Formation of organizational goals, building a tree of goals. Tree of organizational goals. necessary to ensure the functioning of the organization

1. Introduction

2. System of goals of the organization.

3. Practical part. Formation of the goals of the Angara organization

4. References

Introduction

The goals of the organization express the result to which the employees united in the organization are called upon to strive for joint work, or the state to which they intend to achieve as a result of joint activities.

Organizations exist to achieve certain goals, and the management system is responsible for the efficient use of resources to achieve these goals.

In this test work it is necessary to describe the organization’s system of goals, its types, meaning and requirements for goals. And also using the example of the Angara enterprise to show:

Formation of initial skills in determining the main and main general goals of the organization (firm, enterprise) implementing the adopted theme of the business process project;

Obtaining initial management skills to form the main characteristics of the deployed project / business process.

System of organizational goals .

Goals should be considered as guidelines according to which the organization operates. Correctly chosen guidelines predetermine the success of the organization, and, conversely, mistakes along this path can jeopardize its existence.

The goals of the organization are systemic in nature, suggesting their specific classification.

1. According to the degree of importance for the organization, goals are divided into strategic and tactical.

Strategic goals include a description of the organization's main plans for a period of 1-5 years. In addition, this plan describes the amount and timing of capital investments in the development of the company for approximately the same period of time. As a result of the analysis, the manager determines the market potential, ways of its implementation, options for allocating resources and obligations to shareholders.

2. Based on the period of time required for their implementation, goals are divided into long-term (over five years), medium-term (from one to five years) and short-term (up to one year).

Long-term goals are clear, simple, measurable statements that describe the results that the company seeks to achieve over a period of 3 to 5 years. When an analysis of long-term goals and a strategic plan has been carried out, the personnel working in the company draw up for themselves general idea about the direction in which production will develop. But the process of developing a plan does not end there. Next, you need to decide what exactly the company will do this year.

Short-term goals - play an additional role in the process of goal setting and in general in drawing up a plan. These goals define what must be done immediately to establish a match between short-term results and long-term prospects, and to provide a basis for monitoring and controlling the implementation of strategic decisions made earlier in the planning process by company managers.

4. According to the level to which they relate, goals are divided into general and specific.

To manage the efforts and actions of the organization as a whole, each manager must have an understanding of the overall goals related to the fundamental reasons for the formation of the company.

There are three main elements that must be contained in a goal in order for it to be effective, these are the overall task, meaning, and mission of the company. The goals of an organization can be defined as the main reason for its existence. This definition usually arises from the context of the specific situation in which the firm operates. In setting a general goal that reflects the main reason for creating the company, the manager usually focuses on his chosen circle interested parties, for which, in fact, the business was created. As a rule, these include consumers, employees, public organizations within the company and the owners of the company. The main economic categories mentioned in the goals are survival in existing conditions and growth in profitability.

While organizational goals carry a very large semantic load, they are still not a central element in the system of general goals. Therefore, it is worth moving on to the next type of goals, which focuses attention on the areas in which the company will make special efforts. This type of goal has been called the organization's mission.

An organization's mission is an element of an overall goal that distinguishes a given organization from others and indicates the scale of its activities, type of product and type of market. A well-developed firm's mission statement must be clearly and consistently related to the structure and specific goals of the organization. Since proposed activities are formed in accordance with organizational goals, the manager chooses the path by which these goals will be achieved. This path is the mission.

Experienced managers typically focus on three main elements when developing a mission statement:

1. The main product (service) produced by the company.

2. The main market for the sale of goods (services).

3.Technological production system.

Each of these three elements is indispensable, since only their combination constitutes a complete picture of the company's activities.

The importance of organization. IN Lately Managers of various companies quite often have to carry out special work with their employees to explain the significance of this production and its benefits for society as a whole. The meaning of the organization, as already mentioned, is a philosophical and ethical category, externally and internally consistent with the goals and mission of the company. In the process of confirming the significance of their production, the company's main managers are trying to introduce as wide a range of consumers as possible to their products. At the same time, similar work is carried out within the organization, only in this case the significance of the company is explained through its goals.

Constant changes in the external and internal environment of the organization lead to the fact that goals have to be adjusted or revised accordingly.

As a result, the organization develops specific system goals, as well as a mechanism for its constant updating. Within this system, goals are usually in certain relationships to each other.

Based on the goals, the organization formulates tasks that must be solved in the process of achieving them. Tasks are more specific and have not only qualitative, but also quantitative, spatial and temporal characteristics.

Thus, the final phase of planning, in which goals again play a significant role, requires the manager to identify specific, short-term objectives that represent an intermediate stage in the strategic plan, as well as to draw up plans for individual parts of his organization. When the goal comes into focus, everything described in the plan takes on a clear meaning, what will be done, when and by whom. In this case, goals perform a central, organizing function, making the planning process real and significant. For goals to fully serve this function, they must be clear and have the potential to be effective. Therefore, we will devote Special attention a more detailed consideration of some categories of the goal system.

General goals that determine the main direction of production development imply an appropriate style of management and decision-making throughout life path companies. But this is far from enough to run a company. It needs to set more specific and specific tasks for all divisions and departments. First of all, it is necessary to develop goals for a period of 3 to 5 years. These goals are called long-term goals. They are designed for the company as a whole and its structural units. In addition, they provide the basis for organization-wide coordination and a benchmark for determining the degree of success of the company's actions.

In addition, the manager also develops specific short term goals, which provide for immediate actions (for 1 year or less). They must, however, be strictly subordinated to the idea of long-term goals. There are the following main specific short-term goals.

Survival and growth. The manager enters into it indicators such as sales volume, sales growth rate, demand data, etc. Moreover, special attention is paid to growth indicators.

Profitability. The ability of any firm to develop to a sufficient level of profitability.

Resource allocation and risks. Another example of the goals of a business organization can be goals related to the allocation of resources and the prediction of possible risks that arise during the period of the organization's emergence.

Production productivity. One of the tasks of a manager of any company is to take care of increasing the level of productivity.

Competitive position. The most sensitive indicator of a firm's success or failure is its industry market share or its competitive position.

Improving the qualifications of employees and relations with the team.

