Setting goals can be a powerful driver for growth—if those goals are realistic, specific, and grounded in facts rather than wishful thinking. SMART goals (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound) are a proven framework to turn aspirations into action. But there’s more to it than just setting goals; you need a structured approach and a team fully committed to achieving them.
Here’s how to set SMART goals that will keep your agency moving forward and actually work.
1. Set Goals with Facts, Not Feelings
Too often, goal-setting is driven by ambition or emotion rather than a grounded understanding of what’s actually achievable. Start by focusing on facts. Look at your agency’s financial projections and performance data to create goals that are not only ambitious but also realistic. This way, you avoid setting yourself (and your team) up for failure.
Use Your Pro Forma as a Blueprint: Your pro forma is essentially a financial roadmap for where you want your agency to go. Use it to set realistic revenue, profit, and growth targets. This approach ensures that your goals are tied directly to the numbers that matter.
Check Your Organizational Chart: Goals are only achievable if you have the right team to execute them. Look at your org chart and assess whether you have the necessary roles filled to hit your targets. For example, if one of your goals involves boosting client acquisition, do you have a strong sales leader in place to make that happen?
Setting goals based on facts ensures that your agency has a specific and realistic plan to hit targets. It keeps the focus on actionable steps rather than vague ambitions.
2. Track Progress with a System Like EOS
A goal is only as good as your ability to track it. The Entrepreneurial Operating System (EOS) is an effective framework for setting, managing, and tracking goals across your organization. Having a system like EOS in place ensures that every team member knows the targets, tracks their progress, and takes ownership.
Set Quarterly Rocks: In EOS, Rocks are quarterly priorities that each team member commits to achieving. These Rocks keep everyone aligned and focused on specific tasks that contribute to the agency’s larger goals.
Schedule Regular Check-Ins: Regular check-ins are essential to keep the team on track. EOS encourages weekly meetings where team members report on their Rocks and KPIs. This process holds people accountable and creates a sense of urgency around meeting deadlines.
Empower Accountability: With EOS, each person takes ownership of their Rocks and is responsible for reporting on their progress. This level of accountability ensures that every team member is directly engaged in the agency’s growth and committed to hitting their targets.
Using a structured system like EOS to track goals allows your team to stay focused, maintain momentum, and adapt to any challenges that arise along the way.
3. Assign Each Leader Their ONE NUMBER
For your goals to make an impact, every member of your leadership team needs a clear focus. Assigning each leader their “One Number”—the single most important KPI that reflects their contribution to the agency’s goals—keeps them aligned and focused on driving results.
Define the Right KPI for Each Role: Identify the key metric that each leader should be driving. For instance, if your sales lead’s “One Number” is new revenue, that’s their primary focus and what they’ll be measured against. Meanwhile, your operations leader’s “One Number” might be gross margin or project completion rate.
Make It Measurable and Actionable: The One Number must be a clear, measurable metric that directly ties into the agency’s larger goals. Ensure that it’s something they can influence directly and is specific enough to track accurately.
Tie Goals to Performance Reviews: When each leader knows their One Number, they understand exactly how their performance is evaluated. This clarity drives accountability and encourages leaders to focus on what truly moves the agency forward.
Setting a One Number for each leader aligns the leadership team with the agency’s goals and keeps everyone focused on achieving results that matter.
4. Get Buy-In from the People Responsible
One of the most important aspects of goal-setting is buy-in. Your team members won’t be fully committed to goals they don’t believe in or understand. To ensure your team is motivated, make sure they’re on board and willing to fight for the goals.
Explain the “Why” Behind the Goals: People are more likely to commit when they understand why the goals matter. Take the time to explain how each goal contributes to the agency’s success and impacts their own career growth. When team members see the bigger picture, they’re more likely to put in the extra effort to achieve the goal.
Involve Key Team Members in Goal-Setting: When possible, involve team members in setting their own targets. This empowers them to take ownership and feel invested in the outcome. They’ll be more motivated if they’ve played a role in determining what success looks like.
Address Concerns and Offer Support: Sometimes, team members hesitate to fully commit if they foresee obstacles. Be open to their concerns and provide the resources or support they need to succeed. When team members feel supported, they’re more likely to go all-in on achieving the goal.
Buy-in transforms goals from management directives into shared team missions, ensuring that everyone is motivated to make them a reality.
Final Thoughts
Setting SMART goals is essential for driving meaningful growth, but it takes more than just good intentions. By grounding your goals in facts, tracking progress with a structured system, assigning clear KPIs to each leader, and securing buy-in from your team, you create a strong foundation for achieving results. Goals set this way aren’t just wishes—they’re commitments that each team member is prepared to meet.
Ready to take goal-setting to the next level? Join us at Agency Freedom Live and discover proven strategies for setting and achieving impactful goals.