Goal to Objective Mapping

By: George Spafford

March 22, 2007

A significant challenge that organizations have is the alignment of functional area objectives to organizational goals. From a holistic perspective, an organization is a system of component functional areas assembled to achieve a goal. To optimize performance of the system, we need to ensure that the functional area objectives are properly aligned to support attainment of that goal.

In the course of strategic planning, goals and objectives are often identified in documented plans and PowerPoint presentations but a problem lies with understanding relationships and this is where “goal to objective mapping” can provide a visualization tool.

The noted Japanese quality practitioner Kaoru Ishikawa developed his cause and effect diagrams to establish root cause so management teams could tackle quality problems. Many people have seen and used his charts and may know them as “herringbone” or “fishbone” diagrams. For goal to objective mapping, we are using a variation of the technique to establish and drive causality with the intent of establishing the causal linkages between functional areas and the goal of the organization.

This technique also builds on the seminal Theory of Constraints work done by Dr. Eliyahu Goldratt. His amazing work helps groups to better understand how to optimize their organizations.

Organic Growth Without Alignment

In contrast, organizations that haven’t carefully reviewed the alignment of goals and objectives are at risk of suboptimal outcomes. Objectives can be thought of as vectors in that they have both direction and force. Without effective alignment, an organization risks having functional area objectives that contribute less than ideally or even at odds with one another. For example:

Instead of chaos, we must understand what the functional areas are doing and just as important they must understand what they should be doing. Rather than bury the functional area objectives in documentation and presentations we can build a diagram that identifies details so let’s shift to that.

Creating the Goal to Objective Map

The following example diagram will serve to illustrate what a map might look like:

To build the map, the following steps must be pursued:

First, we need to understand the goal of the organization. For most businesses the goal is “to sustainably maximize profits” or “to sustainably maximize returns on shareholders’ equity”. It is very important that the goal be very clear and actionable. If the goal isn’t properly set and articulated then the balance of the mapping exercise will not be possible.

Second, for each functional area, such as “Accounting” in the above diagram, we need to document the objectives that the functional area must meet, or strive for, in order to help support attainment of the goal. Review the objectives for the area. Do they support the goal? Do they make sense? Is the level of risk appropriate? Exploring the answers to questions such as these help create a reasonable assurance of proper alignment.

Third, the next step is to identify what various teams are doing within each functional area to attain their objectives. In the above example diagram, we have teams one and two. What do they do? Why? Does it make sense? Again, the intent of questions is to understand if there is proper alignment. Are the right people doing the right things at the right time?

Fourth, IT provides services that enable functional areas attain their objectives and, indirectly, the organization’s goal. It can be very enlightening to identify the provisioned services at this juncture. It highlights that only by working with business people to properly design and implement services can optimal services be delivered that truly increase productivity. This is a fundamental point – IT enables functional areas by working with them and not around them.

The example diagram identifies only a few areas and objectives. Organizations can take the principles and apply them to any size organization by scaling their maps accordingly through the addition of branches in the same manner that the Ishikawa diagram does. For one business there may be divisions with objectives and then functional areas within the divisions that then have departments and then have teams. The thought processes are the same and only the number of levels of branches change.

One important point - be certain to focus on the thought processes around the map and not how to use some diagramming tool. It is very important that whatever tool you use support the outcomes and not drive them. In other words use whiteboards, poster paper, or whatever is easy and reliable during meeting sessions. You can work on making the maps look better at a later time if you are so inclined. Just don’t let a tool interrupt the flow of ideas during meetings.

In closing, the alignment of organizational goals and functional area objectives is very important. It is very easy for there to be misunderstandings at various levels as to what should be done and why. By diagramming the causal relationships organizations can understand what is being done, why and how their contributions matter – all of which are very important to the successful attainment of organizational goals.