Goals and Objectives
Goals should define priorities and be measurable and achievable. They must be monitored regularly for potential barriers and to assess if they still reflect external conditions. Objectives focus on activities while initiatives are projects to support these activities. Goals, objectives and initiatives should address the full range of what the agency wants to accomplish. To the extent possible, agencies should move forward incrementally, starting with two or three workforce goals that can be realized to gain a sense of competence and or credibility. Additional goals can be phased in as original benchmarks are achieved.
Example: The agency may set a goal of decreasing worker isolation when they are providing in-homes services in order to increase their safety and to improve service delivery by enabling consultation with supervisors. A possible initiative to support this goal would be to provide all workers with a cell phone. Example: There is a federal requirement for caseworker visitation with children in out-of-home placements every calendar month. If workers are included in the planning process for goal setting and understand the potential fiscal consequences of not achieving this goal, there is a greater likelihood that they will adapt their schedules to make the visits within the guidelines and document them in the agency’s information system so that the reporting data are accurate when compiled.
Additional Sections:
Environmental Scan
Agency Assessment
Monitoring and Continuous Improvement