Goal Theory Components of goal theory and its benefits in the workplace

The goal theory suggests that by allowing employees to set goals, they can be influenced to work harder to meet these goals by motivating them. This will lead to a significant boost in employee performance and translate to benefits for the organization as well. The basic principles of the goal setting theory are clarity, commitment, challenge, complexity, and feedback. The theory posits that goals that are set by employees need to be SMART. This means they should be specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, and time-bound. This is important for the goals to be clear to both the employees and the organization. The theory also states the second attribute of goals as commitment from the employee to meet the goals. Employees should be motivated to feel like the goals and goal-setting process is important for them to be committed to their set goal. Without this commitment, they cannot be motivated to meet the goals.

Thirdly, employees must...

By allowing employees to set challenging goals, it means that when they meet the goals, they is a significant payoff in the success. The goals must also be programmed to be complex enough to ensure employees use the available time and resources to meet it. However, it should not be overwhelming that the employee feels they are unwilling to meet the goal. Lastly, the goals setting program should involve feedback whereby employees get recognition and feedback on their progress from supervisors.
The major advantage of goal theory in a company is that it ensures employees and management discuss job expectations through setting goals. It also gives the company a fair basis upon which to assess the employee's performance (Eccles & Wigfield, 2002). The goal setting program also enable the company to identify areas where employees could benefit from training or retraining or offered different positions based on their experience and aspirations.

Examples of goal-setting practices applicable to…