Goal setting can greatly motivate your employees to achieve personal and company objectives. Goals can make employees more accountable, drive them to their highest potential, and even improve mental health.
Given the advantages, it seems so obvious to set goals. Well, a Harvard Business Study established that 86% of people don't have goals. About 14% have a general plan in mind, and only 3% write down their goals.
People who physically document their goals are three times more likely to achieve them than people with a general plan in mind. So, how do you approach goal setting for employees? The following steps can help:
At the workplace, business goals should take precedence. You should have a list of specific objectives for each quarter and across every department. Aside from economic objectives like increasing market share or dominance, companies need social, organic, and human objectives.
This goal-setting methodology is often taught at school and in professional courses. It’s probably not the first time you’re encountering SMART goals.
So, here is a quick refresher:
If you’re wondering how to set goals for employees here is an example, here is a SMART goal assigned to a salesperson:
“We expect you to increase your profitability by 200% in Q4, 2021, by increasing the number of office chairs sold by at least 50% from the last quarter. It’s achievable because our website has grown in traffic, and we will be increasing Ad spending. As a general trend, more people are setting up remote offices, as more businesses promote hybrid offices.”
Don’t merely assign goals and sit back. Provide enough support by assigning adequate resources to the employee and thinking about the best ways to help them succeed. Ask for progress reports and any feedback about difficulties they are facing.
Using technology can make the process of assigning goals more intuitive and trackable. Consider a remote work software such as WorkPilot to set, track and assign goals to team members.
What are some employee goal-setting examples?
As a team leader, you should not only focus on project and business goals. Effective goal setting focuses on more areas, and here are some employee goal-setting examples: