Introduction
An objective is a goal that guides the efforts of an organization to reach its target. Objectives are set as an element of effective planning. They are used to determine whether an organization has met set standards. Objectives provide direction for various activities and influence human behavior towards attaining the mission and vision of an organization.
Characteristics of Good Objectives
Activities in an organization must determine the overall or departmental objectives, short term or long term objectives as well as social and economic objectives. Congruence must be created by managers, to avoid goal divergence (Bowden, Loudon, Migliore, Stevens and Yow, 2001).The objectives of an organization set strategies to be used to attain goals.
Objectives should be smart in nature. Vague and unrealistic objectives lead to confusion. SMART in this context means Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, and Time-bound. This forms the basic attributes of good objectives. Managers must set objectives that are specific. Such objectives lead to efforts being directed towards ensuring that groundwork is done to achieve the minimum expected output. Failure to achieve raises questions and corrective action should be taken to prevent the same from happening again (Koontz and Weihrich, 2006).
Objectives must be measurable. This means they can be defined in quantitative terms. They must also be achievable and realistic. When managers set very high objectives, it creates pressure and tension in the workplace. Realism is of the essence; otherwise, the implementers of the set standards will slowly get demotivated since the efforts expended do not lead to the expected output.
Time is important in the attainment of any goal. It is crucial to define the time when a goal is to be accomplished so that employees focus on timely accomplishments. This is why it is important to involve subordinates in an organization in the setting of the various objectives (Bowden, Harry, and Yow, 2000).
An objective must also be guided by the policies, rules, and procedures of the organization. A good objective must be valid according to the set policies otherwise its legitimacy becomes questionable. This means that an organization cannot operate without being under a certain scope of rules. Rigidity is highly discouraged when setting objectives. An objective must be flexible enough to accommodate changes. Contingency cannot be avoided due to the dynamism of the world technologically, legally, socially, economically as well as religiously (Emery, 2011).
Objectives differ depending on the nature of the activities of the organization. The objectives in a military setup are totally different from objectives in a learning institution. In a sports club, the basic objective is to win as many trophies as possible. The managers and the coaches of the different athletes work hard towards ensuring that athletes gain desired reputation and recognition at all times. The other very important objective is to break records. An athlete like Usain Bolt has won many medals. However, his major goal is to break the world record and earn himself a good name.
Conclusion
From the discussion above, it is clear that objectives play a key role in any organization. An organization can not thrive without well-set objectives. It is important to note that an organization that operates without set goals can be caught unaware by events that will create a non-conducive environment for its operations leading to failure.
References
Bowden, W., Harry, J., & Yow, D. (2000).Stress in College Athletics: Causes, Consequences, Coping Causes, Consequences, Coping. New York: The Haworth Half-Court Press.
Bowden, W., Loudon, D., Migliore, H., Stevens, E., & Yow, D. (2001).Strategic Planning for Collegiate Athletics. New York: The Haworth Half-Court Press.
Emery, P. (2011). The Sports Management Toolkit. New York: Routledge Publishing Limited.
Koontz, H., & Weihrich, H. (2006).Essentials of Management. New Delhi: Tata McGraw-Hill Education Publishing Company.