Smart goals for performance review examples

The SMART in Smart Goals stands for stands for Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Time-Based. In order to be a SMART goal, the goal needs to meet all five of these criteria. For a more detailed run-down on what each of these means check out our Guide to Smart Goals.

As you review the examples below, notice how each outlines actions and timelines that need to take place in order to accomplish the overall goal. Each goal can be broken into specific subgoals to make them more measurable and achievable to accomplish the overall goal.

Examples of Business Smart Goals

• Reduce overtime in the department from 150 hours per month to 50 hours per month by the end of the fiscal year with no increase in incident reports.
• Identify, execute and run 5 customer education webinars this quarter with 10+ attendees and 80%+ satisfied/very satisfied rate
• Prepare for product launch by developing launch checklist of activity, tasks, due-dates and drive approval by all stakeholders by April 1
• Conduct at least 10 phone screens and 3 on-site interviews to achieve the goal of hiring new finance manager by end of quarter
• Gain four new clients for my business this quarter by conducting 3 or more customer meetings each week
• Acquire 45,000 new online customers this financial year at an average cost per acquisition (CPA) of $30 with an average profitability of $5
• Increase the reach of the business Facebook page from 35,000 likes to 100,000 likes by July 31 through ads, events, and video
• Ensure that the 90%+ of the team has completed training on the new inventory management software by the end of the quarter.
• Secure $10K in sponsorship commitments for our event this fall by the end of March
• Review all customer accounts above $20K/year revenue and schedule a strategic review with the top 5 with the greatest opportunity for upsell
• Deliver customer support with a 90%+ Satisfied/Very Satisfied customer satisfaction rate and reduce overall customer contact volume by 10%

Examples of Professional Smart Goals

• Present at two or more internal employee per quarter to improve confidence and presenting skills. Improve industry knowledge by attending 3+ industry events and provide a write-up to the rest of the team on key learnings afterward
• Develop and practice my management skills by conducting weekly 1:1s with my direct reports, quarterly 1:1s with my indirect reports, and quarterly all hands with my team resulting in 10% improvement in employee engagement score at the end of the year
• Review and reduce the number of meetings on my calendar by 50% in order to enable more time for strategic planning by end of the month
• By end of quarter, complete course work and pass for CFA certification
• Grow my network by having at least one lunch each week on average this quarter with an external professional relationship
• Improve my product understanding by creating, drafting, and delivering two projects using our product by the end fo the quarter
• Spend 2 days per month building my customer understanding by shadowing teammates in operations and sales; deliver a write-up at the end on key learnings to the rest of the team

Five Tips for Using Smart Goals at Work

If you're implementing Smart Goals for the first time, here are a few tips on how to get started.

Tip #1. Get everyone on the same page

If the team does not have a shared understanding of what a Smart Goal is, this is a sure recipe for disaster as far as getting specific and measurable goals in place. Run a training, have a meeting, send an email -- whatever it takes -- in order for everyone to understand all of the criteria for Smart Goals.

Tip #2. Set an example and make your goals shared and public

Making the organization's goals public can be a powerful tool for driving alignment in your business's goal setting process. By being able to see the goals of their leadership and peers, employees have a stronger understanding of where they fit in in the process. See our guide on how to leverage Notejoy for goals for how-to and templates.

Tip #3. Create a schedule to keep everyone on track

In order for the entire team to be using Smart Goals effectively, it's important to have a system in place that encourages regular review and feedback on goals. It's often helpful for leadership teams to send out the initial Smart Goal plan with a calendar of events specifying when goals will be reviewed, finalized, adjusted, and finally evaluated.

Tip #4. Be clear on what success looks like

Do you want your organization to be setting Smart Goals that are very safe and achievable, or do you expect them to be reaching with Stretch Goals? By establishing a clear expectation of what Success looks like within the organization, leaders can actively encourage people to reach for ambitious goals. For example, a clear message that 'We expect you to achieve 70% of your goals and that is what success looks like. Achieving 100% of your goals is failure and means you set the bar too low.' is a very strong message.

