Goal-setting & Amount of Detail Needed

If there is one planning error that I see too often, it is the mistake made regarding developing the appropriate level of detail for new goals. I have reviewed hundreds of strategic plans over the last 20 years, and the problems look like this:


1) Too Much Goal Detail.

If the goal detail is overdone, participants will not attend to the essential actions necessary for goal completion because too much detail exists, or the plan is too long & cumbersome. This may include one goal with as many as 18 to 24 “Objectives” or “Essential Activities”. This much detail makes it hard for individuals to start working, because the overall set of tasks looks too complex.


2) Not Enough, or Nonexistent Goal Detail.

In contrast, if the detail is too vague or even nonexistent (the goal is identified, but no accompanying workplan has been developed), any progress on the goal will be just an accident.

To combat the above problems, I developed two worksheets that can be downloaded for free to address the above problems.

The Chainsaw Goal Workplan was developed to provide a manageable set of action steps necessary to complete a goal with specified timelines, resources, & responsibilities. My clients typically print the final plans on different colored papers for easier review during regular meetings.

The Benchmark Goal Worksheet was developed to get participants working immediately on the two questions necessary for progress:

1) What Do We Want to Accomplish?

2) What Should We Do to Begin?


These worksheets are pretty self-explanatory & easy to use. I hope that your planning is successful, and please let me know if I can help you with additional advice or detail regarding the above worksheets.

Training Employees in Advance So That They Can Better Handle Difficult Employees

In my last blog, I wrote about a problem that I see when organizations engage in planning & set goals to improve (“Goal-Setting & Amount of Detail Needed”). This blog will cover another threat to organizational improvement: Difficult Employees. Difficult employees are a thorny issue for leaders, but guess what? If those difficult employees can be a pain in the fanny to a supervisor, you can bet that they are even more difficult when dealing with other employees. If they can act inappropriately to a person in an authority position, they are probably wreaking havoc with some of your less-assertive employees, and they are also gaining power & status among other underperformers for being difficult in the workplace. One way to reduce the effect of the difficult employees is to train all employees on the topics of difficult employees & reducing organizational conflict. It is easier for employees to listen objectively to training session content and learn new techniques for dealing with the difficult employees than it is to try to handle the knucklehead employees on the spur of the moment. Training Session Content All employees should understand that organizational conflict can give difficult employees more traction, and that the typical causes of organizational conflict include: Cause #1: Lack of Focus Issues Cause #2: Difficulties With Processes & Practices Cause #3: Interpersonal Issues Cause #4: Leadership/Followership Issues Cause #5: Conflict From Bad Behavior You will want to express the idea that we all want to be hard on the problems, & easy on the people when it comes to the issues that cause conflict. Employees in a training session should be encouraged to consider each of the above causes, & ID which one(s) are currently out of whack enough as to cause uncertainty re: employees’ role & responsibilities that lead to inappropriate employee behavior. Questions to be Answered by Employees All employees should also be ready to answer the following questions: 1) What causes conflict here? 2) What types of inappropriate behaviors happen during conflict? 3) What behaviors do you want co-employees to use when conflict happens here? Answers to the questions can be collected & posted. Your better employees will take heart in the fact that many of the responses are healthy & reflect their own beliefs. This will help the majority of employees to see that their beliefs are shared by others, despite what the difficult employees are broadcasting. Strategies for Dealing With Difficult Co-Employees All employees should also be made aware of the four basic types of difficult employees: 1) The Aggressor 2) The Saboteur 3) The Know-It-All 4) The Procrastinator Employee training on this topic should help “inoculate” your healthier employees against the lower performance & lower morale caused by difficult coworkers. If I may be of assistance to any blog readers as you try this activity, please e-mail me (bruce@bigrivergroup.com). I would be happy to respond to any questions or issues so that you can be as effective as possible as you take on this topic in your own organization.