Prepare a business plan for growth
Use targets to implement your business plan
A successful business growth plan should incorporate a clear set of targets and objectives. These will allow you to monitor and measure your business performance to get an idea of how well your business is doing.
SMART business targets
SMART objectives or targets can help you achieve the strategic goals of your overall plan. SMART stands for:
- Specific
- Measurable
- Achievable
- Realistic
- Timely
Targets help everyone within a business understand what they need to achieve and when. Find out why you should set business performance targets.
Key performance indicators (KPIs)
You can monitor the performance of employees, teams or a new product or service by using appropriate measures - these are known as KPIs.
Businesses track and measure many different types of KPIs, including:
- sales or profit figures over a given period
- milestones in new product development
- productivity benchmarks for individual team members
- market-share statistics
You will have to consider the specific circumstances of your business when deciding which key performance indicators to measure.
Employee performance
Targets make it clearer for employees to see where they fit within an organisation and how they can help the business meet its objectives. They also help to objectively address individuals' progress and should form a key part of managing staff performance.