Technological activities. The manager must almost constantly decide the question of; Is it worth carrying out technical re-equipment in a given month (year) or will production be efficient on the existing technological base.

Responsibility to society. In such a company, the manager will take into account all local, national and international features of the environment when setting goals.

The following general requirements are imposed on the process of goal setting in management.

Goals must contain deadlines for their completion. Setting a time frame is important for both long-term and short-term goals, but time frames are not often defined when setting overall goals related to an organization's mission goal.

Goals should be brief. Long-term and short-term goals are most effective when they are short.

Goals should call for exceeding standards.

Goals must be realistic. Goals that set the bar too high will never be achieved.

Goals should be flexible. Goals must be flexible enough to be modified in the event of unpredictable or extraordinary changes in the firm's situation.

Goals must be acceptable. A goal is more effective when the people responsible for achieving it find it acceptable.

At each level of the organization, some private goals arise, and only their totality needs to be considered as a certain goal of a certain level of management. Hence the need to build goal tree.

"Tree of Goals"- a structured, built on a hierarchical principle (distributed by levels, ranked) set of goals of an economic system, program, plan, in which the following are highlighted: general goal (“top of the tree”); subgoals of the first, second and subsequent levels subordinate to it ("tree branches"). The name “goal tree” is due to the fact that the schematically presented set of goals distributed across levels resembles an inverted tree in appearance. Example of a "goal tree" ": general goal - satisfaction of human needs for food, subgoals of the first level - satisfaction of needs for proteins, fats, carbohydrates, vitamins, second level subgoals- meeting the needs for bread, milk, butter, vegetables, fruits, etc.

Figure 1 – Goal tree

Consequently, in modern management the concept of goal is one of the main ones. Without defining this concept, without identifying the relationship between goals, means of achieving goals, assessing effectiveness and ways to achieve goals, it is impossible to solve the problem effective management. This means that without a clear formulation of operating goals, it is impossible to comprehensively solve a single problem related to building a company, planning its activities, assessing its effectiveness, or developing its strategy.

When the goal of operation is not clearly formulated, it is practically useless to require a clear organization of work, since it is impossible to correctly choose the means to achieve the goal.

Formation of organizational goals.

Let's consider the formation of goals using the example of the Angara confectionery production enterprise.

The mission of the Angara enterprise is to occupy a leading position in the confectionery market by producing products taking into account the individual wishes of customers based on the use of advanced technology that meets environmental standards.

Defining the strategic goals and objectives of the organization

The strategic goals and objectives of the Angara enterprise are presented in Table 1.1. – Strategic goals and objectives

Angara enterprise value system

The value system of the Angara enterprise includes the following aspects:

· innovation, exclusivity, creative approach;

· high level of technology and quality - products are certified to meet the requirements of the international quality management system standard ISO 9001: 2000;

· customer orientation - the priority is to satisfy his needs: “The customer is always right!”;

· focus on its employees, which implies not only high demands, but also attention, care and assistance in personnel development;

· democratic style of leadership and management;

· decision-making processes are collective in nature;

· preference for personal contacts with senior management, holding general meetings.

Strategic Planning Area	Strategic goals of the organization	Tasks
Market relations with consumers	Take a leading position in the confectionery market in Irkutsk	to fix a certain segment of the confectionery market for 5 years; displace main competitors; concentrate efforts on the selected market segment to maintain positions.
Innovation	Increase sales volumes and attract new customers by introducing new recipes and technologies	make quarterly deductions for purchases new equipment in the amount of 8% of profits; annually participate in international confectionery forums and confectionery exhibitions, to collaborate and attract knowledge from foreign colleagues. equip with modern, automated equipment and special confectionery devices; carry out annual modernization of existing equipment using a special reserve created at the enterprise; improve existing manufacturing technologies by developing costing cards.
Performance	Achieve high productivity by intelligently minimizing production costs	finance technical equipment and re-equipment monthly in the amount of 10% of profits; Using funding, introduce a modern technical and technological basis for confectionery production, which guarantees a uniform distribution of components and achievement of the required ratio between them and microadditives in each individual product, which will ensure the production of products comparable in their characteristics to the best domestic and foreign analogues, as well as reducing costs per unit of production. Maintain constant monitoring of the production process to quickly identify deviations from standards and violations with their subsequent elimination at an early stage
Financial resources	Ensure a stable level financial sector enterprises	Create a financial reserve fund for the needs of the enterprise, which must be replenished monthly in the amount of 3% of profits; Maintain strict control over financial technical support, financial and economic performance indicators of the enterprise. Conduct annual audits at the expense of the reserve fund, contributions to which are made monthly and amount to 3% of profits.
Profitability	Ensure the accumulation of profits from the production and sale of products sufficient to fulfill obligations to creditors. Ensure the sale of confectionery products on the local market, as well as enter the Ukrainian market	Produce quarterly marketing research Conduct benchmarking at the expense of a special reserve, which is financed monthly in the amount of 8% of profits; According to the results of marketing research, carry out concentric diversification, i.e. replenish the range with new products. Establish business relationships with regions, providing a business plan, a strategic management plan for review, as well as conducting test marketing and tastings.
Management activity and its development	Determine the main areas of management influence, priority tasks and methods for solving them to ensure the achievement of planned results.	Conduct current and strategic planning; Conduct quarterly monitoring; Maintain a vertical organizational structure; Give preference to personal communication with employees; Focus on collective participation in the decision-making process; Every six months, participate in business training to improve skills and introduce new methods of rational enterprise management.
Work activities and attitudes of employees	Motivate the team to improve work efficiency.	During the first months of work, create and improve a motivation system, including the implementation of employee needs for a decent assessment of work, a system of incentives and social guarantees. Establish work discipline to maintain corporate spirit and create the right image of the enterprise. Conduct general monthly meetings to solve current and strategic problems, announce the company’s indicators, and ways to increase them or maintain them at the proper level, and identify the situation in the team.
Commitment to society	Satisfy the population's need for high-quality products without harming the environment.	During the first year, organize environmental safety production and create an effective system of heat and energy saving through the use modern technologies and equipment, the purchase of which is planned at the expense of the reserve fund.

