Transparent Goal Setting

Most people think the hard part of goal-setting is setting the goals. It’s not. The hard part is tracking progress consistently, making it visible, and creating a rhythm where goals become part of the work—not a quarterly box-check. At Atlassian, we’ve learned that the best tool for driving clarity and focus isn’t fancy software (though we have that). It’s culture: 🎯 Transparent goals anyone can view across the company ✏️ Monthly “tweet-sized” updates, not essays ✨ Clear expectations with psychological safety around missed targets We don’t expect perfection. We expect honesty, alignment, and continuous improvement. Start small. Set 3–5 meaningful goals. Build a monthly update rhythm. Protect the conversations that follow. You don’t need the perfect framework. You need the muscle. 👉 What’s helped you make goal-setting actually stick in your team?

If you water down goal-setting by having too many metrics for success, you'll seldom see real progress. But working at Google, I learned to transform OKRs from a dull box to check into a powerful tool for achieving organizational success. Former CEO Larry Page described their OKR approach as “putting more wood behind fewer arrows.” I love that principle, and we’ve brought it over to RightHand Robotics as a way to focus our initiatives across the company. Here’s what that looks like in practice: 1. Setting the bar high, even when it seems unachievable 2. Creating transparency around OKRs to build clarity for the entire organization Let’s look at the first lesson. OKRs at Google weren’t about setting goals that were easy to hit just so you could say you or your team met them. Instead, OKRs were genuinely ambitious. On Google’s scorecard, which ranged from 0 to 1, earning even a .6 or .7 meant success - because the initial target was so high. The second lesson was the value of transparency and accountability. At Google, you could look up any team or individual’s OKRs, so you could see what they were working toward and their progress. That kind of visibility provided a better understanding of why someone might be asking you a certain question or why they were working on a specific project. That, in turn, created organizational clarity. At RightHand Robotics, Inc, we’ve applied these lessons and successfully used OKRs to drive focused growth. We start by thinking about what success looks like as an organization, and then define three or four objectives for the entire company. Only then we can start talking about how different teams contribute toward the success of that objective. By being deliberate and choosing the few OKRs that are most important, you can put the right resources behind the right goals. Ultimately, that leads to greater success.

SMART goals don’t seem to work anymore. The approach that once seemed clear and effective is now falling short. Many organisations are realizing this: “It’s too rigid for today’s challenges.” “It doesn’t align teams in real time.” “It forces us to stay reactive instead of proactive.” These are the common challenges I’ve heard from leaders of Fortune 500 companies I’m currently working with. 📉 The business environment is more unpredictable than ever. 📅 Static goal-setting doesn’t address year-round adjustments. 🤝 Teams struggle with alignment across priorities. These concerns are valid. But they don’t mean we should abandon goal-setting altogether. Instead, it’s time to embrace FAST goals: ➤ FREQUENT discussions keep teams flexible and adaptive. ➤ AMBITIOUS targets inspire innovation and growth. ➤ SPECIFIC metrics ensure clarity and focus. ➤ TRANSPARENT tracking builds trust and alignment. Leaders who’ve adopted FAST goals are seeing real results. From sharper execution to better team engagement, the shift makes an impact. If you’re feeling stuck with outdated frameworks, consider starting with these steps: ❇️Hold regular goal check-ins. ↳ Discuss progress and adjust to new realities. ❇️Set bold yet achievable targets. ↳ Push yourself and your team beyond the status quo. ❇️Make tracking visible to everyone. ↳ Align efforts by keeping priorities clear and transparent. When goals become FAST, organizations don’t just survive. They thrive. What do you think- Is it time to rethink goal-setting in your organization? Catherine • ♻️ Share to inspire more. Connect with Catherine Li-Yunxia (Transforming leaders, Moving the world) to elevate CEO impact

SMART goals are dumb. Definitely outdated. They were literally coined in 1981 by John T. Doran in the Management Review. That's 43 years old. Oh and psst - your team hates setting them. Why? Because the acronym is fundamentally flawed: Specific: Limits creativity and hampers your ability to adapt when new information emerges. 🤔 Measurable: Sure, you know when you've achieved it, but does it drive meaningful, impactful outcomes? 📉 Attainable: Keeps you comfortably within your comfort zone—hardly a place for growth. 🛋️ Realistic: Another word for attainable. It encourages small thinking and boxes you in. 🚫 Time-bound: While deadlines are important, meaningful goals need built-in milestones that keep motivation high and the dopamine flowing. 🎯 In short, SMART goals keep us stuck in mediocrity, lacking purpose and innovation. So, what’s the alternative? Enter the PIC Framework: Purpose-Driven: Every goal should connect to a deeper mission or value. This alignment not only motivates but also gives each goal a clear "why." 🎯 Impactful: Goals should aim for outcomes that matter—shifting the focus from what's easily measurable to what's truly transformative. 🌍 Challenging: If your goals don’t make you a little uncomfortable, you’re not aiming high enough. Embrace the discomfort as a sign of growth and ambition.💪 Want to innovate your goal setting? Here's how you can bring PIC to your organization: Start with Purpose ➡ Align goals with the organization's mission. 🌟 Define Impact ➡ Focus on meaningful outcomes that drive the business forward over easy measurements (especially, for the sake of a great dashboard). 📊 Set Challenging Objectives ➡ Encourage ambition and innovation - yep, even if it scares you. 🚀 Embed Milestones ➡ Keep motivation high with regular wins - not just a potential bonus at the end of the year. 🏆 Foster Reflection ➡ Regularly review and adapt goals as needed. 🔄 (In other words, setting a goal in January and refusing to change it because you set it, even though you have new information, is well...ridiculous.) By moving from SMART to PIC, you create a culture of purpose, impact, and challenge. And who knows - maybe people will finally start to buy-in to the goal setting process and actually like it! 🌟 #Leadership #Innovation #GoalSetting #BusinessGrowth #PurposeDriven

"This isn't just about hitting numbers, it's about creating shared understanding, fostering collaboration across teams, and helping people see how their work connects to the bigger picture." Molly Sands, PhD and I geeked out about culture, processes and systems for company goals. Goal setting and management might seem like a mundane topic, but I think it's the biggest driver of organizational alignment. Three key traits from Atlassian's approach: 1️⃣ Focus: Three to five measurable goals per team, per quarter. Review progress monthly throughout the organization, adjust quarterly. 2️⃣ Simplicity: Tweet-sized updates that reflect not only status but also what you're doing next, and where you need support. 3️⃣ Transparency: Everyone in the organization can see all the organization's goals, and can subscribe to updates from any team. "When people subscribe to goals from other teams and reach out to offer help, that's when you know the system is working. We're seeing cross-functional collaboration that never would have happened otherwise." 👉 Read on: https://lnkd.in/d5xHEGtP #Collaboration #Culture #Goals