Types of goals.. Product Goals and Process Goals
Goal setting is important but it is not always necessary to define a specific end result. There are goals related to the process rather than the outcome. For goals related to the process, the goal is about growth and improvement and the focus is on the journey rather than the destination.

To understand the differences between product goals and journey/ process goals:

• Product goals focus on the destination while process goals focus on the journey.
• Product goals are short term but process goals tend to be long term.
• Product goals are project oriented while process goals are designed to build habits.
• Product goals adhere to fixed deadlines while process objectives adhere to routine.
• Product goals define success through completion of work, while process goals define success as growth in an individual's skills and abilities.

Examples of goals related to the process:

• Increase operational efficiency and increase productivity
• Increase customer satisfaction and reduce customer complaints

Good examples of goals related to the product/ project:

• Purchase and installation of new equipment in the factory
• Publish a new book or launch a new application

It is easy to set goals and measure the success of product goals, and therefore some organizations tend to focus more on this aspect, and also evaluate the performance of employees and business units based on outputs and results. But the real key to business success is focusing more attention on long-term process goals, while keeping short-term goals related to the product.

Focusing on building, correcting, or developing daily business practices, habits, and desired behaviors is the core of the process or journey improvement goals. Focusing on the journey and not the destination means that employees enjoy the activities they do, regardless of the results, and enjoy the support of management, of course in a well-thought-out manner and methodology that leads to outstanding results and products in the end. This means that leaders care more about supporting team development rather than monitoring their performance with traditional methods and tools. This means that employees and their managers use metrics and indicators as a way to learn and improve together, not to know or measure winning or losing.

Here is a brief overview of the two types of goals:

When we focus on the journey, not the destination, the team culture shifts from competition to contribution, and individual and group involvement increases, resulting in a healthy and productive culture.

Adapted from John Spencer and article by Catherine McDonald.