How to Set Objectives & Inspire Performance

Why is this important?

Setting objectives is important for several reasons:

- It will set the strategic direction for your business and provide a clear vision of what you are planning to achieve

- It will show key stakeholders, such as investors and employees, the direction the business is planning to take

- It will help you to achieve your team and business goals

- It will provide clarity and focus for the team

- It will inspire and motivate your employees

- It will help you to evaluate individual and team performance.

The following 5 step plan will help you to set effective objectives and inspire team performance.

1. Start with defining and setting wider business goals.

Be as clear and specific as you can when setting business goals and then objectives can be broken down by time, area or department.

2. Refer often to wider business objectives and ensure that employees know how their objectives contribute to overall success of the business.

This will help to keep employees motivated and will also create a ‘road map’ so that everyone will know they are heading in the right direction.

3. Ensure that objectives are SMART.

Specific: Be as clear as you can when setting objectives. The objective should be agreed and you should ensure that there is no ambiguity.

Measurable: Being able to measure objectives will enable you to clearly know whether an objective has been met or not.

Achievable: Ensure that objectives are realistic, otherwise you risk demotivating people.

Relevant: Set objectives that are directly relevant to any wider goals you are planning to achieve

Timely: Setting a realistic deadline will help employees to achieve their objectives within a timely manner.

4. Celebrate milestones.

Set notifications and milestones and celebrate achievements along the way. This will help to keep the team on track, remind people of their targets and keep them motivated to achieve.

5. Review and Evaluate.

It is advisable to have regular conversations and updates with your employees, as this provides an opportunity to find out how they are getting on with their objectives, discuss any obstacles they are facing and identify any potential issues and provide support where applicable to keep them on track.