Organizational Goals & Effectiveness

I.  Organizational Goals and Their Attainment

       1.  Organization goals serve three main purposes:
            (1) Establish future state.
            (2) Rationale for the organization's existence or legitimacy.
            (3) Set of standards.

       2.  Definition: Organizational Goals are statements that establish the
            desired future state an organization is attempting to achieve.

       3.  Organizational goals can be applied to three levels of the
            organization.

       4.  Organizations have multiple constituents.

       5.  Organizations have short-term and long-term goals.

II. Goals at the Highest Level: The Organization's Mission

      1.  Mission statements set forth the officially chartered purpose of
           organizations.

      2.  Mission statements can vary.

III.  Goals for Action: Operative Goals

      1. Operative goals are stated in measurable outcomes.

      2. Operative goals can take on a broad scope. Included are the
          following:
          Market, Financial Performance, Resource, Innovation, Productivity,
          Management Development, Employee Performance and Attitudes,
          Social Responsibility and Ethical Behavior

V. Ethical Issues and Principles

      1. Much of what organizational members do on a day-to-day basis
          involves ethics.
          Ethical dilemmas have five characteristics:
          Actions have consequences. Managers have alternatives and can
          make choices. Outcomes are mixed--not all of the consequences
          are totally positive or negative. Consequences are uncertain.
          Decisions that managers make have personal implications; they
          affect people.

     2.  Many frameworks of business ethics have been formulated.  Ethical
          utilitarianism and ethical formalism. Ethical utilitarianism is based on
          the works of Jeremy Bentham. Ethical formalism is based on the
          works of Emanuel Kant.

VI.  Purpose of Goals and Objectives

     1. Goals and objectives at different levels serve different purposes. The six
         major purposes usually discussed are:

        Guidance or direction, Motivation, Legitimacy, Standards, Structure and
        Design, Unification of Effort     

VII.  Managing Goals and Objectives

       1. What are the goals?

       2.  Establishing goals.

       3.  Managing goals.

       4.  Goals are not always fully met.

       5.  Setting priorities; Sequencing of goals.

VIII.  The Issue of Effectiveness

       Goals and effectiveness are certainly related.

      1.  Whether an organization is effective or not may depend on who is
           asking the question.

      2.  Internal effectiveness.
           1)  Efficiency.
           2)  Emotional or affective health.

      3.  The goal approach.

      4.  Resource acquisition and effectiveness.

      5.  Performance from the stakeholders' perspective.

II.  Effectiveness: A Synthesis

      1. Contradictions Model.
          1)  Organizations face complex environments.
          2)  Organizations have multiple conflicting goals.
          3)  Internal and external stakeholders.
          4)  Manage multiple and conflicting time demands.

      2.  Competing Values Model.
           1)  Human Relations.
           2)  Open Systems.
           3)  Systems Resources.
           4)  Goal Model.