For this company, trademarks and the company's team are the basis of success. Employees of the Angara enterprise embody the moral and ethical values of the company, achieving the main goal - to improve the lives of consumers. The company's goal is to produce goods and services of the highest quality and consumer value. The company's activities are built on the principle - “Consumers help to take leading positions in terms of sales, ensure business prosperity, which helps improve the well-being of employees.” The company's principles are based on respect for the individuality of everyone. The interests of the company and the employee are inseparable, goals are clearly defined, innovation is the basis of success. The organization actively interacts with the external environment, which consists of competitors, partners, consumers; The professionalism of the company’s employees and their desire to be the best in this matter receives special praise. The company has chosen interaction and mutual assistance as the basis of its lifestyle. And, of course, the main goal of the enterprise is to make a profit, ensure the stability of the company and create jobs.

Tree of goals of the organization LLC "Angara"

Bibliography.

1. Zaitseva O.A., Radugin A.A., Fundamentals of Management: Textbook for Universities. - M.; Center, 1998. - 432 p.

2. Nelson B., Economy P., The ability to manage.: Trans. from English - K.: Dialectics, 1997. - 336 p.

3. Management: Textbook / Ed. Ignatieva A.V. - M.: Infra-M, 2010.- 283 p.

4. Management: Textbook / Ed. Maksimtsova M.M., Komarova M.A.-M.: UNITY-DANA, 2008.-320 p.

5. Bukhalkov M.I. Intra-company planning: Textbook. – M.: INFRA-M, 1999. – 392 p.

The project initiation stage can be implemented in different configurations of procedures and documents. But regardless of the scale and focus of the project task, when preparing the charter, responsible managers should initially determine the goals of the project. The tree of goals for a project task serves as a visual form of structuring the customer’s intentions and as a tool for developing an idea into a management object. To correctly create such a hierarchy, you need a certain understanding and skill. This is what we will do in this article.

Problems and goals as engines of development

The task of constructing a goal tree in practical implementation is one of the most difficult to manage. The tree of goals is an act of creativity, which can only be approached systematically and with a great desire to overcome all the accompanying difficulties, including those of a psychological nature. The real topic we will look at it from two sides: from the position of common sense and from the point of view of high theory. Let's start with everyday perception.

Imagine any unique problem that you need to solve in the shortest possible time. For example, improving living conditions. Let's consider this example as a prototype of the project. If you take a sheet of paper and write in the column headings: “dream”, “goal”, “task” and “problem”, then it will definitely line up associative series, certain images will appear. Try to do this for real.

If you did this, then we are already halfway to the project goal tree. I'll tell you a secret. This is exactly how, in my experience, any business development projects are born. First, the initiator has an image of a dream in his head, then it is concretized into goals and objectives, problems “slip” into his consciousness, which can become intrusive or be cast aside as doubts. If you put associative images on paper, you will get the diagram that is presented below.

Universal Controls Model

Using our example and reflecting on the associations, one can detect obvious trends in conceptual dynamics. From a dream to a problem, the positive, being lost, moves from a “rainbow” to a black and white picture. The problem is as concrete as possible, it is “here and now,” tasks and goals gradually lose their concreteness, moving into the future, while the dream is distant and vague. Thus, three differently directed vectors are observed.

The fading of negativity and the growth of positivity.
Increased specificity.
Moving into the future.

How does this relate to projects and the goal tree? In my opinion, the connection is significant. But, proceeding in order, let us first give definitions to the concepts under consideration. I understand a dream as a metaphorical forerunner of the prototypes of vision and mission in business. I cannot give a decent definition of mission, but I perceive it well through the metaphor of dreams. A goal is what a business (project) is started for, a certain object of intention that a person or company seeks to achieve. The metaphor for a goal is a shooting target, and the official definition of the concept in project management is given below.

Determining the purpose of the project, program. Source: NTK

By task, I propose to understand a management tool that corresponds to compliance with five parameters (quantitatively formalized result, deadline, director, responsible resource, documented form). The essence of this concept is revealed in an article on the topic. A problem is an uncertainty or contradiction that arises in management; its elimination is impossible within the framework of the current management concept.

Correlation of problems and goals in the construction of hierarchies

Paradoxically, the conceptual dynamics presented above are universal both for ordinary consciousness and in the case of large business. The reason is that decision makers are people, and nothing human is alien to them. Understanding the tree of project goals, I cannot help but touch upon the issue of business problems, because the problem and the goal are social life, as in business, are closely related. In this regard, the works of I.V. deserve attention. Bestuzhev-Lada and his colleagues.

The scientific works of this author are devoted to social modeling and forecasting. However, it is easy enough to draw parallels between social problems, goals and the same objects in the business environment. By the way, I consider problems, goals, and objectives as means of managing a business in general and projects in particular. Let's return to social forecasting. U I.V. Bestuzhev-Lada has a very interesting model called a problem-target diamond, its diagram is given below.

The definition of the problem given at the end of the previous section primarily relates to the formation of strategic goals. We are talking about a certain root business problem that requires a literally change in management concept or strategic transformation to resolve the contradiction. Therefore, the strategic goal is always associated with a key problem, and it is further decomposed down into sub-goals, which are followed by the decomposed problems. However, in the theory of management decisions it is believed that at lower management levels there are no longer problems, but only tasks. We can partially agree with this.

At the same time, small problems give rise to large ones, which means that the key problem can also be decomposed, or, as I.V. Bestuzhev-Lada, disaggregated. A very valuable remark is that the line of contact between goals and problems is at the grassroots level - where specificity is maximum. According to the scientist, the construction of a tree of goals comes from the top, and the maturation of the root problem begins with a broad base of small difficulties. My position is that a split always occurs at the highest levels of decision-making, which then gradually goes down, becoming more and more obvious in lower-level problems.

But in general, the idea of a problem-target diamond is constructive and undoubtedly deserves development. It is so good that I wanted to support the scientist’s plan, because indeed, problems, tasks and goals are categories of the same managerial nature, means of management, as has already been noted. These objects belong to different planar slices, all three of which can be represented in the form of a scan and as a three-dimensional trihedral pyramid with a “cloud” mission at the top.

Planar development of trees of goals, tasks and problems

Pyramid of tasks, goals and problems

Pyramid of project goals and objectives

Let us summarize some of the previous sections. The universal context of any management is reliance on three types of means: goals, objectives and problems. All of them are built into tree-type architectures (having descending branches, like trees). The lower (branched) levels of the trees of goals, tasks and problems gravitate towards each other. Three flat pyramids of the named trees are always present in management, having a single foundation, they are parallel.

