GOAL SETTING

Manager HR Toolkit
The Performance Management Process
The Performance Management Process consists of three highly
interrelated phases…planning, supporting and appraising. At the
beginning of the performance management cycle, the manager and
employee plan for performance by setting mutually agreed upon
goals for the upcoming year. For the balance of the cycle, the
manager sustains/supports the employee’s performance against
his/her goals, by providing on-going feedback and coaching. In the
final phase, the manager appraises the level of performance
achieved, during the annual performance review.
This module focuses on the first phase of the performance
management cycle– planning for performance.

Planning
•Responsibilities
•Goals
•Standards

Supporting Appraising
•Feedback •Evaluate
•Coaching •Document
•Performance Counseling •Discuss

Manager HR Toolkit 1
 SMART Goals
Effective goals provide employees with clear expectations and
motivate them to focus their efforts on meeting or exceeding those
expectations. Effective goals also provide managers and supervisors
with a structured, mutually agreed upon way to measure employee
performance against expectations. Goals should be written to include
information as to how employees can exceed them whenever
possible. Finally, goals should be assessed to ensure that they
cascade down through the organization from the Corporate goals,
Business Group goals, and Work Group goals.

Above all, effective goals are SMART goals:

Specific
Clear goal definition of results and/or outcomes. Avoid generalities.
Deal with the most important aspects of the job.

Measurable
Concrete and measurable, or at least observable. Think about how
you will measure & evaluate success. Describe what is to be
achieved, by when, where and how much.

Achievable
Consistent with available resources, skills and business environment.
Goals should challenge the employees’ current level of performance –
AGGRESSIVE!!

Relevant
Ensures that goals support overall goals and vision

Time-bounded
Clearly defined completion dates

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 Questions to Ask when Testing for
SMART Goals
Ask yourself the following detailed questions to verify that your goals
are SMART Goals.

•Specific
- What needs to be done?
- What is the action to be taken?
- How much/how many/how often?

•Measurable
- Do measures exist?
- Are they meaningful?
- Can they be quantified?

•Achievable
- Are they challenging?

- Have similar employees achieved this task?

- Can the necessary support and development be promised (I.e.

training, resources, time, and/or commitment) to help the
employee achieve success?
•Relevant
- Do they support the overall Corporate Mission and Vision?

•Time-bounded
- Does the employee know when the goal is to be achieved?

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 Action Verbs for SMART Goals
Listed below are Action Verbs, organized by specific skill
sets. Read through them and decide which are most
appropriate for creating the goals you will be writing.
Management & Leadership Skills

Administer Found
Analyze Hire
Apply Implement
Approve Improve
Assign Increase
Attain Initiate
Chair Inspire
Conduct Led
Consolidate Manage
Contract Operate
Coordinate Organize
Delegate Oversee
Determine Pioneer
Develop Promote
Direct Recommend
Enlist Recruit
Evaluate Represent
Execute Solve
Formalize Spearhead
Form Sponsor

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 Action Verbs Continued
Communication Skills
Address Listen
Arbitrate Market
Arrange Mediate
Author Moderate
Brief Motivate
Collaborate Negotiate
Consult Persuade
Contact Present
Convince Promote
Correspond Publish
Demonstrate Publicize
Develop Reconcile
Direct Recruit
Dissuade Report
Draft Respond
Edit Secure
Enlist Sell
Explain Solicit
Familiarize Speak
Formulate Summarize
Influence Translate
Inform Write
Interpret

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 Action Verbs Continued

Research & Technical Skills

Analyze Inspect
Assemble Install
Assess Interpret
Build Interview
Calculate Investigate
Clarify Maintain
Collect Model
Compile Operate
Compute Organize
Construct Overhaul
Critique Program
Design Remodel
Detect Repair
Devise Research
Diagnose Review
Disassemble Salvage
Discover Search
Document Solve
Engineer Summarize
Evaluate Survey
Examine Systematize
Extract Test
Fabricate Troubleshoot
Gather Uncover
Identify Upgrade

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 Action Verbs Continued
Financial Skills
Administer Develop
Allocate Finance
Analyze Forecast
Appraise Manage
Audit Market
Balance Plan
Budget Project
Calculate Reconcile
Compute Reduce
Decrease Research

Teaching Skills
Adapt Explain
Advise Facilitate
Clarify Guide
Coach Inform
Communicate Instruct
Coordinate Introduce
Deliver Lecture
Demystify Persuade
Develop Set goals
Educate Stimulate
Enable Teach
Encourage Train
Evaluate Tutor

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 Action Verbs Continued
Creative Skills
Author Illustrate
Compose Initiate
Conceptualize Institute
Concern Integrate
Create Introduce
Customize Invent
Design Originate
Develop Perform
Devise Plan
Direct Revamp
Establish Revitalize
Fashion Revolutionize
Find Shape

Customer Service and Teamwork Skills

Aid Expedite
Assess Facilitate
Assist Familiarize
Attend Guide
Clarify Help
Coach Instill
Collaborate Mentor
Compromise Motivate
Confront Provide
Contribute Reflect
Cooperate Reference
Counsel Represent
Demonstrate Resolve
Diagnose Serve
Elaborate Settle
Empathize Support
Encourage Treat

