Equip new employees for success

…by helping them set short-term goals

by Charlotte Garner

 

In many cases, when new employees commence with an organisation, they lack a feeling of value to their team.  They are often given a desk, a brain dump of information and expected to start working.  And, even though they may also be offered a mentor or ‘office buddy’ to answer queries or ‘show them the ropes’, they can still experience a sense of abandonment and a feeling of being a less than effective employee.

If you want your new employee to feel a valuable part of your team, help them by setting some short-term goals!

What are short-term goals

Short-term goals are ones that you will achieve in the near future (eg, in a day, within a week, or possibly within a few months).  Short-term goals provide guidance on a day-to-day basis to meet a specific objective.

They are generally goals that support long-term objectives.  For example, if the long-term goal is measured in months, then the short-term goals should be achieved in just a few days, or a couple of weeks.

How short-term goals offer support

Short-term goals can provide simple, measurable and meaningful ways for the new employee to engage with and demonstrate value to the new organisation.  They quickly feel like a valuable part of the team as they are able to jump in and contribute immediately and experience plenty of opportunities to demonstrate their skills right away.

With some simple, strategic goal-setting, you can avoid wasting time and productivity while you wait for your new employee to learn the ropes and get the results you hired them for.

Not only will well-defined, short-term goals benefit the individual, but they benefit your organisation.

Setting short-term goals

Short term goals work best if they include the following:

  1. Defined objectives that enable new employees to apply existing expertise and past experience to the present needs of the organisation.
  2. Clear and measurable expectations in terms of what is required.
  3. A clear commitment from the new employee of the actions required to achieve the goals.
  4. Establishment of a measure of accountability by which both the organisation and new employee can assess performance.

When you choose a goal and set yourself a time limit, you increase the odds of achieving that goal by a huge factor.  Just setting a specific target for yourself helps to motivate you to put in the extra work to achieve the outcome.  And when your extra efforts move you along your timeline, you get another huge morale boost.

Examples of short-term goals

A short-term goal might be a stepping stone on the way to a larger goal.  For example, if your big goal is to become a millionaire in ten years, your short-term stepping stone might be to shadow your sales team's best performer and apply their strategies to your own sales.

Here are some other examples.

  • Connect with 1 new business owner each week in your target market.
  • Get 3 posts up on Facebook each week communicating the importance of your product or service.
  • Make xxx number of telephone contacts in the next month.
  • Complete the preparation for a new product launch by (date).
  • Review the department's web page within the next month to ensure that all data is up-to-date; that design is consistent with company standards; that access and navigation capabilities are user friendly.
  • Schedule training for all staff by xxx date and ensure each is proficient in the use of the new name of system.
  • Read monthly article distributed at staff meeting and identify three key concepts to be shared and discussed at following month's staff meeting.
  • Identify all contacts in other departments who perform XYZ and create list with names and extensions for quick access.

Don’t forget about the bigger picture

As you focus on short-term goals as a means of support for new employees, don’t forget to keep the bigger picture in mind, ie. the long term goals.  People can often become distracted by what must be done this week that they forget about what needs to be accomplished this year.  Ensure all individual goals are tied in with the goals of the organisation and as they progress, any smaller goals should be changed or updated.

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For further information about Dixon Appointments, call Charlotte Garner on 03 9629 9999 or email cgarner@dixonappointments.com.au