my last dollar I know exactly what Sam will tell me. I’ll hear the jazz about my style and my temper—360’s should be anonymous, but I know who Sam asked for input about me. I have no excuses—Sam hired me to shake up the