Human beings are goal-oriented beings in the sense that when we have a goal in front of us then we channelize all our resources and focus towards the achievement of that goal. In the case of companies, they also use this mentality of human beings to their advantage by using goal setting theory for motivating their employees. Goal setting theory in simple words refers to that theory which ensures that if employees are given challenging goals along with matching rewards for reaching the goal then it will lead to better performance of employees which in turn will ensure that the company achieves its own goals or objectives. In order to understand this concept, one should look at some of the advantages and disadvantages of goal setting theory –
Advantages of Goal Setting Theory
Clarity in the minds of the Employees
The first and foremost advantage of goal setting theory is that it brings clarity in the minds of employees because once you know your goal then the only thing you need to figure out is how to achieve that goal which in turn ensures that all your efforts are channelized in the right direction which is towards the achievement of a goal. In simple words just like in the case of college students if students do not know the syllabus then they will be clueless about their course of action in the same way workers in the absence of goals will be clueless about their course of action.
Better Effort from Employees
Goal setting theory leads to better efforts on the part of the employees because when there are clear-cut goals given to you then you strive to achieve that goal by giving your best effort. In simple words suppose your college curriculum is lengthy than you sill put more effort from the start of the year rather than leaving it too late same thing applies to employees working in the company too because when employees know their goals in advance than they will put the best effort towards the achievement of the goal from the day they receive their goal from the company rather than leaving it for too late.
Controlling and Recognition
Goal setting theory helps the company in better control because once the company has given a goal to its employees than the only thing which company has to do is to look whether employees are going in the right direction and speed towards achieving the goal, besides it also helps the company in recognizing the performers that are the employees who achieved the goal on time and non-performers that is employees failed to achieve the goal set by the company.
Disadvantages of Goal Setting Theory
Unrealistic Goals
There is a thin line between challenging goals and unrealistic goals and if the company has crossed that line and has given unrealistic goals than the whole point of this theory being a motivating factor goes into the drain as unrealistic goals will demotivate employees and they will not even do the work which they might have done in the absence of goal setting theory.
Biasness
Goal setting theory has a scope of biasness because since each department or employee is given a different goal there is always that risk that top management may become biased towards some departments or employees and give them simple goals that are easy to achieve as opposed to giving challenging goals to all departments and employees.
No Guarantee of Success
If the employees and departments are able to complete their respective goals still it does not guarantee that company will also achieve its goal as sometimes due to lack of coordination within the company there is a mismatch between the individual goals and the company’s overall vision or goal.
As one can see from the above that goal setting theory has advantages as well as advantages and that is the reason why any company thinking of implementing this strategy into the company should carefully read the above points and then only should take any decision.