Executive summary

In this assignment, the major concerns are related to the setting of goals and planning. This includes the importance of setting a goal in planning and characteristics of a well defined goal. Miles & Vergen’s landmark study into goal setting tells about the setting of goal according to the organizational objective. By this assignment, the clear meaning and importance of management by objective are understood. The contingency factors such as a change in technology, uncertainty in the environment, and length of commitment will influence the management approach for planning. In this assignment, the brief related to various types of plans is also discussed. The four types of plans describe are operational plan, strategic plan, tactical plans, and Contingency planning.

Introduction

The setting of a goal is important to make a plan effective and appropriate to organizational objectives. The goal which is set must be in a SMART way which defines the specification, measurable, achievability, relevancy, and time for a plan. The goal helps an organization in taking efforts of all the activities towards one organization objective. Miles and Vergen’s landmark study in setting a goal are defined as setting a goal in part of a targeted objective with accurate steps and strategy to achieve that organizational objective. Goals are divided on the basis of processes, activities, and outcomes that relate to achieving organizational objectives. Goal setting is necessary because it gives a clear vision and understanding to every employee. This leads to increase efforts which are given by every person in a direction to achieve the desired goal. The conditions which make sure best practice are taken in setting goals are achievable, believable, and conceivable. Management by objective means that the management is taking decisions and actions on the basis of organizational objectives. The management actions depend on the objective that gives a blueprint for achieving the objective with effective communication. The contingency factor such as uncertainty in the environment, length of commitment, and change in technology will influence the management approach to planning. The various types of plans are taken. The operational plan is guiding for day-to-day activities which is performed to take outcome. The contingency plan is developed to detect contingency actions that influence our business.

Importance of goal setting in planning

The setting of goals provides a long-term vision of the objective, a way of achieving that objective, and an idea for motivating the team to encourage them. The goal gives focus on the target and contributes all the necessary time and resources in one direction to achieve and get the best outcome. It motivates managers to develop an effective strategy. The importance of setting the goal in planning help in the following way-

1. Commanding an objective- the getting of a goal helps in commanding the objective. The goal makes sure that all the activities are taken to achieve a particular objective. This master our activity in relate to goals. The goal gives focus on achieving of organization’s objective. It takes all the actions in one direction. The commanding of an objective is directing every activity and policy.
2. Performance approach goal- a performance approach goal makes sure about performance which carries on focuses in one direction only. The performance of every person results in a better outcome. It is necessary to direct every activity in the approach of goal. The performance is decided on the basis of the goal which is contributing to the organizational objective. It is necessary for directing every action to approach the desired goal.
3. Performance avoidance goal- this includes the activities which are avoided for achieving the goal. This tries in achieving a target by ignoring activities that become a barrier. Many activities in the organization have become barriers to achieving of goals. The goal decides a course of action that is to be taken for fulfilling an organizational objective and avoiding delay and failure.

The characteristics of well-defined goals

The well-defined goal is having a SMART technique for setting a goal. SMART planning refers to specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Timed setting of goals. It will evaluate as-

Specific- the specific technique gives the specification to a goal. The specific goal promotes specific actions. By setting a specific goal the organization will able to achieve its target successfully. The goal must be specific and contributing to the organization’s objective. Specification of goal gives proper guide lines and confidence to every member in performing a task. The specification makes it easy to understand the goal and their activities.

Measurable- the measurable technique makes it easy in measuring the performance outcome and comparing it with the set outcome. The immeasurable performance will not able to compare and analyse its efficiency. By measurable policies o, the organization is able to analyse the performance of every person and part of objective which is achieved.

Achievable- it is necessary to set achievable goals and activities. The capacity for achieving the following target is only gives an effective result. The achievability of a goal depends on the availability of resources and capacity for continuing that particular task. The achievability of a task depends on the qualification, knowledge, and specification of a particular person.

Relevant- it is necessary to check the relevancy of goals according to the company mission and vision. It also carries the relevancy of the job description for a particular goal. It is necessary to make a relevant goal for contributing to an organizational objective.

Time for achieving target- it is necessary to set a time for achieving a particular goal. This includes completing of activities on time for getting a result on time. The time is decided for starting and finishing of every particular task. The time helps in completing the activity and objectives on time.

