ORGANIZATIONAL GOALS: THE CASE OF L-D TOOLS AND DIE
Goals should be written SMART, specific, measurable, attainable, realistic and time-bound. Looking at the organizational goals formulated by Dickson and Tate lacks the elements of SMART. Dickson and Tate however can encourage their human resource management to make SMART goals. This is necessary in order for the organization to implement organizational goals and assess them later using the same as barometers. Formulating the goals ideally is a collaborative process with the management and staff. Both formal and informal collaborative processes are essential. Innovative solutions usually emerges with informal interactions (Cross et.al., 2010). In this case, the organization’s strategic objective of retaining the informal environment is an organizational asset that can be tapped. The informal setting in itself provides a flexible atmosphere for employees to learn and become creative individuals without the stringent formality of an organization.
Let us assess the organizational goals of L-D using the barometers of SMART.
Double the company facilities in three years. This is quite specific, measurable, attainable, realistic and time-bound. To double means that the current number of facilities will be used as a gauge three years later to assess whether it has really doubled. Although this goal lacks the concern for a quality of company facilities, it would have read, “Double and improve the quality of the company facilities in three years.” It is realistic given the three year period as long as the company has the necessary resources to acquire said facilities. The time-element three years is also SMART.
Become a key player in Canadian plastic industry. This is not SMART as it lacks the element of specificity, measurability, attainability and the time-element. This also leaves out primary customers as the United States and other countries as Europe. It may have read, “Become a key player in the Canadian plastic industry in the next five years.” The other goals will read, “Become a lead provider of quality customized molds and plastic parts to the United States and Europe in the next five years. The strategies set by Dickson and Tate to achieve the goal of becoming a key player in the Canadian plastic industry are: Flexible and adaptable to customers’ needs; Solution oriented; Constantly able to meet present and future challenges; And I suggest to add employee development as a strategy in achieving organizational goals.
Other goals can be formulated to improve its human resource – their needs and professional development, training and education for their thirty unskilled workers, seven experienced and technical personnel and eight assistants. These goals will have to be formulated by the people themselves in collaboration with the management following the barometers of a SMART organizational goal.
The point of Dickson and Tate would be a Strategic Human Resource Management (SHRM). The SHRM philosophy focuses on achieving organizational goals by aligning human resource practices with the organization’s business strategies (Management Study Guide, 2011). Gone now are the days wherein which the management dictate upon the employees, today, the employees take center stage in organizations. Thus a ‘blending of goals’ between the employee’s goals and the organization’s goals is essential. As goals are interrelated, it is easy for employees to look at organization’s goals and how their personal goals fit into it. Trust and confidence and accountability are important in this new relationship. (Rohlander, 1998)
From the above discussion the suggested course of action for Dickson and Tate in respect to HRM to help achieve organizational goals are:
1. To create a collaborative organizational culture where the management and staff engages in a healthy discussion both of organizational and personal goals.
2. Maintain the informal set-up of the organization to foster a creative and innovative atmosphere for the employees.
3. Formulate SMART (specific, measurable, attainable, realistic and time-bound) organizational goals and individual objectives.
4. Ensure that there is a ‘blending’ of goals of the organization and the individual. Otherwise, the individual’s realizing a discrepancy between personal goals and organizational goals become de-motivated and leave the organization.
5. As regards, organizational growth, management must invest on employee training and development to improve the knowledge and skill of employees to make them become better individuals with high self-esteem and productive in the workplace.
REFERENCES
Cross, R., Gray, P., Cunningham, S., Showers, S., and Thomas RJ., (2010). The Collaborative Organization: How to Make Employee Networks Really Work. [online] Available at: < http://sloanreview.mit.edu/the-magazine/2010-fall/52121/the-collaborative-organization-how-to-make-employee-networks-really-work/> [Accessed 3 May 2011].
Management Study Guide, 2011. Strategic Human Resource Management. [online] Available at: < http://www.managementstudyguide.com/strategic-human-resource-management.htm> [Accessed 3 May 2011]. Rohlander, D.G., 1998. Achieving Personal and Organizational Goals. [online] Available at: < http://www.allbusiness.com/management/726623-1.html> [Accessed 3 May 2011]
Credit:ivythesis.typepad.com
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