Time
Tips from the Frontline Management Institute Time Management Centre
Setting
work goals
A
SMART process for setting SMART goals
Goal setting generally starts by deciding on some major outcomes and
then setting some sub-goals which helps you achieve them. This process
may continue by setting further mini goals to help you achieve those
sub-goals. Unless you are clear on the goals that you want to achieve
it is very hard to manage your time effectively. The goals give you
the criteria by which you can evaluate how well you are managing your
time.
SMART
Goals
-
Specific
- Measured
- Achievable
- Relevant
- Timed
FMI
research has identified five key characteristics of effective goals.
We call these SMART Goals because of the first letters of each of
the characteristics:
1.
Specific
Goals must be specific, not vague. "Improve customer service"
sounds good but is not specific enough to be a goal. "Improve
customer service by reducing phone waiting time to 5 seconds"
is much more specific. Often general goals are further broken down
into more specific ones as you cascade down the organisation. Goals
should be clear, short and positive.
2.
Measured
Having a form of measurement in a goal makes it more specific and
progress can be judged. Measures might include dollars, time, number
of incidences of an event, speed of response etc. Measurement means
that progress towards the goal is also trackable.
Add target dates to all work goals.
Goals must be recorded in writing. This means they can be checked
at the time of development for accuracy. They can be referred to by
many people. They can also be referred back to in the future.
3.
Achievable
Goals must be achievable given the resources and the time frame that
will be given to them. However a goal should not be too easily achievable
but should be a tough goal. By "tough" we mean goals must
be challenging or a "stretch". Goals that are not demanding
don't lead to improvements in performance and are certainly not inspiring.
On the other hand goals should be realistic; if they are set too high
they are not achievable and can be demotivating. Sometimes setting
the level of a goal's demands can be a difficult call for a manager
to make.
People must be able to take up the challenge of a goal and commit
to the goal.
4.
Relevant
A goal must be relevant to the overall aims of the organisation or
the team. Work goals must also add value to the organisation. They
should improve what is delivered by the organisation.
5.
Timed
Goals must have a predetermined completion time against which progress
can be checked. For longer termed goals milestones or set points on
the way should also be identified by date.
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