Link: Setting Targets.

Good performance targets will be SMART: Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant and Timed.

• specific: clear, unambiguous and easy to understand by those who are required to achieve them
• measurable: there is no point setting a target for which success cannot be gauged by referring to a specific measure or measures
• achievable: expressing specific aims that staff feel can realistically be achieved, with some effort: ‘out of reach, but not out of sight’
• relevant to those who will be required to meet them; they must have enough control over their work to be able to meet their targets, or their motivation will suffer
• timed: there should be a set timescale for achieving a target; open-ended targets may not encourage focused effort on improving performance.

If targets are hard to quantify, the definitions of the terms used to describe them are crucial and should be agreed between all concerned. Terms such as ‘satisfaction’ and ‘milestones’ are open to different interpretations and may have to be precisely defined for your situation.