However, only the goal tree can be most fully built, because this is the simplest procedure of the three. Genuine tasks are most easily formulated at the top level of the corresponding tree, but it is most difficult to find responsible resources (performers) for them. The root problem at the top level of the problem tree is extremely difficult to discern because it is hidden behind many facts and events that are just symptoms.

And only when the tree of goals can be expanded to a level, and the lower goal achieves an unambiguous result, resources appear for it, and among them are responsible resources (personnel), the lower-level problems begin to naturally “fall off.” The intention gains strength, events begin to line up in a logical sequence, and the “puzzles” of higher-level tasks begin to form a harmonious picture of results leading to the goal.

Therefore, in the project management paradigm, the combined pyramid of goals and objectives looks like a triangle, the upper part of which is crowned by the mission and strategic goals of the project, and the lower part is determined by the tasks and stages of the project based on the work. You just need to remember that tasks, goals and problems are static categories. They already exist here and now (problems) and are built in the future as certain event-resulting points, adequate in understanding: achieved or not achieved (tasks and goals). At the same time, stages and works are dynamic, procedural categories, they are valuable in their internal content, have a beginning and an end, management and implementation mechanisms (IDF0 methodology).

Pyramid model of project goals and objectives

The hierarchical model of the organization and the project model are identical in nature. A company's activities begin with a vision and mission, regardless of formalization. The company's strategic goals are structured and, at a lower level, represent a list of strategic initiatives and activities, some of which are development projects. The upper part of the project model is related to the company's strategy; its blocks are the project mission and the tree of project implementation goals. The tree of goals is built from the top from the strategic goals of the project to goals of such a level of development at which the project team and its members can take responsibility for the results. Based on the presented logic, it is already possible to detail the method of forming a tree and describe the rules that must be observed.

Project goal tree methodology

Often the concept of a goal tree is replaced by the image of a pyramid of goals and objectives. Indeed, this can happen when the project is of a small scale. In this case, the tree of goals as such is simply absent as unnecessary; it can well be replaced by a hierarchical structure of work, because there are only one or three project goals, no more. However, if the project task is large and large-scale, then there is a direct need to develop a tree of goals. Below is an example of such a project and the hierarchy of goals developed for it. This is a project for the construction of a trade and logistics center in the city of N.

Example of a project goal tree

The goal tree method consists of dividing the strategic goal of a project into a group of lower-level goals so that the implementation of lower-level goals automatically leads to the achievement of a higher one. This method determines the conditions for sequential passage of levels in the process of breaking down goals, called decomposition by depth and breadth. For this tool, I do not recommend a tree depth of more than three levels, and a width of more than four subordinate positions. Let's consider the main stages of building a goal tree.

Convene working group for the project goal setting procedure.
Clarify the strategic goal of the company that the project follows.
Formulate the mission of the project in accordance with the following strategic goal of the project.
Set and set goals for the first level of nesting. During brainstorming and using methods of logical structuring (localization) of the research object, formulate a set of goal hypotheses. Logical structuring methods include the Ishikawa diagram, the test question method, the synectics method, etc. The goal is usually formulated in a qualitative format, starting with an infinitive verb: improve, ensure, fulfill, create, implement, etc.
Identify current limitations and analyze options for goal formulations.
Adjust the wording and composition of the goals of the first nesting level, using logical rules division of concepts. Such rules can be found in any logic textbook. These include: division of goals on a single chosen basis, pairwise incompatibility of divisible goals, exhaustion of the scope of the original concept, continuity and proportionality of division.
Ask the question: “Will achieving these goals really lead to the success of the project’s strategic goal?” If “No”, then repeat points 4, 5, 6 and the question in point 7. If “Yes”, then go to point 8.
For each goal of the first level, repeat steps 4-7.

Creating a tree of goals, as well as a tree of tasks, is a unique creative skill for which, unfortunately, theories do not work well enough and practice is required. Here, as they say, only a “cartload of mistakes” will help, which you should not be afraid to make. The theory and algorithm for such work are outlined in our article, and I can only wish you to go through this difficult experience and search for your own revelations. And there is nothing wrong with the fact that the result at first will not please you very much, because even a not entirely correct hierarchy is always better than an absent one.

Definitionconcepts"targetorganizations"

Classificationgoalsorganizations

Formation of goalsorganizations

1. Target organizations - this is the final state or desired result that the work team strives to achieve. The more goals an organization sets for itself, the more complex it is in structure and manageability. Goals are always formed based on forecasts. The more distant the period of time is considered, the less accurate the forecast, the more general the goals are set. However, goals must be specific and achievable, achievable, and mutually supportive (consistent with each other).

Goals are the starting point of planning, they underlie the construction of organizational structures, the motivation system is based on goals, and finally, goals are the starting point in the process of control and evaluation of work results. Achieving goals is carried out through management functions.

2. Depending on time interval, necessary to achieve the goal, goals are divided into strategic (prospective) and operational (tactical, short-term); By complex the importance of their production - into complex and private; By level of justification - into scientifically based and empirical (experimental); By degree of certainty - into planned and predicted.

It is essential to divide goals into intermediate and final which is due to the need to take into account the specific, specific conditions of the formation, development and completion of the organization’s activities.

The goals of the organization at all levels of management are formed based on the preferences of management. They are influenced by the systems of values and attitudes that guide top managers. Thus, in the sphere of production, goals may include such as improving product quality, increasing efficiency; in personnel management - increasing the level of employee interest in labor results; in the field of finance - rational use of financial resources; in office work - prompt passage of documents, etc.

Tree of goals and objectives of the organization

The concept of a goal tree and its graph

Principles of decomposition of the main goal

1. The number of goals and objectives of the organization is so significant that without a comprehensive, systematic approach Determining their composition and relationships cannot be avoided by any organization, regardless of size. In practice, this is done by constructing a target model in the form of a tree graph - a tree of targets.

