What to keep in mind when setting goals for your business
Clear, actionable business goals are essential for success. Read our guidance to learn more about goal setting, and some strategies and frameworks you can use to find targets suitable to your business.
Before setting business goals
Before setting your business goals, it is a good idea to assess the current state of your business. You can do this by completing a SWOT analysis. The SWOT framework is used to identify Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats for your business.
We recommend getting internal and external input into this analysis. This can bring insightful perspective. This could include engaging with your employees, business partners/investors, business mentors and advisors.
Why should you set goals?
Goals are important to running a successful business. They give you a clear focus, motivate employees and set targets for your business to work towards.
Goal setting can provide you with a set of criteria to see if your business is succeeding. Having clear, well-defined goals can help you take control of your business’s direction and increase the chances of achieving your larger business targets.
How to set goals?
We recommend using the SMART framework to set goals. This will help you to set specific, measurable, achievable, relevant and time bound goals. This will help you focus your efforts and increase the chance of successfully completing them.
Once you have set your goals, you can start working on achieving them
To achieve your goals, you should consider the points below:
- What actions do I need to take? Describe the actions you will take to achieve your goal.
- What is a reasonable timeframe? Set a deadline for your goals to be achieved.
- What resources do I need? Detail your budget, staffing requirements and any supplies you’ll need to accomplish the goal.
- How will you keep yourself accountable for the goal? You can keep yourself accountable by telling your staff, your business partners, or a group of people you trust about your goals. This will help to keep you on track.
- Why should I review my goals? Reviewing your goals will help you measure your success. Set time aside to regularly review how you are tracking.
Need more information? Do not hesitate to email us at [email protected] or give our Advice Service a call on 0800 472 472 (or 1800 128 086 from Australia).