Establishing meaningful, challenging goals is an essential skill for any manager. Research shows that such goals motivate employees and improve performance. At this practical, hands-on session, you’ll learn how to develop and articulate goals that set you and your employees up for success. By the end of the session, you’ll come away with a working draft of a set of goals for one of your employees, which you’ll be able to use as a model for writing goals for the rest of your team.

1. Goal Setting
for Managers
Kevin R. Thomas
Manager, Training & Development
x3542
Kevin.R.Thomas@williams.edu

2. Objectives
• You’ll learn:
– How to write effective goals
– How to collaborate with your employee in setting
goals

3. Agenda
1 • Overview and Introductions
2 • Alignment
3 • Characteristics of Effective Goals
4 • Types of Goals
5 • Collaboration
6 • Next Steps

4. Agenda
1 • Overview and Introductions
2 • Alignment
3 • Characteristics of Effective Goals
4 • Types of Goals
5 • Collaboration
6 • Next Steps

5. Why Set Goals?
• Research has shown that:
– Specific, ambitious goals lead to higher levels of
performance.
– Goals help employees prioritize tasks
– Goal setting increases employee engagement
which in turn leads to higher levels of retention
and performance.

6. Agenda
1 • Overview and Introductions
2 • Alignment
3 • Characteristics of Effective Goals
4 • Types of Goals
5 • Collaboration
6 • Next Steps

7. Organizational Alignment
Williams
Department
Team
Employee

8. Williams College Mission and Purposes
• Williams seeks to provide the finest possible
liberal arts education by nurturing in students the
academic and civic virtues, and their related traits
of character. …
• We are committed to our central endeavor of
academic excellence in a community of learning
that comprises students, faculty, and staff, and
draws on the engagement of alumni and parents.
…
• Dedicated staff enable this teaching and learning
to take place at the highest possible level.

9. Your Turn: Understanding the Value of
Your Employee

10. Agenda
1 • Overview and Introductions
2 • Alignment
3 • Characteristics of Effective Goals
4 • Types of Goals
5 • Collaboration
6 • Next Steps

11. Management By Objective
• Define clearly what is to be accomplished.
• Give meaningful autonomy in how it is
accomplished.

12. Characteristics of Effective Goals

13. Specific
• Be as concrete and
explicit as possible in
describing goals.
– Work products
– Behaviors
– Knowledge/abilities
• Use a “camera check”

14. Measurable
• “You can’t manage
what you don’t
measure.”
• What should be
measured?
– Volume
– Quality
– Timeliness
– Frequency of specific
behavior

15. Measurement Techniques
• Spontaneously given
complaints or
compliments
• Employee report
• Work sampling
– Manager
– “Secret shopper”
• Survey
• IT-Driven (automated)

16. Dangers of Measurement
• “Beat the system”
behaviors
• Volume and
timeliness measures
may discourage
quality customer
service

17. Defining Measurable
Performance Expectations

18. Example

19. Attainable/Challenging
• 90% of laboratory
and field studies
involving specific and
challenging goals led
to higher
performance than did
easy or no goals.
• Challenging goals
increase motivation.

20. Relevant
• Relevant to the
organization:
– Alignment
• Relevant to the employee
– They know why the goal
has been set
– They agree the goal is
important
– Accomplishing the goal
helps them achieve
personal and professional
benefits

21. Time-Bound
• Creates more
accountability for the
employee
• Creates more
accountability for you
• Deadlines can be
renegotiated

22. What’s missing?
• Improve the procedure
for responding to
student health
emergencies.
• Meet or exceed last
year’s fundraising
levels.
• Minimize the amount
of food waste.
• Communicate clearly
with clients.

23. Agenda
1 • Overview and Introductions
2 • Alignment
3 • Characteristics of Effective goals
4 • Types of Goals
5 • Collaboration
6 • Next Steps

24. 3 Kinds of Goals
• Project Goals
• Performance Goals
• Development goals

25. Project Goals
• Describe the
deliverables the
employee must
produce as part of
the project plan

26. Performance Goals
• Expected behaviors
– Listening at meetings
– Attendance
– Timeliness
– Smiling for Customers
• Product or service standards
– Quality
– Timeliness
– Volume

27. Development Goals
• Represent activities
undertaken to
increase the
employee’s capacity
in skills or
knowledge.

28. GAPS Grid

29. Closing the Gap
• How can you close the gap (if any) between
your perception of the employee and his or
her own?
• How can you close the gap (if any) between
your vision of high performance in this role
and the employee’s goals and values?

30. Professional Development Menu

31. Agenda
1 • Overview and Introductions
2 • Alignment
3 • Characteristics of Effective goals
4 • Types of Goals
5 • Collaboration
6 • Next Steps

32. Involving Employees in Setting Goals
• Research has shown:
– Involving employees in goal setting:
• Increases the chances of the goal being achieved
• Increases motivation

33. How to Collaborate on Goals
• Have employee propose goals first
• Get them to elaborate on how they came to
those goals
• Discuss any differences in your perspective
and theirs on what is important
• Ultimately you will set the goals for the
employee

34. Agenda
1 • Overview and Introductions
2 • Alignment
3 • Characteristics of Effective Goals
4 • Types of Goals
5 • Collaboration
6 • Next Steps

35. Now What?
• Informal check ins
• Show appreciation
for progress
• Re-evaluate goals
occasionally
• Coaching for
performance

36. Upcoming Programs
Drive Book Group
Wednesday, December 3, 2014
10:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
Faculty House Lounge

37. Kevin R. Thomas
Manager, Training & Development
x3542
Kevin.R.Thomas@williams.edu
• Program evaluation link will be sent by email.
• You’ll get a link to a course page with all the materials.