If you are a manager, you have heard all the clich? before: “Failing to plan is planning to fail. People who aim at nothing hit it every time.” These little aphorisms only tell half the truth. Planning is great; however, unless employees clearly understand the goals associated with the plan and their role in it, your plan is likely to fail. Effective managers recognize that setting clear, reasonable goals for their team is critical to accomplishing the assignments coming down from upstairs. When setting goals, managers need to be certain that the goals they set for their team and for each individual are conceived in the best way to achieve success.
Goals fall within broad categories and can be long-term or short-term. However, all goals must be refined to make sure they are clear, reasonable and achievable. Often, managers create goals that conform to their company’s mission statement, which is usually very broad.
Such broad statements might include:
These are all good general objectives, but without concrete specifics or a time frame attached to them, they are not very helpful or meaningful as goals for your team members. They look good on paper, and they may sound important in a speech to the Board of Directors, but they cannot stand alone to direct employees to any clear individual action. In order for goals to be viable, they have to meet certain criteria so that you can act on them in the world.
One of a manager’s most basic jobs then, is to transform general objectives into goals and activities that the team, through the efforts of individual employees, can do. Managers must find the best ways to translate and communicate goals into something employees can deal with. Clarifying makes goals definable so they can become actionable.
Goals should specifically describe measurable activities.
Examples
The transition from the broad goal in the earlier example, “Solving Customer Problems” to a clear goal of “Reducing Customer Complaints by a specific amount by a specific date is achieved by the following formula:
"To" + Action Verb + Specific Result + Time Frame = Effective Goal
This process is sometimes called creating S.M.A.R.T. goals, based on the following formula:
Specific – Make sure goals are specific and easy to understand for everyone; pinpoint your goals as much as possible.
Measurable – “To respond to 10 % of the negative items on the market survey by July 1st,” is a measurable goal. Therefore, you will know immediately if you have met your goals or not.
Achievable – Goals should be based on your level of control over the situation. “To keep customer complaints at zero,” may not be achievable because you can’t control customer attitudes.
Realistic – Individual goals should be reasonable based on the resources available to you. “Creating, producing and marketing new product line by end of next month,” is probably not realistic.
Time-specific – Create a time frame within which each goal will be completed; A deadline can create the necessary energy to complete a task.
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May Management Quick Tip of the Month
Baseball season is a good time to remember that pros never quit practicing. Major League baseball players go through six weeks of spring training practice, even though most of them have been playing baseball since they were five-years old. Also, before every game, 162 times this year, they will show up several hours before game time for infield and batting practice. If you are a manager, develop a regular schedule to train your team in new skills and practice old ones. The teamwork and skills that result from this commitment to excellence will put you in the big leagues in no time.