Tree goals - a structured, hierarchical (distributed by levels, ranked) set of organizational goals, in which the main goal (top of the tree) and subgoals of the first, second and subsequent levels are identified. The basis of the goal tree is made up of tasks, which constitute the formulation of work that must be completed in a certain way within a specified time frame (Fig. 1).

2. When decomposing the main goal adhere to the following principles:

main goal located in vertex of the graph, must contain a description of the final result;

the implementation of the subgoals of each subsequent level is a necessary and sufficient condition for achieving the goal of the previous level;

the number of decomposition levels depends on the scale and complexity of the goals;

when formulating goals at different levels, you should describe the desired results, and not the ways to achieve them;

the subgoals of each level must be mutually independent and cannot be derived from one another;

The base of the goal tree should be tasks that can be accomplished in certain ways, within a predetermined time frame.

The tree of goals allows for clear coordination of the efforts of all structural divisions of the organization; align the responsibilities of officials and increase their mutual responsibility; establish specific tasks, performers, deadlines for implementation: exercise strict control over performance discipline; ensure a high degree of controllability of all processes; make the organization more prepared for sudden changes

The goal tree is a well-known term in management. This is a structured set of goals of an economic system, program, plan, built on a hierarchical principle (distributed among levels).

In 1957, the American scientist Russell Lincoln Ackoff proposed a method for constructing a goal tree. From that time to the present day, this technique has not lost its popularity and is actively used when planning tasks by managers and businessmen.

What is it and what is it for?

The goal tree method is considered one of the most effective methods task planning. This method includes all the general principles of planning, simple and easy to learn. Essentially, this is a graph reflecting a plan for solving a particular problem.

The goal tree has a standard structure. The “trunk” of the goal tree is the main problem for which a solution needs to be found.
“Branches” are tasks of the second, third, fourth and so on levels.

When planning a solution to a problem, a graphical representation of a tree is usually used. In this image, the tree has an inverted appearance, where the “trunk” represents the vertex of the graph and is located at the very top. And from it, the peak, the aspirations of subsequent levels grow, forming the crown.

A graphical representation of tasks in this form helps a person clearly think through a plan for achieving what is planned. By depicting his plans in the form of a graph, a person sees what problems he will encounter and what additional resources he will need to achieve his plans.

The graph also provides an approximate estimate of how long it will take to achieve the goals. With this presentation of the solution to the problem, the connections and dependencies of some tasks on others become visible. Today, the goal tree method is used in scientific forecasting by managers when managing projects, as well as for planning personal issues.

How to build

The rules used to build the goal tree are very simple:

First, the main problem that needs to be solved is determined. This will be the top or “trunk” of the tree. This type of task is usually called a general task. As a rule, it cannot be achieved immediately. In order to achieve it, it is necessary to solve other subgoals, the result of which is necessary to fulfill the general one.
These subgoals will be called “branches”. A branch can also have subgoals.
When building a tree of goals, you need to describe each branch clearly and in detail. Each must also have the required number of subgoals in order to be realized. The result should be a tree that completely coexists with the solution to a particular problem. It should contain all the necessary steps and resources to solve the main problem.

Construction principles

Management has adopted the following principles for constructing a tree of goals:

Consider needs and resources

Setting a goal assumes that there is some problem that needs to be solved. As a rule, tasks that require planning cannot be solved immediately. Because they are quite complex and require an integrated approach to solving.

It happens that a given task cannot be solved because there are not enough resources to solve it. Or there is no way to assess the availability of resources, since the problem is too big. In this case, a goal tree is a good option for analyzing the situation. Consider the needs and resources at your disposal when constructing your goal tree.

Be specific

Using a goal tree in planning, formulate tasks specifically. Keep in mind that they must be final. Describe the parameters by which it will ultimately be possible to determine whether it is completed or not. It is also necessary to set the time needed to complete the task.

Break the production into stages

It would be rational to set tasks in several stages. The first step is to set a general goal. Then, resources are searched and analyzed to carry it out. After which, as a rule, you will need to set subgoals. Similarly, resources are also sought for the implementation of subgoals.

Thus, the development of the main task continues until the entire scheme for its solution is thought out. Tasks are refined and clarified as long as necessary.

Compatibility

Subgoals must be sufficient to solve the main plan, that is, if all subgoals are achieved, this leads to the solution of the main task. It should not turn out that when all subgoals are completed, additional actions or resources will be required to solve the main task. If it turns out this way, then this indicates that the goal tree was built incorrectly.

Compliance with enterprise structure

If a goal tree is used to organize the work of a business or enterprise, then its structure must correspond to the structure of the enterprise. In such a way that each department or division achieves its aspirations, which in the future should lead to the achievement of the overall vision of the enterprise. This is the most convenient construction of a goal tree for systems consisting of several elements or enterprises.

Decomposition method

When constructing a goal tree, the decomposition method is often used. The essence of this method is to break down the main goal top level for private purposes. Or in reverse order, from the subgoals a plan is drawn up to achieve the highest level plan. To solve a specific problem, you should always choose the option of creating a goal tree that is most suitable and optimally uses resources.

Construction examples

Let's analyze the construction of a goal tree using the following examples of goals: admission to a university and financial well-being. How to get a goal tree?

The example of entering a university describes the formulation of the main task, subgoals, and allocation of resources. And also how resources are used to resolve the issue. In the example about financial well-being, another option for constructing a graph is considered.

ADMISSION TO THE UNIVERSITY

Let's say the main task is to enter a university. Building a tree of goals for a future student requires taking into account available resources and identifying subgoals. What resources might there be for entering a university?

Resources in this case include:

Education received at school;
Family financial capabilities;
Connections

Taking into account the available resources, it is necessary to obtain a tree of goals. For this purpose, subgoals are identified. They depend on resources. For example, a family has little finances, no connections, a young man graduated from school without a medal, and has average grades in knowledge.

We get the following subgoals:

Establish connections, if possible;
Take out a loan for education or find a source of additional income;
Study with a tutor.

In turn, these goals may have subgoals. Let's look at the example of goals for classes with a tutor. This should include:

Organizing additional income to pay for tutor services;
Finding a tutor with the necessary knowledge;
Allocating extra time for classes.

Of course, each specific case will have its own resources and options for solving the problem. After all, there are rich parents with connections and a child who does not study well. Then the structure of the entire plan will change very much.

