Quote o' the Week...
The setting of goals is one of the most arbitrary and maltreated topics in Process Improvement. Everyone talks about using S.M.A.R.T. goals, but it’s rare to discuss HOW the goal is created.
Frequently, as Juran noted, goals are created from past performance; which is not optimal.
More often, goals are created on a whim: pulled from the air without any real thought:
“Increase sales 10%!” or “Cut Costs by Half!”
And, to paraphrase an old saying, “No thought in…Garbage out!”