Management by Objectives (MBO)

Management By Objectives (MBO)

“MBO refers to a formal set of procedures that begins with goal setting and contributes through performance review”. The key of MBO is that it is a participative process actively involving managers and subordinates at every organizational level. It encourages performance appraisal through a process of shared goal setting and evaluation. MBO is a technique designed to increase the precision of the planning process at the organizational level & reduce the gap between the employee and organizational goal.

The key elements of MBO are
1. Effective planning and goal setting by top management.
2. Setting of inidividual goals related to organizational’s goals by managers and subordinates.
3. Considerable autonomy in developing and selecting means for achieving objectives.
4. Regular review of performance in relation to objectives.

MBO can be viewed as goal setting applied to the macro organizational level. It follows the series of systematic steps.

• Individual objectives : Once the overall organizational objectives have been set and performance system developed; individual objectives are set which are determined by each superior’s subordinate pair.
• Feedback & appraisal : Individuals will be given feedback and appraised on the basis of their performance in accordance with the objectives. This process takes place on a periodic and annual basis and is diagnostic rather than purely evaluative.
• Periodic review : They are conducted in order to evaluate progress towards the attainment of objectives and give the opportunity to make necessary changes. At the annual review session an overall diagnosis and evaluation is made according to results attained; and the system starts all over again.

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Source : Unknown
Author : Unknown

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The Triple H factor…. (For Trainers)

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Physics Teacher : “Isaac Newton was sitting under a tree when an apple fell on his head and he discovered gravity…! Isn’t that wonderful?”
Student : “Yes sir, if he had been sitting in class looking at books like us, he wouldn’t have discovered anything.”
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Among the many characteristics that a TRAINER needs to possess, the following, if naturally displayed, will ensure a positive response by the participants (trainees/delegates) attending the program. They are…

H – Humility
H – Honesty
H – Humour (Humor)

HUMILITY : The more humble a trainer is, the more ‘APPROACHABLE‘ will he/she be perceived to be by his/her participants thus reflecting a positive opinion about himself/herself. There are participants who are passive in their interaction during the training program, this deficiency of theirs unfortunately leads them in giving a negative feedback on the trainer’s effectiveness. Hence if a trainer, can go that extra mile and display humility, he will ensure participants open-up and engage easily in a discussion. In addition to skills of effectively handling questions by participants this characteristic also ensures that the trainer is not targeted unnecessarily by difficult participants during the program.

HONESTY :
Q : What is it that trainers know, that they need not know?
A : They need not know “EVERYTHING”.

Sometimes, in preparation of a training program, a trainer PRESUMES he needs to readily have a solution for every unexpected query from a participant. NOT TRUE. Remember as a trainer, each program you lead or conduct, is a learning for you too. Its absolutely fair to be HONEST of something that you don’t know or didn’t know about. In such a situation the ability to pick up something relevant from a participants experience/view and incorporate the same in your subsequent training programs is a required skill for any modern trainer.

HUMOUR :
Everybody has experienced trainers having great knowledge on the topic, and handling queries effectively, hence meeting the main objective of any training program i.e ensuring knowledge is imparted to the participants. That being true, today maintaining the attention of participants throughout the program has always been a challenge for any trainer. The common solutions to this challenge is facilitating various ice-breakers or games during the entire program. In spite of that, the challenge still remains.
Thats when its necessary to trust the old saying “LAUGHTER is the BEST medicine“. As much as any trainer can genuinely develop an appropriate amount of humour while delivering a training, they will definitely have the attention of the participants/delegates/trainees. Maybe its not every trainer’s feature, but it can be developed gradually.

Having said that, the extreme display of any of the above 3 traits by a trainer, can also be a disadvantage. Hence knowing the appropriate level is also essential. So next time you walk into a program please check list your ability as a ‘Triple H’ Trainer.

Happy Training….!

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Source : Self-composed
Author : Lionel Sequeira
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