Over the years, much has been written on the subject of goal setting, and most conventional wisdom leans in favor of the SMART goal setting process.
SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, Timebound) has been around since the 1960s and is used by organizations to create effective goals for themselves and their staff. In fact, the SMART goal setting process is taught in many management training programs as the proper way to set goals in any situation.
However, there is a small flaw in the general idea of SMART goals which, to be fair, is not a problem with the process but with the larger context in which the goals are set. Too often, organizations set goals for their staff only to find that, in the final analysis, very few have been achieved or even attempted.
So what’s the problem with this approach to goals, and why do they so often fail to capture the imagination of employees? The SMART model is missing two very important elements that will almost always sabotage the achievement of any goal.
WII-FM
Often when organizations set goals for their staff, the initial question asked is ‘What’s in it for me?’ and indeed this is a perfectly valid question. A goal or objective, whether corporate or personal, should be something that is a personal goal. It needs to be initiated, understood and accepted by the individual for whom it is a goal.
High-level corporate goals, by their very nature, are impersonal, and as such there is rarely meaningful buy-in from employees. Even goals that are tied to personal rewards (like a bonus) don’t have a high buy factor if they’re too impersonal. There has to be a sense of ‘I can make a difference in this’ on a personal level for staff to really buy into it.
With corporate objectives revolving around profitability and growth, it can often be difficult to make them personal, and with good reason. These are high-level corporate goals, and unless an individual is tied to them in some way (as a shareholder, for example), any attempt to reduce them to lower levels will fail.
The WII-FM problem is for the most part the biggest motivator for an individual and a truly effective goal setting strategy takes this into account.
fascinating captain
The other equally important issue missing from the SMART goal-setting process is that of interest. For a goal to be really effective and to be achieved, it must be interesting, exciting and something that the person is passionate about.
Too many goals, especially corporate ones, are missing in the area of being interesting. For example, a quality objective will only be pursued by someone who believes that quality is of interest, for those who believe that it is important (but not interesting) they will try not to decrease quality but it is unlikely that they will do everything possible. to ensure that the quality improves.
Interest in a topic can be generated through corporate reward, however this is rare as it, like the personal side of goal setting, is outside of the SMART model.
PRISM: The Lighter Side of Goal Setting
The SMART model is good and has served for a long time, however, in today’s modern society, with large sections of the working population dissatisfied with their lot, a new approach to corporate goal setting is required.
The PRISM model covers the 5 points of the old SMART process and adds 2 more. PRISM is an acronym for Personal, Realistic, Interesting, Specific and Measurable.
Does this mean that the PRISM goals are not achievable and limited in time? Not at all, in the PRISM model for an objective to be truly Realistic by definition it has to be Achievable, if it is not achievable then it is not and could never be truly realistic.
As for the time element of the objective, this is covered by measurables. In a scientific experiment, for something to be measurable, it needs a beginning and an end, the same applies in life, if an objective is to be measured it has to be measured against time as well as any other measurement, so in the PRISM model Measurable means against all criteria and without breaking down time elements.
It’s all me, me, me
The PRISM model is not intended to be the ultimate solution to corporate goal setting problems, however, adding personal and interest characteristics to the process will add a new dimension to the goal setting process and ensure that the goal finds buy-in. considerably older. than those established with the SMART model.
Corporate goals don’t have to be anonymous and forced feed the workforce, by making any goal personal to the individual and of interest (with or without reward) then your chances of actually achieving it will increase dramatically.
So next time there’s a strategy session and the topic of goals comes up, just ask yourself 2 questions, ‘What does it do for me?’ and ‘How interested am I in this?’, if you can’t answer them, then maybe, just maybe, you need to rethink your goals.
More information on staff performance, the PRISM© Goal Setting System and additional tools to improve organizational management can be found at http://www.achievinggreatness.co.uk
L Stuart Avery 2005 © Achieving Greatness Ltd. All rights reserved.
—–
PERMISSION TO REPUBLICATE: This article may be republished in newsletters and on websites as long as attribution to the author is provided and it appears with copyright included, resource box, and live website link.