It will also depend on what university a person wants to enroll in. Since for admission, for example, to an ordinary unpopular university, where there is a competition, perhaps one person per place, this is one planning option. And admission to a foreign prestigious university, this is completely different. Here you will additionally need knowledge of the language, exploring the possibilities of living in another country while studying, obtaining a visa and much more.

FINANCIAL WELL-BEING

Now let's look at an example of constructing a graph to create financial well-being.
Let's start building a tree of goals by setting the main goal: financial well-being.
The goal tree can be depicted graphically, it will be more clear.

Conventionally, financial well-being can be achieved by achieving three subgoals:

Passive income organizations;
Active income organizations;
Luck and freebies.

Thus, the goal tree has three second-level items. Then each of the points is divided into subgoals, which form the third level. For example, an active income organization may have the following items:

Change of place of work;
Receiving additional education;
Change of profession;
Moving to a different city;
Independent development in the professional field;
Establishing connections within a team;
Gaining experience.

Again, this is just general example. A janitor's ideas and resources for organizing financial success, for example, will be very different from the financial plans of a wealthy businessman. For some, an additional income of several thousand rubles will be a great success or the purchase of a modest home in the suburbs. And for some, the acquisition of another plant will be only a small part of the plan.

Conclusion

Planning your activities using a graph is very convenient. This is a visual tool that allows you to see how tasks and resources interact to solve them.

With the help of such a construction, missing resources are easily detected and new problems appear that need to be solved to replenish the missing resources.

Also when graphic representation it becomes clear how the goals interact with each other, their dependence on each other, the impact of completing a particular task on higher ones, and its significance in the overall result.

The graph is convenient to use not only when running a business or planning work issues. It can be easily transformed to solve personal issues such as studies, finances, self-development and others.

Considering strategic management from a very pragmatic point of view, it can be unequivocally stated that if the goals of the organization are not defined, then, of course, the system will not work fully.

Enterprise goals– these are specific indicators with specific values that the company must achieve over the planning period.

Unfortunately, not all companies involved in setting strategic management have goals. Moreover, in some companies, when they get to the development of goals, managers begin to understand what all this threatens them with and, naturally, try in every possible way to sabotage this process.

After all, if the organization’s goals are clearly outlined, then it will be possible to monitor their implementation, and, in addition, it will be necessary to be responsible for their achievement. And when everything in a company is “foggy and vague,” it’s easier to avoid responsibility.

The benefits of formalizing organizational goals.
1. If the goals of the organization are not formulated or are not clear, there is a danger of taking actions that are not consistent with the goals of the enterprise. Formalizing the organization's goals encourages discussion within the company, which reduces the risk of misunderstanding or incomplete understanding.
2. If the goals of the enterprise are clearly defined, possible conflicts between them can be more likely to be detected and eliminated during the process of agreeing on goals.
3. An accurate definition of the criteria for assessing the company’s activities as a whole is necessary in all cases, except perhaps the case when their formal announcement is made for “propaganda”, hiding true goals organizations.

Criteria for organizational goals (SMART criteria)

When developing and formalizing the goals of the organization, it is necessary to remember that the goals must satisfy five criteria.

They are often called SMART * -criteria:

concreteness ( S specific) goals of the organization:

measurability ( M easurable) enterprise goals:

reachability (feasibility) ( A chievable) goals of the organization:

significance ( R elevant) goals of the organization:

certainty in time ( T imed/ T imed-bound) enterprise goals:

* SMART is an acronym English words: Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Timed/Timed-bound.

Specificity of the organization's goals (Specific)

There should be no formulations like “increasing the efficiency of the enterprise”, because however, it is not defined what efficiency is and what efficiency value should be achieved.

By the way, in order for the goals of the enterprise to be specific and understandable to all employees, the company must develop a glossary in which all terms are deciphered.

In particular, everything related to the formulation of the organization’s goals should be deciphered in the Regulations on Strategic Management. Naturally, company employees must have access to this information.

Measurable goals of the enterprise (Measurable)

If the goal of an enterprise cannot be measured, then it cannot be controlled, therefore, when approving any indicator as a goal, it is necessary to determine how this indicator will be calculated.

It may seem that this criterion is redundant, because If the goal of the organization is specific, then it is naturally measurable.

On the one hand, this is quite logical, but, on the other hand, in practice it may turn out that measuring this goal is very difficult or measuring a specific goal is very expensive for the company.

For example, a company goal such as market share for some organizations can be very difficult to measure, although it is quite specific and target values can be set for it, but, in fact, significant financial and time resources may be required to measure it.

Achievability (feasibility) of company goals (Achievable)

On the one hand, the company's goals must be challenging, that is, in order to achieve them, it is necessary to work effectively, but on the other hand, the organization's goals must be realistic.

If the company's goals are easily achievable, this discourages employees. If the organization’s goals are set too high each time, then employees develop a psychological dislike for work.

It turns out that the company's employees can try their best, but every now and then they do not achieve the goal of the enterprise. This model of work can lead to the fact that, even if you then set a real goal, they will not be able to achieve it, because already “accustomed” to the unattainability of the organization’s goals.

In addition, it is necessary to take into account another important point when checking the feasibility of the criterion for the achievability of the organization’s goals: most often, an enterprise has more than one goal, so an important task when setting goals is their coordination.

It may be that the goals of the enterprise will be contradictory, therefore, when setting numerical values, it is necessary to determine the ranges in which these goals can be joint.

Inconsistency means that specific values of the selected indicators cannot be achieved simultaneously. For example, a company plans to increase profits and at the same time significantly reduce total costs.

It is clear that with certain values of these organizational goals (profits and costs), this may be unrealistic. This means that when determining the target indicator values themselves, you need to carefully ensure that they are simultaneously feasible.

To do this, it is better to use a calculated strategic planning model, compiled, for example, in spreadsheets.

The significance of the organization's goals (Relevant)

When determining the target indicators of an enterprise, on the one hand, you want as many indicators as possible to be involved in the strategic planning system, so that you get the most comprehensive coverage of all the company’s activities.

But, on the other hand, the more indicators, the more complex system In addition, it will be difficult for managers themselves to navigate and make decisions if there are too many indicators.

