Setting Team Goals

I received this great question on Twitter from Tom Brichacek:

@tbric Tom Brichacek
@CLoCurto Can you write a bit about team goal setting? The posts on profit-sharing were AWESOME! Thanks!

To set team goals, you have to start by understanding what it is to do true goal-setting. In Goals? In June? Crazy Talk! I showed you the basics of real goal setting. Not the junk you read in so many books. Instead, I laid out a real, simple way to set goals that work. So if you’ve never had a system that worked, start there. Even if you have, check this out and see if it isn’t better.

So, what do we do with team goals? Well, they aren’t much different from individual goals. Except you’re trying to get a group of people at different levels, characteristics, ages and abilities to agree on what they can accomplish together. Some will want to shoot for the moon while others will want to sandbag as much as possible. So how do you put something in place that works for the team?

You have to start by understanding that goals that aren’t mine are nothing more than tasks that have been delegated to me. Therefore, I’m missing the most important element, ownership! Without it, I will do the tasks, but the outcome will be less important to me than if I came up with those goals on my own. So you have to work with the team to develop their goals together as a team.

List out what it is you want to set goals on before you present it/them to the team. Once you have that list, pull your team together and ask them to come up with potential goals for the team. What do they feel like the team could do together. Again, some will sandbag, so I’m more likely to land in between the average and the most ambitious goals. That way your team is always shooting to be better than average.

Now that you have the goals, ask the team what it will take to make sure those goals are accomplished. What are the simple details and steps that they need to take to succeed? If your team’s goal is to sell $200,000 worth of product in July, then what will it take to make that happen? How many calls, contacts, conversations, emails per day? How many promotional pieces will need to be mailed out? (If the goal is 10 sales a day, and we know that it takes 50 calls to get 15 conversations, and 15 conversations will lead to 7 sales, then 50 calls isn’t enough.) List out the “goals” so the team knows what it takes to win.

Then confirm that the entire team has buy-in. If not, then you will get dissention in the ranks. Gossip will brew among those who can’t cut it. Don’t allow that to happen. As the team sets the goals together, you will be able to single out those who don’t want to push hard to make this happen. As the team succeeds, they should as well. If not, you need to micromanage the team members who aren’t pulling their weight to see if there is anything you can do to help them be successful. In You Light Up My….Eyes? I talk about how I believe that it is your job to make your team successful. Don’t shoot your wounded. Get in there and see if you can make them strong!

With the team setting the goals, you should be able to guide and direct them to winning. If not, dissect to see what’s not working. Make your adjustments with your team’s input and let them go again.

Question: What tips do you have to help teams to set goals?

Related articles

• Goals? In June? Crazy Talk! (Chris LoCurto.com)
• What Am I Doing?! (Chris LoCurto.com)
• Check Me Out! (Chris LoCurto.com)
• You Light Up My….Eyes? (Chris LoCurto.com)