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What are the Goals and Objectives of an Organization?
Goals are the desired outcomes of the businesss activities. Objectives tend to be precise, measured actions, with time for completion. Generally, obtaining a goal will require completion or accomplishment of various objectives. As such, objectives can be thought of as pieces of a goal. While goals are often repeated over time, objectives tend to be specific and carried out during a single period – rather than repeated.
Goals and objectives tend to be broader at higher organizational levels. They become more specific, narrow, and time-specific at lower levels of the organizational hierarchy. Further, goals and objectives may be broken down by divisions, functional areas, groups or teams within the organization.
Goals serve the following functions:
- Provide Guidance and Direction – Goals demonstrate to all parties involved where the company is going.
- Coordinate Planning and Actions – These individuals can see holistically why the individual objective being undertaken are important in accomplishing the companys mission.
- Motivate Employees – Employees are motivated by understanding the purpose of their actions. Also, goals can be tied to specific rewards for accomplishment.
- Facilitates Process Control – Goals allow companies to measure progress. Also, managers can evaluate the effectiveness of employees in accomplishing goals.
Generally, objectives serve the following functions:
- Further the overarching goals;
- Allow individuals to work specifically on one aspect of goal accomplishment;
- Allow managers to align the efforts of individuals and groups;
- Provide a timeline for accomplishment or completion;
- Identify specific desired results,
- Makes specific individuals are groups accountable for specific tasks, and
- Allow managers and employees to measure results.