The goal which is set must be in a SMART way. The SMART goal includes specification which gives surety and motivation to every employee in doing work. The specification makes the footpath clear and increases understanding. The measurement of the goal helps in comparing and observes the part of the goal which is achieved. The achievable goal is important to achieve in an effective way. The achievability of the goal makes it accurate and motivates everyone for performing that activity. The relevancy and time of achieving a goal are important to get a result in a particular time.

Miles & Vergen’s landmark study into goal setting

Miles and Vergen’s landmark study in the setting of goal setting of goal is a part of the target objects which needs to achieve and preparing steps and policies to achieve that objective. Goals are divided into processes, actions, and outcomes which are related to each other in terms of achieving an objective. The employees have to achieve this process to increase performance that leads to contributing to the desired outcome. Goal setting is necessary because it provides a clear vision and motivates everyone for fulfilling the desired outcome. The landmark study defines people’s motives by preparing a goal for improving their motivation. This leads to modifying policies and increasing efforts for achieving the desired goals.

Conditions which ensure best practice in goal setting

Miles and Vergen’s identify particular conditions that are to be achieved for best practices. These conditions identified for satisfying to best practice in setting goals are achievable, believable, and conceivable.

1. Achievable- the goals must be acceptable by every person for achieving a goal on time. While setting a goal it is necessary to define the importance of goal and confidence in achieving a set target. The achievable goal is conducted in an effective and efficient way. It motivates everyone to perform a task in a proper manner for achieving a goal. Every person has to believe in fulfilling a goal by working hard for avoiding failure. The goal must be clear and explained clearly which is easily understood by everyone.
2. Believable- the goals must have a specification and measurable for everyone. So that the goals are believable to every participant. The goals include all the questions which generate in everyone’s mind which makes it believable. It is necessary that everyone who conducts activities will believe in their actions and the goal for which that activity is conducted. The goal must be accurate, precise and easily understood to everyone so that they perform better with high motivation.
3. Conceivable- it defines that goals have an objective of achieving performance to be conceivable. If high goals are set then it motivates everyone and if it is achievable then it seems as effective. The goals must be conceivable. The possibility of achieving that goal is important for motivating and performing an activity with full enthusiasm.

Management by Objectives

Management by objective is aimed to improve organization performance with a clear objective which is taken by management and employees. It is strategic management. It is the process in which organizational goals are defined by management with team members for achieving an objective. The important step in management by objective is to monitor and evaluate every performance and activity against the desired objective. If the employees are involved in preparing goals and setting their own activity so they are able to fulfil their obligations related to that task. The management by objective gives importance to the goal-setting process. This promotes innovation and creativity in the organization. Management by objective helps in generating better ideas, contributing to organizational goals, and solving a problem to increase the productivity of employees.

This approach helps the manager to control their employees in the aim to accomplish in the future and taking their activity in the direction to achieve a particular goal.  Benefits of management by objectives are –

• Management by objective approach will result in effective communication and team work.
• The objective of planning is to develop a blueprint for expanding of business. Good planning helps management in making better decisions and policies of actions.
• The management by objective directs the productivity of every employee to meet organizational goals and objectives.
• It describes a clear understanding of the expectations of them in achieving a goal.
• It makes sure that all the subordinate goals are contributing to the objective of the organization.
• Management by objective encourages employees for completing their roles and responsibility.
• The management by objective permit management to link their activities with company’s financial goal, like profit and reduced costs, sales projections, along with performance and goals.

Contingency factors that influence a manager’s approach to planning

The contingency factors are cost estimation to cover expenses that may occur in the future. The contingency factors are unexpected and it is out of control for management. For managing contingency factor, the management has to do predictions. According to that prediction, safety measures are to be taken. The contingency factors in the workplace include a length of commitments, change in technology, and uncertainty in the environment. The contingency factors that influence the planning by management approach are as follow-

Uncertainty in an environment- the plan of the organization is required to make specific for solving uncertainty occurs in an organization. With the specification for uncertainty, a plan should be flexible so that it will be edited according to future uncertainty. The uncertainty in the environment may occur due to change in government policies, natural factor, economic factor, social factor, etc. the uncertainty affects the overall plan and activities of the organization. That is why while making a plan it is necessary to concerning uncertainty. Compliment organizational structure helps organizations in dynamic planning. Many uncertainties occur in an organization which affects the planning of an organization. The management planning and strategy are prepared according to the occurrence of uncertainty and the impact of uncertainty on organization performance.

