Goal Setting Strategies and Apps
October 5, 2015 9:57 am
Every business, whether small or large, has goals that they hope to attain. The hallmark of successful businesses are goals or objectives that have been carefully crafted in a way that can guide a company to reach their full potential. What are some strategies to creating goals that can bind a workplace together working toward a common goal? Let’s look at some strategies for devising goals and some excellent tools that may help in this mission.
- Don’t be too busy! The inherent idea behind setting a business goal is that it can steer a company in the right direction. Unfortunately many companies fail to follow up on goal setting because they are simply too busy doing business to deal with it. The 4th Annual Staples National Small Business survey reported that more than 80% of small business owners of the 300 surveyed reported that they don’t keep track of their business goals. So for many companies the first step in being successful with goal setting would be to put in some sort of regular meeting to review what steps are being taken to achieve the objectives set up yearly.
- Create SMART Goals – Many business leaders find that having a specific strategy when generating goals can help them stay on track. The SMART method includes creating objectives that are: specific, measurable, attainable, involve a responsible person and are time specific. What this technique involves therefore, is a very specific goal such as an increase in percentage of items sold not merely a vague goal of increasing sales. A measurable goal means that it can be quantified instead of merely a good intention. An attainable goal is meant to stretch the skills and abilities of the company without setting the up for utter failure. A responsible person is an indicator that this goal will be checked up on at regular intervals. This doesn’t mean that the person is the only one responsible for meeting the goal but rather a person who will report on the progress. And finally the timing indicates that the goal should have a beginning and an end point when goals should be completed.
- Invest in Goal Strategy Tools – We live in a busy world and don’t have a lot of time to spend on our short and long term goals daily. That’s why “there is an app for that.” There are some great business apps that can help you stay organized and pointed in the direction of your goals. These apps can help keep you accountable and motivated. Check out some of the following apps that you may find helpful in achieving your goals!
Categorised in: Blog, Business Plan
