A Different Take on SMART Objectives

We have previously written about setting expectations, and began to touch on what it means to have clear and aligned goals. One idea many of us have heard is the benefit of creating goals and objectives that are SMART. Google will give you quite a few definitions of the “SMART objective,” and in fact, you may have some of your own (we would love to hear your definitions/variations). Moreover, most of the time, the “SMART objective” will look similar to the first hit we found on Google, courtesy of Wikipedia:

• S – Specific
• M – Measureable
• A – Attainable
• R – Relevant
• T – Time Bound

Wikipedia’s definition is not the only and “correct” one. “A” sometimes shows up as “Achievable,” and often times, “Realistic” will be substituted for “R”. These two letters seem to have the most variation. While we are in agreement with the letters, “S”, “M”, and “T,” we have our own variations on “A” and “R” as well. In our view, “A” is more representative of “aligned.”

Within any quality performance process/system, an important requirement for any employee is their ability to see and take responsibility for goals that align with departmental and organizational objectives. Essentially, the employee needs to be able to see how their work impacts the big picture.

Now some might say: isn’t “aligned” simply synonymous to “relevant?”

Our response: do you want to simply be relevant within the organization, or structure your goals to align to the specific goals of the organization knowing that you are making a direct impact? In other words, would you rather be a cog or truly help the organization move forward in a collective manner?

After answering that question for you, it becomes pretty clear that “relevant” isn’t the best choice for “R” when setting goals. We help organizations all over the world try to achieve a Performance Based Culture and “attainable” and “relevant” just don’t cut it. The “R” in SMART is critical when setting your goals in an organization that is performance based, because it is important that the employee knows what it means to raise the bar, to reach (and stretch) by going beyond the expectations.

Dr. Sicora remembers working for Greg at Pfizer in NYC. Coming out of grad school, Greg was an amazing leader. He was someone you always wanted to please, and you would work your tail off to do it. Dr. Sicora really enjoyed getting feedback from Greg, and he would always make sure to take time every week to sit down and see how things were going. Dr. Sicora would ask him what he thought about different projects he was working on, and he would always reply honestly. But no matter what his answer was, Dr. Sicora would  immediately ask Greg, ‘What would it take to make it even better?’ He always wanted to know how to ‘Raise’ the bar and ‘Reach’ the next level. This was a great way for Dr. Sicora to calibrate with his leader, and understand how to manage expectations. There was never any second guessing.

The takeaway? Your performance system can always get SMARTer. In summary, here is our take on the “SMART objective” definition:

• S – Specific
• M – Measureable
• A – Aligned
• R – Reach or Raise the bar
• T – Time Bound