Tip #5. Collect feedback and optimize your goal setting process

Every organization is a little bit different, both in its work customs as well as culture. Because of that, the way goal setting processes are established and run can be very different but still effective. Involve the entire team in the process by running an internal survey on the process.

Notejoy makes setting and sharing Smart Goals easy

Notejoy makes it fast and easy to get your team on the same page to set SMART goals and establish them with pinned notes and templates.

• Real-Time Collaboration - As a cloud-based solution, Notejoy allows you to share your goals with internal and external collaborators. These collaborators can view, discuss, and comment on goals as well as view the latest version.
• Always in Sync - Rather than managing different versions of agendas or multiple threads of conversation, Notejoy allows the entire team to always see agendas including changes and discussions at the same time.
• Keep Goals in One Searchable Place - have one place to keep track of and maintain one system of record for your team's goals. Manage who has access to what information, and enable team members old and new to search across past and current goals.

Additional Resources

October 14, 2021

8 min read

Goals provide a clear picture of what every employee, department, and organization plans to accomplish. Goal-setting is a reliable way to keep everyone on track, from executives to hourly workers. It’s important to ensure that you set measurable goals to get an accurate picture of every employee’s progress.

Today, we’ll give some examples of measurable goals for managers and employees in 2022.

What Makes Measurable Goals So Important At Work?

Before we dive into examples, let’s talk about why we set goals in the first place. Setting measurable goals is important for many reasons:

• Gives every employee concrete objectives to work toward
• Presents a clear vision for what individuals and teams will accomplish
• Provides a framework for measuring performance, recognizing achievements, and giving promotions
• Keeps employees and managers engaged, on-task, and accountable
• Promotes employee development and retention
• Boosts productivity, motivation, and morale

Goals create transparency around expectations that help employees feel more secure in their positions. They help managers grow their management skills and lead their teams to success. Research even shows that when people set more difficult goals, they put in more effort and work harder to achieve those goals. According to Gallup, setting and meeting goals is one of the three core indicators of an employee’s success in a role.

Those are just some of the reasons that goal-setting is a highly effective performance management tool. Now, we’ll look at some examples of measurable goals for employees, including those that may not seem measurable at first glance. We’ll also discuss how you can tie them into your performance review cycles.

Trending Performance Review Goals Examples

Measurable performance goals enable managers and employees to track progress as they’re working. For managers, measurable goals provide an opportunity to address any lags in productivity and keep goals on target. They allow managers to easily identify high-performing and high-potential employees. Managers can also offer recognition upon goal completion and while employees work toward each goal.

There are many methods your organization can use to construct performance goals for employees. One of the most popular methods is SMART goal-setting. SMART goals are touted as being highly effective by SHRM and other respected industry publications. SMART goals are:

• S - Specific 
• M - Measurable 
• A - Achievable 
• R - Relevant
• T - Time-bound or timely

If your company utilizes a performance management system, measurable goals are much easier to track. Employees set SMART goals in the platform and provide updates as they progress. Managers can then refer back to those goals and updates during each performance review. A positive response from your employees and results are ultimately the most important elements of your employee goal-setting process.

1. Technical Literacy Goals

In today’s world, nearly every job requires a certain level of technical knowledge or technical literacy.  61% of CEOs say their business models will become more digital, underscoring the importance of technical aptitude. Depending on the role, that aptitude can range from implementing and training employees on new technologies to mastering a software program for daily use. This is increasingly important as companies move to fully remote or hybrid work environments.

Examples of technical literacy goals for various roles include:

• Sales team members: Complete training courses when the customer relationship management (CRM) software releases new features. 
• HR leaders: Use performance management software to create a new report for managers showing their team members’ performance review scores over the past year. 
• Warehouse managers: Implement a new inventory management system and train warehouse staff who will be using it.

