I started to ask: “Are goals enough?” at the beginning of the year. It became a more intriguing question as ITProTV had our annual company wide meeting to set goals for 2020. Professionally, goals for what we do have always been SMART goals–Specific, Measurable, Assignable, Realistic and Time-Based. There’s never been a need to formally state it, it’s just been part of the ITProTV way.

I was surprised that for 2020 we had picked a theme that centered around goals and outcomes. It’s not that unusual, but at the time, I thought it was redundant. Then there came a point during that meeting, I wasn’t sure if I had thought they as being distinct concepts. As the week continued, I started to believe they were different.

With my interest piqued I had to look up the context for SMART goals. The originator of the concept had the same question “are goals enough (even if they’re SMART goals)?” He wrote:

“Notice that these criteria don’t say that all objectives must be quantified on all levels of management. In certain situations it is not realistic to attempt quantification, particularly in staff middle-management positions. Practicing managers and corporations can lose the benefit of a more abstract objective in order to gain quantification. It is the combination of the objective and its action plan that is really important. Therefore serious management should focus on these twins and not just the objective.” - George T. Doran

It was this statement that helped to clarify for me that not only is there a distinction between goals and outcomes but also the “why it matters.” SMART goals are about quantification (metrics). Outcomes are tricky because as Doran states; they are “a more abstract objective.” So that means they are less quantifiable. Both Goals and Outcomes are “twins” that deserve attention.

Goals that are Specific, Measurable, Attainble, Realistic and Time-based are not insignficant or dispensible. The direct result of SMART goals makes teams more manageable and their work quantifiable. Another term for both these concepts is accountability. Accountability is key in every organization and that is where SMART goals are truly valuable for a company. But goals do not help us to achieve that other part of the “more abstract objective.”

So, what do we need to consider when setting up your team for success. We need put infront of our team that less quantifiable and the “more abstract objective” that I will call outcomes, the other twin.

More on that in the follow up part 2 article.

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