Strategic Goal Setting for Managers: Best Practices
Strategic Goal Setting for Managers: Best Practices In order to accomplish effective goal setting throughout the company, colleagues need managers to establish a connection point between the general, company-wide goals set by Greg Bentley and their own individual goals. This is done by setting strategic goals for your team. Develop Strategic Goals: What do you want your teams to accomplish this year? Strategic goals flow from the top down. They are aligned with the organization’s business philosophy, vision and mission statement. Strategic goals are the “big rocks” that you want your teams to move in a given timeframe; colleagues execute the tactics to achieve these goals. We suggest that you set no more than one strategic goals each quarter, and no more than three per year. Ensure that strategic goals are participative. Everyone on the team plays a part in achieving the goals, and the entire team must work together to achieve them. It is important for managers to explain the rationale for strategic goals…how do they support the organization and its philosophy, vision and mission statement? Why are these goals important? How will they support the business? This discussion will help to achieve buy-in from colleagues. Document Strategic Goals: Document your strategic goals each quarter in SuccessFactors and utilize the “Cascade a Goal” feature to push your organizational goals down throughout the organization (see “Help and Tutorials” in the goal module). This will allow your goals to be readily available for review and continuous management by colleagues and managers. Quarterly goal setting in SuccessFactors promotes ongoing, structured feedback between a manager and colleague. Feedback is documented at regular intervals throughout the year. We know ongoing feedback is already prevalent throughout the company on an informal basis, but the formalization of the process ensures that meaningful discussions take place between every colleague and their manager. Goal Setting, Review and Adjustment: As a best practice, managers should go into a goal-setting meeting with the goals they would like to set for their colleagues. However, it is important for managers to also be flexible if they receive information from a colleague that suggests modification of the goal is appropriate. Managers should discuss with colleagues the importance of their input before a goal-setting meeting so they can prepare for the meeting. Goals should be cascaded down before that meeting, so that colleagues can digest the goals and identify what tactics are necessary to carry out the strategy. Peter Drucker, a well-known management expert and best-selling author once said “What gets measured gets done.” Continuous management and progress check-in points are important to the attainment of strategic goals. As economic or other outside changes affect the business, managers should review individual performance goals and adapt them to external factors if necessary. During the review process, individual
Strategic Goal Setting for Managers: Best Practices colleague goals should be realigned with changing organizational missions, business objectives and marketplace demands. Colleagues and managers should discuss and review progress toward goals regularly—quarterly at the very least. Communicate the Big Picture: Colleagues need to know how their work relates to the company’s overall mission. This helps them to operate more independently and effectively, giving managers more time to develop their teams, implement strategies and take on higher-level responsibilities. Cascading strategic goals from the top of the organization through each level communicates the big picture and enables colleagues to understand how their work fits into the organization’s mission and priorities. Provide Ongoing Expectations and Feedback: Ongoing feedback is between a manager and colleagues may seem like an added responsibility, but it actually makes their jobs easier. With ongoing coaching against established goals that are properly written (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic and Time bound) your team will have a greater likelihood of meeting and exceeding goals. Colleagues will always know what is expected of them and where they stand, and they will be able to make course corrections when appropriate. Throughout the year, it is also important to remember to celebrate wins to motivate colleagues. This keeps colleagues moving toward the finish line. A Word on “Stretch Goals”: Stretch goals are those goals inspire teams to challenge and re-imagine what they think is possible. They are particularly useful for those teams that may be too easily achieving their goals or “stuck in a rut”. They are also useful in encouraging top-performing teams to set the bar even higher. Stretch goals are very ambitious. They differ from regular goals due to their level of difficulty – they may seem impossible at the start while regular goals may seem as challenging but achievable. When setting Stretch Goals, be honest with your team about the goal’s difficulty. Explain why they were set, and make sure that all stakeholders understand how the goal will be measured. Check-in regularly with teams to ensure that they are on the right track and offer support when needed. If colleagues seem overwhelmed, adjust stretch goals as necessary. If you have questions or need help with strategic goals, don’t hesitate to contact the Talent Management Team.
Denise C. Ryan
Talent Management Program Manager
610-458-2927
Strategic Goal Setting for Managers: Best Practices colleague goals should be realigned with changing organizational missions, business objectives and marketplace demands. Colleagues and managers should discuss and review progress toward goals regularly—quarterly at the very least. Communicate the Big Picture: Colleagues need to know how their work relates to the company’s overall mission. This helps them to operate more independently and effectively, giving managers more time to develop their teams, implement strategies and take on higher-level responsibilities. Cascading strategic goals from the top of the organization through each level communicates the big picture and enables colleagues to understand how their work fits into the organization’s mission and priorities. Provide Ongoing Expectations and Feedback: Ongoing feedback is between a manager and colleagues may seem like an added responsibility, but it actually makes their jobs easier. With ongoing coaching against established goals that are properly written (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic and Time bound) your team will have a greater likelihood of meeting and exceeding goals. Colleagues will always know what is expected of them and where they stand, and they will be able to make course corrections when appropriate. Throughout the year, it is also important to remember to celebrate wins to motivate colleagues. This keeps colleagues moving toward the finish line. A Word on “Stretch Goals”: Stretch goals are those goals inspire teams to challenge and re-imagine what they think is possible. They are particularly useful for those teams that may be too easily achieving their goals or “stuck in a rut”. They are also useful in encouraging top-performing teams to set the bar even higher. Stretch goals are very ambitious. They differ from regular goals due to their level of difficulty – they may seem impossible at the start while regular goals may seem as challenging but achievable. When setting Stretch Goals, be honest with your team about the goal’s difficulty. Explain why they were set, and make sure that all stakeholders understand how the goal will be measured. Check-in regularly with teams to ensure that they are on the right track and offer support when needed. If colleagues seem overwhelmed, adjust stretch goals as necessary. If you have questions or need help with strategic goals, don’t hesitate to contact the Talent Management Team.
Denise C. Ryan
Talent Management Program Manager
610-458-2927
