Many change programs seem to meander along with no clear purpose or direction. These are the programs that usually fail. In the end, vast resources are consumed and people are left burned out and confused. Your desire to move your organization towards a new way of working will remain just a wish unless you set specific objectives and create a plan for achieving those objectives.

The key to setting your program off on the right track is to work with your key stakeholders to flesh out unambiguous and measurable objectives. Do this before you do anything else!

Why Set Goals?

How does goal setting help your program succeed? To begin with, the two-way dialogue involved in setting goals helps to get all stakeholders on the same page, uncovering hidden assumptions and misunderstandings.

Secondly, inviting and encouraging stakeholders to participate in decision-making about group objectives gives them a genuine