Therefore, when choosing the company’s goals, it is necessary to evaluate them from the point of view of significance, and each time ask the question about the advisability of their use.

Time certainty of enterprise goals (Timed/Timed-bound)

Naturally, when a company develops a strategic plan and sets goals for itself, it is imperative to determine the planning period. Therefore, in the process of setting goals for an organization, you should always tie them to specific deadlines.

If this is not done, then it will not be clear when to carry out plan-factual monitoring of the achievement of the company’s goals. In addition, it is necessary to take into account such an important point as a possible adjustment of the enterprise’s goals during the implementation of the company’s strategic plan.

A revision of the organization's purpose may be due to the fact that certain factors were not taken into account or were taken into account incorrectly. In this case, a time period can be determined in advance, after which such adjustments to the goals of the enterprise can be made.

On the one hand, the strategy should be the bright path from which one cannot stray, but on the other hand, in practice, various events can occur that significantly affect the company’s business.

Turning a blind eye to them can be a very dangerous thing to do. Therefore, the company must be able to quickly respond to such significant events and adjust the company's goals and company strategy accordingly.

Organizational goals are a mandatory element of the company’s strategic plan

If a company does not have goals, then it will be difficult to understand later whether the company has achieved the desired results or not. After all, if you don’t know what you want, how can you understand whether you got it or not? When setting strategic management and developing a strategic plan, the organization's goals must be present.

Perhaps at first the company will not have a common tree of strategic goals, but there should be goals for at least each development project that arise from the developed strategy.

Thus, we can safely say that if a company does not have goals, then it does not have a strategic plan, and there is no strategic management system that would ensure the development and implementation of such a strategic plan.

This would seem to be an obvious statement, but, nevertheless, I quite often had to encounter such a situation. While carrying out consulting projects on management development, I could hear something like this question from directors.

They said that they had previously hired a consulting company to help them solve the problem of setting up strategic management. But then, looking at the developed materials, the directors asked in surprise: “Where are the organization’s goals here?”

In fact, in their strategic plans there was only a strategy, that is, directions of movement, but the boundaries to which it was necessary to move in these directions were not defined, namely, the goals of the enterprise were not defined.

The consultants who carried out these projects were able to convince the director that this was how everything should be. That is, the company’s goals, of course, are needed, but now you can do without them, and then somehow you need to remember to develop them.

Thus, it was impossible to verify the implementation of the strategy. If everything is left like this, then employees will later say that they were moving in the right direction, but if the criteria were not defined, then it will be very difficult to determine the effectiveness of such a movement.

Practical aspects of developing organizational goals

So, enterprise goals– this is a set of specific indicators that characterize the effectiveness of both the company as a whole (strategic indicators) and lower-level objects (business processes, projects, financial responsibility centers - FRC).

Moreover, you immediately need to pay attention to the fact that in the end all these indicators will have to be included in an integrated (holistic) financial and economic budgeting model. After all, there must be a clear relationship between the strategic management system and budgeting.

A numerical example of an organization’s goals, interconnected with the company’s strategic budgets, is discussed in the book “Strategic Management and Effective Business Development”, and the electronic model is part of the CD-solution “Strategic Enterprise Management” (you can find it there a large number of examples of strategic plans of various companies).

From the above it follows that developing enterprise goals is one of the most difficult stages in drawing up a company’s strategic plan.

By the way, it is necessary to pay attention to one very important feature of performing all this work (from conducting strategic analysis to forming a strategic plan and ensuring necessary conditions to carry it out).

Despite the fact that there is a seemingly linear sequence of actions to develop a strategic plan, in practice it is very rarely possible to do everything in one go.

The problem here is this. When you are drawing up a strategic plan (as well as any other), the question arises - where to start: with an analysis or with the development of the organization's goals.

On the one hand, you need to start with strategic analysis. But, on the other hand, when you conduct some kind of analysis, you need to have at least some guidelines for the company’s goals in advance.

Otherwise, the analysis may be delayed and there is no guarantee that it will lead to any desired result. It turns out that this analysis needs to be somehow limited, to set at least some approximate framework.

Thus, it turns out that in practice it is possible to obtain a more or less normal strategic plan only through iterations - successively approaching the desired solution. That is, the linear sequence actually turns into a cyclic one.

It is quite possible that, in addition to strategic analysis, it will be necessary to conduct a comprehensive diagnostic of the company. The company’s comprehensive diagnostic (analysis) technology will need to be applied not only to the fact, but also to the plan.

This means that first an analysis of the actual state is carried out: the current strategy is assessed (including its marketing component, as one of the most important), the organizational and functional model, the working personnel and what financial and economic state it is in everything allows you to achieve. When assessing the last aspect, naturally, you will have to analyze the company’s current budget model.

Then, after completing the first version of the comprehensive diagnostics, a new strategy is developed, new system marketing, a new organizational and functional model, personnel requirements and a plan for bringing them into compliance with these requirements are determined, and a new budget model is built, with the help of which the financial and economic component of the new (now planned) version of the current company is assessed.

It is clear that this can happen several times. Although you don’t need to get too carried away. Sometimes trying to get the perfect solution costs you time and your competitive position.

Another point that needs to be paid attention to is related to determining which goals for the company are primary and which are secondary.

Often, financial and economic ones dominate among a company’s strategic goals. Such strategic indicators may include, for example, net profit, return on sales, return on assets, return on equity, etc.

The question arises: what should be the sequence of planning the goals of the organization, that is, which goals to start with, which ones to move on to, and which ones should be at the end of the chain.

Again, upon deep study this issue we can come to the conclusion that in this case the linear sequence turns into a cyclic one.

That is, you will have to go through the entire chain at least twice. You can start with some estimates (more precisely, the desired minimum values) for strategic indicators, and then move down from this global level to a lower one.

Thus, after obtaining guidelines for strategic indicators, it will be necessary to plan operational ones and then, in accordance with the developed budget model, calculate the exact values of strategic indicators.

If these are predominantly financial and economic indicators, then they will be contained in financial budgets, which are compiled on the basis of operational ones.

It is clear that when planning, you may also have to go through this chain more than once.

Examples of a company's goal tree

There are different approaches to developing a goal tree for a specific company. Below are several examples of a tree of organizational goals.

