Explain Importance/Purpose of Organizational Goals

  Importance of Organizational Goals

All the organizations are established for achieving certain goals. Hence, they should be formulated and implemented effectively. The following are the purposes of goals of an organization.

1. Base for decision making: All the decisions in an organization are taken for the attainment of organizational goals. Hence, goals provide the base for decision-making in an organization.

2. Promotes good planning: Goals are the basis of planning. An effective goal-setting process helps to formulate and implement plans in a derived manner. Goals provide direction to planning. This is because the main objective of planning is to attain organizational goals.

3. Defines relationship: Goals define the relationship of the organization with the environment. They reveal the contribution and responsibility of the organization towards customers, employees, and society.

4. Shows relevancy of vision: Vision is the desired future state of an organization. Goals show why it is important for the organization.

5. Provides direction for evaluation and control: Goals provide direction to the organization over a long period of time and aid in performance evaluation. It also works as a basis for controlling functions.

6. Reveals priority and sources of motivation: Goals reveal organizational priorities and focus coordination. It is also a kind of source of motivation.

7. Base for management functions: They provide a basis for managerial functions such as planning, organizing, staffing, leading, and controlling functions.

8. Foundations for work standards: Work standards are developed on the basis of goals. Hence, goals provide foundations for the establishment of work standards.

9. Enhances organizational attractiveness: Effective goals help develop distinctiveness and the existence of an organization and enhance organizational attractiveness.

                  OR,

i. For source of guidance: Organizational goals provide a source of guidance and sense of unified direction to every individual associated with an organization. They help every employee to understand the roadmap of an organization where and how it can reach at what time. Every individual feels ownership on the action and result of efforts. Specific and measurable goals can motivate employees for coordinated efforts.

ii. To facilitate planning: Goal setting and planning process are complemented each other. Goal setting practice strongly helps on the organizational planning process. Goals are the basis and starting point for planning. Goals provide the future state of an organization where and when it wants be. Planning sets the activities how it can be there. Thus, goal setting is the most essential for effective planning. It helps to determine strategies, policies, procedures, rules, regulations, and budgets in the planning process.

iii. For source of motivation: Goals can serve as a source of motivation to employees. Goals provide the answer of every question of employees in the organizations. They see the end result where they will be in the future. Goals help to improve the performance of employees in organizations. Results can be seen in terms of quantity which obviously motivates the employees of that organization.

iv. For effective evaluation and control: Goals set the standard for 'what result is to be achieved at 'what time'. Goals can be short-term, intermediate-term, and long-term. It should be measurable and attainable. Organization at a large extent and employees as individual level can measure whether they are achieving goals or not and at what extent goals are achieved. This helps to apply control mechanisms to attain goals or redefine the goals. Thus, it serves as an effective mechanism for evaluation and control. In this process, the performance of all employees is assessed. Quantitative figures of goals can be taken as the standard for evaluation. Standard is compared with actual performance to apply corrective actions in control process.