Page 169 - Fundamentals of Management Myths Debunked (2017)_Flat

168 Part 2 • Planning
elements: ❶ goal specificity, ❷ participative decision making, ❸ an explicit time period,
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and ❹ performance feedback. Instead of using goals to make sure employees are doing
what they’re supposed to be doing, MBO uses goals to motivate them as well. The appeal is
that it focuses on employees working to accomplish goals they’ve had a hand in setting. (See
the From the Past to the Present box for more information on MBO.)
Studies of actual MBO programs have shown that it can increase employee performance
and organizational productivity. For example, one review of MBO programs found productiv-
31
ity gains in almost all of them. But is MBO relevant for today’s organizations? Yes, if it’s
viewed as a way of setting goals, because research shows that goal setting can be an effective
tool in motivating employees. 32

Characteristics of Well-Written Goals. No matter which approach is used, goals have to
be written, and some goals more clearly indicate what the desired outcomes are. Managers
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should develop well-written goals. Exhibit 5–6 lists the characteristics. With these char-
acteristics in mind, managers are now ready to actually set goals.

Steps in Setting Goals. Managers should follow six steps when setting goals.
1. Review the organization’s mission and employees’ key job tasks. The mission statement
provides an overall guide to what’s important, and goals should reflect that mission. In addi-
tion, it’s important to define what you want employees to accomplish as they do their tasks.
2. Evaluate available resources. Don’t set goals that are impossible to achieve given your
available resources. Goals should be challenging, but realistic. After all, if the resources
you have to work with won’t allow you to achieve a goal no matter how hard you try or
how much effort is exerted, you shouldn’t set that goal.
3. Determine the goals individually or with input from others. Goals reflect desired outcomes
and should be congruent with the organizational mission and goals in other organizational ar-
eas. These goals should be measurable, specific, and include a time frame for accomplishment.
4. Make sure goals are well-written and then communicate them to all who need to know.
Writing down and communicating goals forces people to think them through. Written
goals become visible evidence of the importance of working toward something.
5. Build in feedback mechanisms to assess goal progress. If goals aren’t being met, change
them as needed.
6. Link rewards to goal attainment. Employees want to know “What’s in it for me?” Link-
ing rewards to goal achievement will help answer that question.
Once the goals have been established, written down, and communicated, managers are ready
to develop plans for pursuing the goals.
What Types of Plans Do Managers Use and How Do

They Develop Those Plans?
Managers need plans to help them clarify and specify how goals will be met. Let’s look first
at the types of plans managers use.
types of plans. The most popular ways to describe plans are in terms of their breadth
(strategic versus tactical), time frame (long term versus short), specificity (directional
Exhibit 5–6 Well-Written goals

Written in terms of outcomes rather than actions
Measurable and quanti able
Clear as to a time frame
Challenging yet attainable
Written down
Communicated to all necessary organizational members
Source: Robbins, Stephen P., Coulter, Mary, Management, 13th Ed., © 2016, p. 222. Reprinted
and electronically reproduced by permission of Pearson Education, Inc., New York, NY.