Tree of organizational goals (example for a wholesale trading company)

An example of a goal tree for a trading company selling electrical equipment is shown at Figures 1-5. In this example, all organizational goals are divided into five groups (see. Rice. 1).

Rice. 1. An example of an organization’s goal tree architecture

Corporate goals of the enterprise is a set of key indicators for the company as a whole. In other words, we can say that the corporate goals of an organization are the strategic indicators of the company.

The corporate goals of the enterprise determine the main indicators of the company's growth. In this case, these growth indicators included three main goals (see. Rice. 2).

Rice. 2. An example of a tree of corporate goals of an organization

The company plans to actively grow through the development of a dealer network, which should cover at least 70 regions.

At the same time, sales volumes in existing markets should increase by 50%. Moreover, this goal is divided into two subgoals.

The share of regular customers should be over 40%, and the share of large clients over 30%.

Undoubtedly, the company adopted a certain classification of clients according to criteria on the basis of which it was possible to determine which clients were regular and which were large.

In addition to these goals, the company plans to double the sales volume of related products.

Product goals of the organization in this example, the share of sales is determined by the company’s assortment positions (see. Rice. 1).

Operational goals of the enterprise determine the planned effectiveness of the implementation of the company’s main business functions. In the presented example, three main groups of operational goals are highlighted (see. Rice. 3).

Rice. 3. An example of a tree of enterprise operational goals

Operational goals for the Sales business function include four indicators.

It is planned to increase the number of new regular customers by 200%. At the same time, the deviation of prices from the market average should not be more than 20%.

At least 30% of the total sales volume must be sold in the regions, and the number of regional representative offices must be at least 50.

When it comes to the repeat customer target, it turns out that it doesn't always have a positive impact on business. At least for some businesses, an increase in the number of regular customers, on the contrary, puts managers on guard.

For example, the director of one retail chain engaged in the sale of audio-video products said that regular customers are actually far from a gift for them.

He explained it quite simply. It is much more likely that salespeople at retail outlets will substitute the “left” product for regular customers than for those they see for the first time.

To do this, the company constantly shuffled salespeople, that is, transferred them from one outlet to another. We did this quite often, because... sellers quite quickly “made acquaintances” with regular customers and began selling them “left” goods.

For the business function "Supply" in the example under consideration (see. Rice. 3) three targets have been identified.

The share of supplies from the main supplier should not exceed 70%. Initially, the company was created as a distributor of one of the foreign suppliers. Over time, competition began to get tougher, so it was necessary to find reserves to save costs.

At the same time, the quality of products from domestic suppliers gradually improved, and the costs of purchasing their products (prices + transportation costs) were lower than those of foreign companies. Therefore, this company gradually decided to increase the share of domestic suppliers.

As for related products, a strategy focused on domestic suppliers was immediately chosen.

In the “Storage and Transportation” business function, two targets have been set. The company plans to focus on developing its own warehouse system, so the ratio of its own and rented warehouses should be 80% to 20%.

In terms of transport, the company also plans to rely primarily (60% to 40%) on own strength. To a greater extent, such decisions are caused by the fact that the market for outsourcing logistics services is not yet sufficiently developed in our country.

The company was simply afraid to outsource these functions because it could not find reliable counterparties who would not create problems when working with clients.

Management goals of the organization are divided into eight groups, each of which corresponds to the main management functions implemented in a given company (see. Rice. 4).

Rice. 4. An example of a tree of company management goals

The company's marketing system should make it possible to ensure that the share of costs in turnover for marketing research and advertising does not exceed 2% and 10%, respectively. In this case, of course, sales targets must be met.

Due to more competent financial management, the financial cycle should not exceed 35 days. System economic management must ensure control of all costs, the share of which exceeds 1% of total costs.

It should be noted that it is often crises that force companies to pay more attention to the development of the management system and increasing operational efficiency (see the book “Crisis - Aphedrone or Magic Kick-off. Anti-crisis technology for increasing company efficiency”).

The relationship between the company's goals and strategy

It is necessary to pay attention to such an important point as a clear relationship between the goals of the organization and the strategy for achieving goals. And it is also very important to ensure that the company’s goals and strategy are clearly recorded on paper and communicated to all top managers.

In practice, when developing a strategic plan, you can slightly change the sequence of actions. Namely, first develop the first version of the company's strategy, that is, determine the main directions of movement, and then formulate the goals of the organization - determine the exact quantitative parameters of the boundaries of movement in the selected directions.

And then you need to return to the strategy again and bring it into full compliance with the company’s goals and strategy. This approach is quite justified, because it ultimately gives the desired result and is at the same time psychologically easier to perceive.

Therefore, companies use it quite often. But it is very important to go through the goal-strategy cycle at least twice, otherwise you may end up with an inconsistent strategic plan.

For example, when one company operating in the food industry was developing a strategic plan, they decided to start with strategy first, and then develop the organization’s goals and align them with the strategy.

This was the first time the company had developed a strategic plan, so there was no experience of such work yet. As a result, for some positions it turned out that the goals were not consistent with the strategy.

One of the most important strategic indicators of the company was profit. But at the same time, for some positions the strategy was aimed at achieving other indicators.

The situation was further complicated by the fact that the strategic plan was not recorded on paper, so monitoring the implementation of the strategic plan became much more difficult. Eg, CEO I began to understand why the company’s profit was not growing at the desired rate, but at the same time, sales growth in physical terms was significantly outpacing profit growth.

The Marketing and Sales Directorate claimed that when developing the strategic plan, there was an installation according to which the company's products had to be present even in the most remote corner of the region in which the company operated.

Naturally, this led, firstly, to high transportation costs, and, secondly, to a small margin, because in villages and villages they purchased mainly the cheapest products.

Of course, as a result of implementing such a strategy, profits decreased, although the market coverage indicator increased.

When developing the company's strategic plan for the next year, previous mistakes were already taken into account, and all the main points were recorded on paper, agreed upon with all top managers and approved by the CEO.

So, the goals of the organization are one of the most important elements of the strategic plan and the company’s management system in general. For effective enterprise management, it is important not only to learn how to develop goals, but also to provide the conditions necessary for their successful achievement.

Note: the topic of this article is discussed in more detail at the workshop "Strategic management and effective business development", which is carried out by the author of this article -