Jeff Sommer, Managing Director
Lan Nguyen, Consultant
In a previous white paper, we described Stroudwater’s Demand-based Staffing advisory practice. This article described in greater detail one of the foundational components of our approach to Demand-based Staffing, the Initial Performance Goal.
An Initial Performance Goal (IPG) is a preliminary performance goal, the starting point for articulating expectations across departments. Defining performance goals establishes a level of potential improvement in productivity, using today’s performance as a reference point. Selecting appropriate Initial Performance Goals is critical to promoting team buy-in, establishing expectations, and providing direction for a department. The selection of the IPG by department is typically made by senior leadership but is a collaborative exercise among all involved stakeholders. It is essential to note that the IPG is an initial target for a given department and can be modified as discoveries are made on the daily operational challenges.