It’s that time of year. You will spend most of this fall arm-wrestling over next year’s budget. The executive team goes to the mountain and tweaks the strategy. Next you have to actually make the strategy come to life by setting objectives for the coming year.
Additionally, in the next couple months you’ll look at how you did on the objectives you set last year at this time.
I’ve been around some organizations where objectives weren’t really that important. Objectives are only created because Human Resources requires it and we manage the way we manage. Business as usual. Does your organization fit into that bucket?
I don’t like to do something just because “it’s the way we’ve always done it even though it serves no purpose” and I know you don’t either.
The process of setting objectives throughout the organization can be an extremely powerful leadership tool. While actually meeting objectives, a great deal of culture setting can occur.
There is one crucial point however to make about setting objectives that we find often gets missed.
If we in fact really use objectives as a leadership tool designed to get us to the growth targets called for by the strategy then we have to be thinking like a change leader.
Whether we are setting objectives for growth or even for targeted shrinkage we are basically saying that this year must be different than last year. So, we are, in effect, saying that behavior of individual people must be different than last year – CHANGE.
What are the chances of that behavior changing if these changes aren’t explicitly included in each person’s objectives, in the objectives of their managers, and coached at every opportunity?
In other words what are the chances that at the end of this year you will actually meet your strategic targets?
To do:
- For each objective, identify what the individual must do differently this year in order to achieve the objective.
- For each objective, identify what the manager must do differently this year in order to achieve the objective.
- Discuss the progress on the changes being made constantly through the year.
Meeting objectives tied to strategy is critical to sustainable growth and success. Being the leader who achieves and exceeds objectives gets you promoted!
