Setting Goals

Goals are vital for motivating employees and monitoring their performance.

Goals:

1.    Establish DIRECTION for on-going activities

2.    Identify EXPECTED results.

3.    Improved TEAMWORK through a common sense of PURPOSE.

4.    Heighten performance levels by setting TARGETS to be achieved.

Goals provide the MOTIVATION and DIRECTION necessary for growth and success in important areas of almost every business.

An important aspect of developing goals is the relationship between the difficulty of the task (goal) and performance. If the goal is too easy to achieve the effort that the employee/team dedicates to the task is low, and is actually un-motivating. Yet if the goal seems impossible, you will have the same effect. When a goal is difficult and both parties believes it’s achievable, you will maximize intensity and persistence, creating engagement. Once you have identified a worthy goal, use the SMART goal format.

Specific – the goal is distinct & defines is defined as much as possible, with no ambiguous language

Measurable – a measurement gives feedback and lets you know once the goal is obtained

Assignable – the goal can be assigned to an individual or group

Realistic – challenging/relevant and attainable within the given time frame

Time conscious – Timeframe must be aggressive and realistic. For large goals, you will need to set milestones along the way

 The last step is to employ strategies to develop commitment to the goal(s).

• Rewards – tie goal achievement to receiving of monetary or non-monetary rewards.
• Publicity – Publicize the goals to others in order to create social pressure to attain it.
• Support – Provide supervisory support if the employees struggle to attain the goal.
• Participation – Collaborate with the employee in setting some of the proficiency levels, so the employee has a sense of ownership.
• Resources – Provide the resources need to attain the goal and remove constraining factors if necessary.

Follow the above format and see how much more successful the goal attainment is at your organization.