SMART goals: A project management tool

by Ali Jamal Jomeh

Abstract

Setting goals and objectives is an important part of every organization, as they serve as a guide in terms of what they want to achieve, making them deeply inherent in project, program and portfolio management. Goals and objectives contribute to the successful development of a project’s different phases as well as the guidance of the project team’s operations towards achieving all the agreed upon goals within the scope, time, quality and budget standards. Evidently, an appropriate goal setting technique can help to successfully accomplish the above, which is where SMART goals enter the picture. The purpose of this article is to fully elaborate the idea behind the SMART goals, how to apply the technique, and the limitations of it.

SMART is an effective goal setting technique in which the acronym stands for: Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time bound. The difference between normal and SMART goals is that normal goals are simply what you aim to achieve, while SMART goals include finer details in the equation such as resources, deadlines and potential roadblocks along the way. These goals are to be formulated in regard to these five principles, where the idea is that every project goal must adhere to the SMART criteria in order to be effective. Therefore, a key element in the success of a project relies on setting SMART goals, as it is designed to provide structure and guidance throughout a project and can help answer how the project can contribute to the purpose based on relevant success criteria. If managers have nebulous, equivocal goals, the project will not end up as envisioned. Thus, the technique enables managers to clearly define and understand the purpose and goals of a project, program, or portfolio. Even though SMART is well-known and commonly used, it is rarely mentioned in the British or PMI standards. However, in the British standards, SMART is used as part of a quality criteria for a project brief in line with the PRINCE2 method. While this technique is applicable in almost any professional context, it is typically applied in project management in the planning phase of a project, as the project scope including objectives is defined here in accordance with the international standard ISO21500.

Introduction to goal setting theory

In the late 1960’s, Edwin Locke put forward the goal-setting theory of motivation. This theory states that goal setting is essentially linked to task performance, and that specific and challenging goals along with appropriate feedback contribute to higher and better performance. Furthermore, Locke’s research has shown that the more difficult and specific the goal is, the harder people tend to work. In one study, Locke found that, for 90 percent of the time, specific and challenging goals led to higher performance than easy or "do your best" goals. For instance, advising someone to "do your best" is less viable than saying "attempt to get more than 80% correct". Hard goals are more persuading than easy ones, since there is a greater sense of accomplishment involved when there has been put in a bigger effort.

A few years after Locke’s published article, Gary Latham studied the effects of goal setting in the workplace. His results supported Locke’s findings – that there is an inseparable link between goal setting and workplace performance. According to Locke and Latham, there are five goal setting principles that can improve our chances of success:

1. Clarity
2. Challenge
3. Commitment
4. Feedback
5. Task complexity

Since Locke's first findings, numerous techniques based on goal setting theory have been published including SMART goals which will be covered in the next section.

Framework for SMART goals

Due to the importance of an effective goal setting technique in organisational performance management, the main principles of SMART goals were introduced for the first time in 1981 by George Doran and are in many ways similar to the principles established by Locke and Latham. Since its first introduction, there have been made a couple of adjustments to the acronym SMART. Today, the current definition is generally accepted as:

• Specific (target a specific area for improvement)
• Measurable (quantify or suggest an indicator of progress)
• Attainable (state what results can realistically be achieved, given available resources)
• Relevant (determine if the goal is in alignment with your values and long-term objectives)
• Time-bound (specify when the result(s) can be achieved)

... Explain benefits, relate to key references, In the following subsections, each criteria will be elaborated further.

Specific

The first criteria is that the goal should target a specific area of improvement or answer a specific need. Because it is the first step in the process, it is pivotal to be as clear as possible so that everyone who reads it interprets it the same way. This can be accomplished by, for example, using the 5 W's:

• What do I want to accomplish?
• Who is involved?
• Which resources are involved?
• Where is it located?
• Why is it important?

Question
What do I want to accomplish?
Who is involved?
Which resources are involved?
Where is it located?
Why is it important?

Measurable

The goal must be quantifiable, or at least allow for measurable progress. By the definition of the word itself, this step should help answer questions such as:

• How will I know when it is accomplished?
• How much?
• How many?

When checking for this step, assessable terms should be used such as costs, deadlines, frequency, quality, quantity and so forth.

Attainable

The goal should be realistic based on available resources and existing constraints. Typical project constraints include team bandwidth, budgets, and timelines. Project managers should look to data from similar projects done in the past for insight on what is actually achievable. Based on this, it is imperative to ask questions such as:

• Can this goal be achieved?’
• How realistic is the goal based on the known constraints?
• Is the team equipped with the necessary skills and knowledge to meet the expectations?

Relevant

• When is it relevant?
• What can I do N months from now?
• What can I do N weeks from now?
• What can I do right now?

Time-bound

• When is it relevant?
• What can I do N months from now?
• What can I do N weeks from now?
• What can I do right now?

Application of SMART goals

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