Having a structure in place for employees to set (and meet) goals creates a culture of accountability and success—so long as those employee goals also benefit the business. In this post, we cover how to align employee goals with corporate objectives.
It can be a challenge to align employee goals with corporate objectives, especially at a large enterprise organization with many departments, teams and shifting priorities.
But it’s critical to your success.
This alignment ensures that your entire workforce understands, shares and supports your mission. Within this atmosphere of buy-in, employees give their best performance to their own goals, knowing they support a larger purpose. They know their work matters, so they’re directed, motivated and prepared to succeed. And the best part is, their success is your success.
It’s clearly an ideal state. But how do you actually accomplish this?
How to Align Employee Goals with Corporate Objectives: 4 Best Practices
#1. Be Transparent About Company Objectives & Vision
First and most importantly, always be transparent about your company’s objectives and what they mean for your employees.
This level of transparency starts from the top. Executives need to establish the company’s mission and vision and weave this messaging through everything the company does—from company-wide emails to individual compensation, rewards and performance statements. This way, all employees are completely aware of where your company is, where you plan to go and how they are connected to that path.
An invested workforce with buy-in will be more engaged and focused on setting personal goals that steer the company towards achieving those larger company goals. And the only way to achieve this is by being transparent.
#2. Communicate Openly & Honestly with Direct Reports
Communication at the manager/direct-report level is key. As middle management, you act as a vital link in the chain of communication from the top.
This is why it’s essential to keep your team in synch throughout the year with frequent check-in meetings. During these check-ins, you can:
- Set expectations for the week
- Provide positive and constructive feedback on past results
- Keep your team up-to-date about the company’s evolving goals, successes and challenges
- Ensure your employee’s work product is in line with your company’s objectives
Over time, these frequent check-ins foster relationships between managers and direct reports that allow both sides to feel heard and comfortable. Employees can have meaningful career talks with managers and feel supported and understood. And managers can mentor employees, guiding their ambitions to meet the needs of the company.
When you intentionally align employee goals with corporate objectives through these frequent feedback sessions, it’s truly a win-win. The employee can pursue personal and professional growth that is rewarding to them, while your company reaps the benefits of a more productive, knowledgeable and engaged workforce.
#3. Set Structure for Goal Setting & Employee Feedback
To improve transparency, accountability and overall performance, you need to establish a structure for goal setting.
What does this structure look like?
The specifics depend on your organization. What’s important is that you have one (and stick to it).
Structures – like a simple OKR (Objectives and Key Results) methodology – keep teams on the same page and ensure consistency in the way goals are set, even as people, processes and priorities change. It also provides consistency in how success is measured throughout the company.
With the right structure flowing through all levels of your organization, you will be able to easily align employee goals with corporate objectives.
#4. Track It All Through Performance Management Software
To achieve the above benefits of an aligned workforce, you need a tool that helps you formalize and automate the process.
Sometimes, it might not be that your individual goals are disconnected. It might just be too difficult to tell how they connect. If you can’t align employee goals with corporate objectives, that defeats the purpose of performance management in the first place.
This is where performance management software comes in. Designed to facilitate meaningful and continuous discussions between managers, employees and departments throughout the year, the solution takes care of the busy work so you can handle the meaningful goal alignment and attainment activities.
It’s easy to lose sight of the big picture when you’re going through the day-to-day. You need something that helps you not only connect goals but also stay on top of all the communications and feedback sessions.
Conclusion
Making sure employee goals align with corporate objectives is vital. True alignment creates engaged and informed employees that will go the extra mile to meet and exceed their goals, ensuring your company’s continued success.
When executives are transparent, managers and reports communicate openly, and everyone follows a consistent goal-setting structure, employee and company goals will fall right in line with each other. And performance management software makes it all that much easier.
Align employee goals with corporate objectives with HRSoft’s PERFORMview, performance management software that makes a traditionally ineffective and complex process simple. See how it works by requesting a demo today.