2. Certification, Training, and Professional Development Goals

Whether required or elective, certifications establish employees as industry experts, boost their earning potential, and even improve retention and engagement. 94% of employees would stay with a company longer if it invests in their careers. An employee training program would positively impact engagement for 93% of employees. These performance goals are also easily measurable and can provide insight into employee engagement and satisfaction levels. 

Professional development goals are highly dependent on roles, but always set employees apart as skilled professionals:

• HR professionals: Earn SHRM or PHR certifications — or both — by the end of 2022. 
• Digital marketing teams: Earn Google Analytics certification or attend two digital marketing conferences in 2022.
• Company executives: Earn an advanced degree or work with a professional diversity, equity, and inclusion coach in 2022.

Working across teams can be a challenge, but it brings big benefits to individual employees and the organization as a whole. Cross-functional teams foster connections, diversify skill sets, and provide opportunities for employees to reach better solutions. Collaboration performance goals can reveal unknown individual strengths and identify needs that help managers and employees set new goals going forward.

Here are some examples of collaboration goals:

• Marketing team members: Set up a monthly meeting with customer service teams to gain a better understanding of customer needs and pain points. 
• Customer service employees: Work with the sales team to establish aligned messaging when addressing common questions, complaints, and other customer needs.
• Software engineering teams: Meet with customer-facing departments bi-monthly to ensure customer needs are the focus of new features and software updates.
• Finance departments: Collaborate with HR teams for impactful workforce planning, including headcount forecasting and creating a budget.

4. Efficiency Goals

An employee performance goal based on efficiency is not just about time management — it’s meant to improve accuracy, reduce mistakes, and produce better results. High output combined with frequent mistakes means that it’s likely your employees would benefit from setting efficiency goals. On the other hand, consistent output and high accuracy can indicate a high-performer or high-potential employee. During review time, these performance goals indicate if an employee is eligible for a promotion or needs additional training.

Adapt these examples to your company’s needs:

• Department heads: Identify your team members’ strengths and delegate tasks according to their expertise.
• Foodservice managers: Give employees an assigned station for their shift, reducing the number of tasks each employee performs and decreasing mistakes.
• Customer service leaders: Reach a 95% resolution rate for the team on customer support tickets (effectiveness of resolutions vs. number of tickets closed goal).

5. Critical Thinking Goals

Developing employees’ critical thinking skills is a key part of their overall professional development. Strong critical thinking skills make employees better problem solvers, communicators, and strategists. Critical thinkers are able to challenge existing processes, obtain leadership buy-in, and make impactful changes.

Critical thinking goals will vary depending on the role. Regardless, these review goals typically result in deeper levels of knowledge and innovative solutions:

• Explain the various processes your team uses in very simple terms. 
• Create a report or gather evidence to support suggestions for process changes.
• Gather and use employee feedback to make all-staff company meetings more engaging and beneficial to every team.

6. Project Management or Completion Goals

Set project management or completion goals depending on the employee’s level in the organization. These are more straightforward productivity goals by which to assess performance and gauge the success of managers and employees. However, these performance review goals can also encompass soft skills like agility and collaboration. That provides a well-rounded picture of employees’ effectiveness and potential for future growth.

Project management and completion goals vary widely across industries:

• Construction project managers: Complete three highway resurfacing projects on schedule during Q3.
• HR executives: Implement a new onboarding process in Q1 and gather new employee feedback to gauge its effectiveness.

Setting measurable goals for employees and managers not only measures success — it motivates your employees toward success. Goals are a foundational part of productive performance reviews that effectively measure past accomplishments and lay the groundwork for the future.

With ClearCompany’s Performance Management tools, you can set measurable performance review goals for every employee. Get regular progress updates, provide feedback, and create records of each employee’s achievements to reference during performance reviews.

Strengthen your performance management program and support employees’ growth with better performance reviews. Not sure where to start? We’ve got you covered: download ClearCompany’s performance review resources to refresh your appraisal process.