4 Steps for Setting Company Goals in the Workplace

 

Are you scratching your head right now trying to figure out if your company is meeting its goals? You are not alone. A big percentage of small business owners have not set their goals clearly. Sure, they have a vision of where they want to be in the future, but they haven’t laid out the plans on how to get there. Goal setting is the most important thing in achieving success in business.

Not only will setting goals provide direction for the company, but it will also keep your employees engaged. When they know the company is focused on achieving these goals, they are more likely to be more productive in the workplace. You should keep them informed about the metrics you follow, too, so they will understand the impact of their work on the company goals.

Identify Long-term and Short-term Goals

What are your long-term and short-term goals? For example, the short-term goal is to get 50 more followers to your social media pages in three months. You want these followers to be highly engaged with your brand. Choose quality over quantity always, but numbers will be a great measure of how successful you are in your short-term goal.

Commit to Your Goals

Show devotion to your goals. Seah Moon Ming wanted to change the culture in the company from a blame-seeking one into a problem-solving one. But to do that, the SMRT Chairman had to resign from his day job, which he did to spend more time focusing on the goals of the company. This is one example of how leaders and business owners sacrifice their own conveniences (and even money) to achieve the company’s goals.

Once you have set the plan, commit to it. Don’t second-guess yourself and don’t procrastinate. This will only delay the progress of reaching your goals. Staying focused on the goals of the company is the single most important thing that you can do to achieve the short- and long-term goals.

Make Your Goals Public

The most effective way of staying committed to your goals is by sharing them with others. Bring the goals to everyone’s consciousness. Share the list in an email or a company memo. This will make you accountable for your goals. The people who know about them will push you to work harder. It also works to make your employees look forward to fulfilling these goals. The demands of their everyday work will be more acceptable because they know these are in preparation to meet the goals you set.

Make them physically visible, too. You know what they say, right? Out of sight, out of mind? Print them and put the list on your wall, so everyone remembers it (even you). Aside from physically posting the list in your office, create an office document that will keep track of the goals, too. Share this document with your employees, so they can understand the importance and impact of the work they do.

Create Milestones and Connect Them With the Goals

You cannot have one lofty goal and try to reach only that. Create instead small milestones that are achievable in the short term. This will give you an excuse to celebrate these little wins. It’s a morale booster. Plus, it also keeps employees engaged in their work.

But more than creating milestones, you should also connect these milestones with your long-term big goals. The employees have to know that whenever you hit these milestones, you are getting closer and closer to your goals. It will benefit your company not only in terms of productivity but also in terms of retaining highly skilled workers. Engaged employees are more likely to stay at a company, becoming productive contributors and effective brand ambassadors.

The goals of the company are your destination. This is where you are headed. Every time you make decisions for the company, you have to consider where these decisions are going to take you. But more than just creating goals and tracking them, you need your employees to be in the same boat as you. This is truly the mark of how successful your company can become in the future.