January 2020, what a great time to start some job related goals. Have you made plans for 2020? Is there an area of your work or business that you could improve on with the knowledge you have from  2019? Now is the time to put a plan in place, instead of saying in December “we should have done that this year”.

Structure Your Team

What are the strengths and weaknesses? With the current pool of skills you should be able to identify areas that could be developed and determine achievable realistic goals. If you are your own team then the above still applies, what can you do as an individual to help your company?

Get the backing of the boss

Once a few goals have been identified and the people with the necessary skills have been tentatively assigned to them, then it’s time to speak to the boss. You’ve shown initiative by getting the ball rolling but only the boss can give the final okay and will make sure the goals for 2020 align with the overall business plan.

Focus on what you can produce with your current resources

We’d all love to expand our teams. There is always more that can be done but for realistic goal setting it is important to keep in mind the things that can and can’t be done with your current workforce, not the expected workforce that hasn’t been hired yet.

Schedule periodic check-ins

Now is the time to book these reviews in. Be very visible about key milestones and what is expected to happened by said date, this will give people a very early indication as to what is expected of them and gives them time to confirm if this will be achieved or not.

Track and celebrate accomplishments

Compare previous years, acknowledge hard work and celebrate every win. You have the data from last year. Did the goals you set positively impact the company?

Here are some possible goals to get your brainstorming session started:

• Increase Staff retention

• Healthier Office

• Increased Productivity

• Better Work Life Balance

• Develop New Departments

• Evolve Existing Departments

• Enter New Markets

• The easy one that every boss loves **Increase Profit**

Not everything is possible in one year or without the right staff so be realistic when it comes to setting goals but remember, nothing will work unless you do. What will you do this year to help you take the next step in your career? This is the month to get the ball rolling!