No longer is it enough just to complete projects on time and on budget. Companies can't afford to waste time and money on projects that fail to deliver measurable benefits. In these difficult economic times it's more important than ever to deliver expected benefits, ensure organizational readiness, stakeholder engagement and solution adoption. Easily said, of course, but hard to do in practice because there is often no process or expertise in place to make it happen.
The key to consistently delivering benefits lies, upstream of project execution, in the strategic planning process, when senior management define their business objectives and SMART Goals. SMART Goals are specific, measurable, attainable, relevant and time-bound. They play a crucial role in communicating company priorities, reducing ambiguity and focusing all levels of an organization on what really matters.
SMART Goals focus on a company's mission and desired outcomes. They provide the basis for developing strategies, the rationale for tactical planning and the criteria for making objective decisions or SMART choices among diverse projects. SMART Goals coupled with a robust governance process will ensure every project's business case includes success metrics to demonstrate how it will measurably impact and contribute to achieving one or more of the company's SMART Goals. Projects that fail to clearly link to a strategic goal or show how they can advance the aims of the company can be easily weeded out before they further distract or consume resources. While projects that do link to company goals can get the resources they need based on their overall impact and return.
SMART Goals are critical to clearly communicate expectations, plan strategies, measure performance and achieve desired results.
SMART Goal Definition:
