As business owners ourselves, we love sharing what we know whenever we can. A rising tide lifts all boats! 

Goals help us all stay focused, and in a world with lots and lots (and LOTS) of shiny objects to chase, they help make business decisions simpler. Does this help me and/or my company reach one of the goals I’ve set, or not?

1. Prepare before you run your goal-setting exercise

Understand the environment you’re competing in, and identify who will be involved in the goal-setting process.

• SWOT analysis

This analysis isn’t just for you and the other businesses in your industry, but the industry itself. This can change very quickly in the modern environment, so you can’t necessarily rely on an analysis you ran last year or earlier. 

• Benchmarking

Compare both internally and externally to see where you land.

• Consult with your employees

Not only do your workers have great ideas, but the more they’re involved in the goal setting, the more likely they are to work to achieve them. 

• Who’s involved

Depending on the size of your company, you may only want to engage middle or senior managers in the exercise.

2. Setting your goals

Make it a process that you can repeat every year, with goals that support your vision.

• Mission and values

All your goals must be aligned to your core principles.

• SMART

Make sure your goals are Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-based. These characteristics make it more likely your organization will be able to meet them.

• Determine who owns each one

What resources will you need to achieve the goals, and who will be responsible for making sure the company reaches them?

3. Aftercare for your goal setting process

Planning is one thing, but implementing them is another! Set yourself up for success by making it easy for the team to achieve.

• Track progress

Make sure you’re keeping an eye on how things are going and that you’re staying on course. If something starts going wrong, you’ll catch it more quickly and rectify it sooner if you’re tracking progress regularly.

• Communication, communication, communication

Let everyone in the organization know how it’s going, good and bad. Help the whole team feel that they have a stake in the outcome.

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