Effective goal setting in an organization takes time and effort. Employees should have buy-in with the goals that have been set by management. The easiest way to do this is to involve employees in the brainstorming process for setting goals. When employees are involved in the process, there will be a higher sense of ownership as well as increased motivation to accomplish the goals. When setting goals, employees and management should strive to create SMART goals.
Set Specific Goals
The first in the SMART process is to set goals that are specific. This creates greater motivation and lays out clear expectations for those who are expected to reach the goal. Instead of setting a goal that states “Increase sales for the department”, a SMART goal would be “Increase sales by 45% for the outside sales department by December 31 of this year.” This gives a specific amount that sales should be increased, identifies the department and creates a deadline. In doing this, it is easy to see if the goal was reached.
Set Measurable Goals
The second in the SMART goals process is to set goals that are measurable. If the goal is to improve customer satisfaction, that is a very hard metric to measure. By attaching measurability to the goal, the organization would determine if the goal was met by aiming for customer satisfaction scores of 4.5 on a scale of 5 or by reducing customer complaints by 15%. This gives a specific metric to measure how well the goal was met.
Set Attainable Goals
When setting goals, the worst thing that management can do is set goals that are not attainable by the staff. While it can be advantageous to set goals that appear to be slightly out of reach, it is important to make sure that the goal can be reached with sufficient effort. If goals are set that cannot be reached, it will only serve to discourage employees who are working day in and day out on an unattainable goal.
Set Realistic Goals
Realistic goals should always be a main concern for management when creating goals for the organization. While being number one in the market may be a very admirable goal to reach, if the number one competitor is a nationally recognized brand name, it may not be a realistic goal. Another example is when improving customer service to aim for zero complaints for customers. While it would be nice to not have any complaints, this is not a realistic goal. When the first complaint rolls into the department, the employee morale will decrease as the goal has been destroyed with the actions of one employee.
Set Timed Goals
All goals should have a set timeline that is attached. For every goal, there should be an ability to be measured. The goal cannot be measured if there is not an end date attached to the goal. The goal should have a concrete end date so that employees and management alike will know what to aim for as well as when to measure for accomplishment of the goal.
SMART goals can create an increased sense of goodwill and motivation within the organization. Employees who aim for SMART goals are set up for success as the goals are specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, and time sensitive. After goals have been developed, check each goal against the SMART checklist to ensure the goals are effective.
Stacey Abler - Stacey Abler is a freelance writer and entrepreneur who lives near Atlanta, Georgia. She has successfully operated several businesses ...
