In order to achieve success within your business, it is important to set goals and key performance indicators (KPI's) for your team. Taking this step, allows you to track progress and ensure that all staff members are meeting the desired outcomes set in place. In this blog post, we will discuss defining goals and KPI's for your team, as well as some tips for setting achievable goals.
So, what are some ways in which entrepreneurs can define goals and KPI's for different team members? Here are three tips you can use to get started:
1) Define Goals Based on Existing Company Objectives:
The most important thing entrepreneurs should keep in mind when defining goals, is that they have to be in line with company objectives. A business owner cannot expect his or her teams to perform well, if they are pursuing conflicting strategies. One way to ensure that everyone is working towards a common goal, is by aligning goal setting measures with the company's mission statement.
2) Set Realistic Goal-Sets
When setting goals, it is important to make sure they are realistic. This means taking into account the resources you have available, as well as the time frame you are working with. Unrealistic goals put unnecessary pressure on employees, which can lead to negative outcomes such as anxiety and fear about their performance.
Instead of setting unrealistic goals, try breaking your goal down into smaller steps that are more manageable. Setting quarterly milestones for instance, allows entrepreneurs to measure progress more frequently instead of having a long-term outlook on things, which can be counter-productive if not executed correctly.
Lack of motivation to continue working towards a long-term goal is known to sometimes produce counter-productive behaviors, such as decreased effort. This solution is based on the idea that setting multiple milestones over a shorter time period, gives employees more opportunities for success and also allows them to see their progress along the way towards achieving these goals.
The other problem with a long-term goal is the possibility of discouragement and fatigue because of how far away it is from being completed. This can cause employees to not complete projects or work that they could have been able to successfully accomplish, if their initial drive hadn't been drained by working too hard on something that will take a very long time to complete.
3) Ensure That KPIs Are Aligned With Areas of Expertise
In most cases, a business owner will have a team of team members in various different roles. In order to achieve the best results, it's important that the KPIs for each member is aligned with his/her area of expertise.
Benefits:
1) Better efficiency: When each team member is measured on his/her area of expertise, we can be assured that they will complete the tasks at hand in a way that's most beneficial to the company. Not only does this increase productivity and work ethic, it also allows the business owner to better delegate responsibilities.
2) Better results: The company can be assured that the tasks and projects that each team member completes will be done to the best of his/her ability. Since there's a clearly defined focus, we can also expect that this person will perform better in their role knowing that they are achieving the most by focusing on their area of expertise.
Making goals relevant to each team member's role is important for ensuring that everyone understands what is expected of them and feels responsible for achieving the goal. When everyone has a specific task to complete as part of reaching the goal, it becomes easier to hold each person accountable. By setting relevant goals and assigning specific tasks to each team member, you can create a more effective and efficient team. Clarity is key.
In conclusion, setting goals and key performance indicators (KPI's) allow entrepreneurs to track progress and ensure that their teams are meeting their desired outcomes. There are many ways entrepreneurs can go about defining goals, but it is essential that they make sure that these targets are in line with their company's objectives, realistic enough and aligned with their areas of expertise. Furthermore entrepreneurs should set shorter milestones, to ensure they can track progress more frequently instead of overloading themselves and their teams.
To talk to someone regarding your business ideas or KPI setting methods for your team feel free to book a free business consultation meeting. Sometimes it's just good to talk.