Setting Goals & Targets
Setting a goal for a program/project is an important part of programming. A program or a project should not ideally have multiple goals. The goal is what has to be ultimately achieved; the final form or situation that we would like to see. But it is to be clearly distinguished from vision. Goal and vision are two entirely different things. Goal is more about where we want to reach and vision is more about what we want to see. A vision can be more idealistic but a goal has to be more realistic.
Some examples of project goal are:
1. Increased income of landless farmers in the target area
2. Reduced infant mortality rate (IMR)
3. All children aged 16 years completing high school
4. All youth aged 25 years and above employed
While some examples of vision are:
1. No person in the target population go hungry
2. Children living without fear in their communities
3. No child dies of preventable diseases
Vision is usually at the organizational level and goals at the program/project level. An organization would ideally have a fixed vision, not changing over time. But it can have different goals for the different programs/projects that it runs.
A good logical framework should indicate the goal at the top, then the changes (outcomes) that need to be seen in order to achieve the goal, then all the things that need to be delivered (outputs) in order to bring about those changes and the activities that need to be carried out in order to ensure that the planned outputs are delivered.
Setting of targets is of utmost importance with respect to program/project design. In the strict sense, a design is invalid if there are no clear targets. Targets also have to be time-bound. Setting of targets also needs to be done in different ways for monitoring level and evaluation level respectively.
Monitoring Targets
Monitoring targets are basically the targets for the various outputs. The program/project managers or management team should be clear about what can be done and what cannot be done. They should not give in to the common practice of setting targets in arithmetic progression like 10, 20, 30 40,… or 700, 1400, 2100,… and distribute them evenly over the program/project lifespan.
They should consider the variation of the following factors over the program/project lifespan:
1. Availability of resources/funds
2. Manpower/staffing
3. Geographic coverage
4. Needs among the target population
5. Seasonality of certain things (in some cases)
6. Order of succession of things with respect to each other
Targets for monitoring need to be set at the same frequency as the measurement are to take place. Ideally for long-term projects, monitoring targets need to be at least 6 monthly (semi-annual targets) and for short-term projects, they need to be monthly at least.
Evaluation Targets
Evaluation Targets are the targets at the Outcome level. The measurement of indicators at this level cannot be done at a short frequency like monthly or even six-monthly. Therefore having targets set at such short intervals is of no practical use. Targets at any level should be set at the same frequency/periodicity as measurement of the same has been planned. Therefore, targets at outcome level (for evaluative purposes) should be ideally set at an interval of 3 years or 5 years.
The factors that are to be considered while setting monitoring/output targets, also apply to the outcome/evaluation level. But there is also a discount factor that needs to be considered. This is because the achievement of outputs need not necessarily result in achievement of outcomes as expected. Though it should logically result in the achievement of outcomes, there are also the assumptions and risks that discount for the results.
Remember that the program/project staffs are fully responsible for the activities and inputs, largely responsible for the outputs, fairly responsible for the outcomes and only partly responsible for the goal.
Some examples of project goal are:
1. Increased income of landless farmers in the target area
2. Reduced infant mortality rate (IMR)
3. All children aged 16 years completing high school
4. All youth aged 25 years and above employed
While some examples of vision are:
1. No person in the target population go hungry
2. Children living without fear in their communities
3. No child dies of preventable diseases
Vision is usually at the organizational level and goals at the program/project level. An organization would ideally have a fixed vision, not changing over time. But it can have different goals for the different programs/projects that it runs.
A good logical framework should indicate the goal at the top, then the changes (outcomes) that need to be seen in order to achieve the goal, then all the things that need to be delivered (outputs) in order to bring about those changes and the activities that need to be carried out in order to ensure that the planned outputs are delivered.
Setting of targets is of utmost importance with respect to program/project design. In the strict sense, a design is invalid if there are no clear targets. Targets also have to be time-bound. Setting of targets also needs to be done in different ways for monitoring level and evaluation level respectively.
Monitoring Targets
Monitoring targets are basically the targets for the various outputs. The program/project managers or management team should be clear about what can be done and what cannot be done. They should not give in to the common practice of setting targets in arithmetic progression like 10, 20, 30 40,… or 700, 1400, 2100,… and distribute them evenly over the program/project lifespan.
They should consider the variation of the following factors over the program/project lifespan:
1. Availability of resources/funds
2. Manpower/staffing
3. Geographic coverage
4. Needs among the target population
5. Seasonality of certain things (in some cases)
6. Order of succession of things with respect to each other
Targets for monitoring need to be set at the same frequency as the measurement are to take place. Ideally for long-term projects, monitoring targets need to be at least 6 monthly (semi-annual targets) and for short-term projects, they need to be monthly at least.
Evaluation Targets
Evaluation Targets are the targets at the Outcome level. The measurement of indicators at this level cannot be done at a short frequency like monthly or even six-monthly. Therefore having targets set at such short intervals is of no practical use. Targets at any level should be set at the same frequency/periodicity as measurement of the same has been planned. Therefore, targets at outcome level (for evaluative purposes) should be ideally set at an interval of 3 years or 5 years.
The factors that are to be considered while setting monitoring/output targets, also apply to the outcome/evaluation level. But there is also a discount factor that needs to be considered. This is because the achievement of outputs need not necessarily result in achievement of outcomes as expected. Though it should logically result in the achievement of outcomes, there are also the assumptions and risks that discount for the results.
Remember that the program/project staffs are fully responsible for the activities and inputs, largely responsible for the outputs, fairly responsible for the outcomes and only partly responsible for the goal.