Length of commitments- the organizational plan will depend on adequate accounting for current commitments received by everyone. The commitment helps in the completion of the plan at a particular time.  This includes long term and short-term plan of commitment. In most of the organization, the long-term commitment is received which need to extend their planning forward. The length of commitments affects the planning by management. According to the time duration of commitment, a manager has to modify the planning by manager’s approach.

Change in technology- technology is used in the organization for achieving a goal. Many technologies help in converting the input into an output. The resources are converted into a final product in every organization. Technology includes machinery, knowledge, materials, and procedures of work that change input into outputs. The technology used in manufacturing a product that is produced in the organization by the production system. Technology is the main factor which helps is carrying out all the activities for achieving a goal. The plan is made by keeping in mind about the new and better technology which increases the performance and helps in improving the productivity of every employee.

Various types of plans that need to develop

1. Operational plan- operation plan includes the actions which have to take in the workplace. This gives information about the way of performing a task. The operation plan plays the role of guideline to accomplish a set mission. The operation plan defines a day-to-day activity for the running of the company. This describes as an ongoing plan or single use plan. Single use plan is prepared for the events and activities that are not repeating in nature. That event or activities are occurring at one time only. Whereas an ongoing plan consists of policies for specific regulations, problems, and procedures for achieving a particular objective.
2. Strategic plan- the strategic plan is to define the need to conduct a particular action. The strategic plan is made on the basis of long-term thinking. The strategic plan is made at a high level by concerning the organizational mission and vision. The strategic plan consists of a high-level overview of the whole business. It is termed as a foundational area for an organization, and it determines long term decisions for the organization. The scope of preparing a strategic plan will set for the long term such as strategic plan prepares for the next two years to the next 10 years. An important part of the strategic plan is mission, vision, and values. The strategic plan provides an outline of the procedure prepared according to the goals of the organization as a whole. It is not prepared on the basis of a particular department or division. It is developed according to the mission of the organization.
3. Tactical planning- it is a concern with the actions which is going to happen. The tactical plan includes of specific, focused, and includes short term plans for those actual plans are to be taken. Tactics plan support long term strategic plan. Tactical plan contributing to the strategic plan. A tactic plan is prepared to achieve the outline of a strategic plan. A tactical plan is different from an operational plan. A tactical plan asks particular questions related to what needs to happen for achieving a strategic goal whereas an operational plan is related to how an organization does something for achieving an organization’s mission. This tactical planning is having scope for less than one year and breaks the strategic plan into various parts. The tactical plan is supporting a plan for a strategic plan.
4. Contingency planning- the contingency plan is prepared for something uncertain or unexpected. When something happens, this is unexpected in the organization. To prevent that the actions are to be changed. The experts refer to this plan as a specific plan of planning to protect a business from getting a high loss. The contingency plan is helpful in a situation that needs changes. The manager will expect changes when they engage in primary planning, but contingency occurs. Contingency planning is important in the circumstance at the time when changes are not left for the future. The business world is more complicated. In that environment, it is necessary to engage in contingency planning and understand the need for changes at the time of uncertainty.

Conclusion

This assignment gives us a brief analysis of the setting of goals in planning. The setting of goals helps the organization in taking a clear vision of its mission and vision. The goal contributes to achieving an organization’s objective in an effective way. The goal set in a SMART way will represent a specification that helps in achieving a specific objective and contributing to it. The measurable is needed to control the actions and measure how much part of the objects is achieved. The achievable goal motivates them in performing the task and fulfilling their objective on time. The relevancy of the goal gives proper support to the organizational mission and vision. It is necessary to set a time for starting and finishing a task. The activities are completing according to the set time. This goal should be achievable, believable, and conceivable. These three conditions make sure that practices are setting a goal is satisfying the need for a plan. The management by objective is concerned with making a goal on the basis of an objective. The management by objective helps management in taking decisions according to the organizational objective. The plan discussed in that is the operational plan, strategic plan, tactical planning, and contingency plan. The operational plan conducts the performance of the organization which is taken to fulfil the organizational objective. The operational plan gives a guide to day-to-day activities. The strategic plan defines the strategies are made on the basis of the objective. The strategies are contributing to goals and objectives.

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