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 Action Verbs Continued
Administrative, Organizational and Clerical Skills
Approve Monitor
Arrange Operate
Assemble Organize
Catalogue Plan
Centralizes Prepare
Classify Process
Collect Purchase
Compile Record
Coordinate Reorganize
Dispatch Retrieve
Distribute Schedule
Enforce Screen
Execute Specify
Handle Systematize
Implement Tabulate
Inspect Update
Maintain Validate

Verbs for Accomplishments

Achieved Improved
Boosted Launched
Broadened Mastered
Completed Modernized
Eliminated Pioneered
Ensured Reduced
Exceeded Resolved
Excelled Restored
Expanded Saved
Expedited Supplemented
Gained Transformed
Generated

Manager HR Toolkit 9
 Performance Measures
The following Performance Measures are examples of quantitative
and qualitative metrics that will help you to develop measurable
SMART Goals.

 Accuracy of product (this can be more specific by adding type

of product, i.e. vouchers)
 Appropriateness
 Attendance at ________ (i.e. meetings, evaluations, training,
etc.)
 Availability
 Cleanliness/orderliness
 Completeness of product
 Compliance with administrative, department, etc. guidelines
 Compliance with Federal regulations
 Consistency of actions
 Creativity
 Documentation
 Error-rate (this can be more specific by adding type of errors,
i.e. typographical, etc.)
 Initiative
 Meeting of deadlines
 Neatness of completed product
 Number of commendations
 Number of times work needs to be re-done
 Number of valid complaints
 Percents (i.e. % of materials to be re-done, % of reports done
on time, etc.)

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 Performance Measures Continued

 Proper reporting procedure used

 Punctuality
 Quality of product
 Quantity of work completed
 Relevancy
 Response time
 Supervisory observation
 Timeliness
 Turnaround time
 Use of proper procedures
 Use of safety measures
 Use of words suggesting specific timeframes (i.e. daily, weekly,
monthly, etc.)

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 Are These Goals SMART??
Read each goal below and determine if it is a SMART Goal
by using the information provided in this module. If you
determine that a goal is not SMART, re-write it as a SMART
Goal in the space provided. Include a definition by which
the goal can be exceeded, whenever possible.

1. Develop a Software Development Plan based on the Capability

Maturity Model Software Development Plan template, approved by
the CMM manager and the customer, and developed within four
weeks of the Task Award. This goal can be exceeded by early
completion and approval.
Is this SMART? Yes No
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2. Update the various Software User Manuals as required by Release

v.4.1 NLT 7/1. This goal can be exceeded if accurately completed
before 6/15.
Is this SMART? Yes No
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 Are These Goals SMART?? Continued
3. Establish a complete succession plan for the Systems Engineering
unit, identifying successors, emerging leaders and pre-emerging
leaders using the DRC succession planning criteria and templates by
7/1 (cannot be exceeded).
Is this SMART? Yes No
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4. Deliver all CDRL’s as required by Release v.4.0, according to the

schedule outlined in the project plan, NLT 10/1. This goal can be
exceeded upon early delivery of quality product no fewer than 10
business days early.
Is this SMART? Yes No
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5. Win the Task Order 12 follow-on Task Order by May 1, 2011.
Is this SMART? Yes No
Re-written Goal:
Investigate and document the logical next steps necessary to win the
follow-on Task Order 12 by May 1. Utilize available technical
assistance, and coordinate with the customer to develop the SOW
and ROM; negotiate the differences which will lead to the RFP/RFQ.
Provide any necessary responses to all questions regarding costs and
technical proposal. This goal can be exceeded by successful
completion resulting in the RFP/RFQ prior to May 1.

6. Prepare the QST environment by (1) developing and distributing

realistic task assignments, matching the level of difficulty of each
requirement and the skill level of each tester, as measured by
individual tester performance against assignments; (2) conducting
the turnover kick-off meeting.
Is this SMART? Yes No
Re-written Goal:
Based on a review of past tester performance against previous
assignments, distribute new task assignments by level of difficulty to
the appropriate tester by 10/1 and ensure 90% accuracy. This goal
can be exceeded by achieving accuracy above 90%.

Re-written Goal:
Coordinate all logistics for the annual turnover kick-off meeting to
take place during the first week of November, including (but not
limited to) scheduling participants, arranging for equipment,

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communicating meeting specifics, developing an agenda, etc.
Conduct this meeting with a 90% positive feedback rating average,
as indicated on the participant evaluations. This goal can be
exceeded by receiving higher than a 90% feedback rating average on
participant evaluations.

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 GOAL WRITING WORKSHEET
Use this worksheet to help you write your SMART Goal statements.
The test below will ensure that each of your goals is written as
SMART Goals. Be sure to include specifics as to how the goals can
be exceeded whenever possible.
SMART Goal Statement:
________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________

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This Goal Can be Exceeded in the Following Way:

____________________________________________________

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The Test:

Specific Uses action verbs to describe the Yes No

desired behavior
Measurable Identifies how goal achievement Yes No
will be measured
Achievable Assesses if the employee has the Yes No
skills and knowledge necessary
to successfully achieve the goal
Relevant Assesses whether the goal Yes No
cascades down through the
organization from the Corporate
Goals, Business Group Goals, and
Work Group Goals
Time Bounded Provides a timeframe for Yes No
completion

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