Guidelines for Setting Goals

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This technique is used to set specific goals for an enterprise as a whole and/or for a particular enterprise change project or initiative.  A goal can be defined, as a specific result the enterprise would like to achieve within a specified time period.  Goals differ from subgoals, where a subgoal is a specific target to be reached.  For example, "To reduce operating expenditures during 4Q 1994," and "To increase total return on investments this fiscal year," are examples of goals.  Possible subgoals for each of these examples may be "A 10.5% reduction," and "2.4% increase," respectively.  (In this usage, goals are differentiated from Juran's quality meaning of "process goal."  Juran's "process goals" should be considered as "subgoals."

Common goals facilitate consensus and provide focus for action.  Goals also provide a way to measure progress.  If you do not know where you are going, how do you know when or if you got there.  The wider the participation in setting the goals, the greater the commitment and motivation there is to achieve them.  Accountability to the goals' measures is also enhanced.

APPLICATIONS:

• To determine key achievement results desired by the enterprise as a whole in support of the vision and/or mission
• To determine key achievement results for an individual enterprise change project to measure progress and/or to evaluate accomplishment
• To facilitate subgoal setting (see Subgoal Setting )

PROCEDURES:

1.      Understand the mission of the enterprise or of the project.

2.      Brainstorm desired results and other accomplishments.

3.      Develop and document specific goal statements.

4.      Ratify goals (prioritize if required).

5.      Reach consensus and obtain approval from sponsor (as required).

INSTRUCTIONS:

When developing goals for the enterprise as a whole, confirm the mission and/or vision.  Determine the areas where progress must be tracked and measured and/or determine the key areas of focus.  For example, it is typical to highlight areas regarding customer satisfaction, customer service, productivity, marketplace differentiation, and/or financial measurement areas.  With the key stakeholders, brainstorm theses areas and develop specific goals statements.  A useful set of questions to ask to develop the initial goals list is to examine "What is the desired outcome?" or "What are we trying to achieve?"  The other questions to ask to test for measurement completion include "How will we know when we have accomplished our goal?" or "What evidence do we need to show that we have achieve what we set out to do?"  The vision tests would also provide guidance for uncovering actions that should be linked to specific goals.

Review and reword, as required, to achieve complete understanding and buy-in (see Focus Groups, Workshops, and Facilitation).  Conduct ratification working sessions to gain wider audience participation.  Prioritize, finalize, and obtain sponsor approval.  (Use an appropriate prioritization technique such as Forced Ranking or Forced Choice Paired Comparison if there are multiple goals.)  Publish and distribute, as necessary.

When developing goals for an enterprise change project team, also confirm the mission and/or vision of the enterprise.  Understand the relationship and role of this change project to the overall enterprise goals.  Set a mission for the project (if required-it is usually helpful) and brainstorm results desired.  Project-oriented goals may be set to:

• Develop project deliverables
• Develop expertise in particular areas, or
• Develop teams

Hone the suggestions into specific goals statements and develop a mechanism to track their progress.  (Use the questions highlighted above to help formulate the statements.)  Formal documentation helps to clarify the intent and enhance understanding.  There should be no confusion in project or enterprise goals.

Ratify and confirm with the Sponsor and other key reference groups (e.g., Steering Committee).  It is sometimes useful to prioritize project goals using a prioritization matrix.  Monitor team member progress toward achieving the goals based on these priorities.