Having clear and precise goals is an important part of effective plan-making. When reasonable and attainable, goals can act as great motivators, pushing people into new heights of performance. Goals have to be reasonable in a way that they don’t expect something from the worker that he cannot deliver. Goals that push the line of ability without going over it are great motivators but when they start expecting something that just isn’t there (in terms of intelligence or ability) they can become destructive, counter-productive and moral breaking.
Goals must also be attainable for obvious reasons for one can hardly name the worker whom works hard to do a job that’s never going to be good enough. Again this is the fine dance on the edge where the goal should push the workers to the edge of their capability without e. g. asking them to arrange a shipment under such strict time limits that you know, as do the workers, that it can’t be done. What is meant by the term a ‘hierarchy of goals’, and how can that idea help people to build a consistent plan?
What else would managers need to do once they have agreed a hierarchy of objectives? With a “hierarchy of goals” a plan can become more specific, starting with one overall goal which is then broken down into smaller and more specific goals in order to achieve the big one. In also delegates, arranging for certain goals do be worked on by different people, divisions’ etx. By using a hierarchy of goals one is more able to clearly define what needs to be done in order to achieve a bigger, more general goal.
More so, one is able to define the order in which these smaller goals need to be worked on. When a hierarchy of goals is being created it is necessary to create some slack in order to have some flexibility. A plan where every single insignificant goal has to be achieved in a perfect way within a specific time limit has a high probability of failing. Fulfilment of smaller goals has to be evaluated with the big picture in mind.
Also important is delegating, putting certain people or certain divisions in charge of certain goals. If a list of goals is introduced and people are supposed to work on them “somehow” it’s likely to cause chaos. Finally, before releasing a set of goals, plan makers have to go over them and see if they are proper ones. If goals are ambiguous, unquantifiable or difficult to handle, they are not likely to create a good outcome. The goals should be clear, precise and above all, motivational.
When it comes to picking out a colour scheme for the store I believe that involving the floor-staff is simply time consuming and redundant. The manager is fully capable of consulting a decorative specialist if he finds it necessary but most likely he himself will be able to decide on a suitable colour. My advice, so to speak, is for the manager to simply pick a colour and go with it. When looking to the V&Y decision tree, it seems to agree with the above said, implying that the manager should go with his own mind instead of consulting with others.
