Every organization needs to set quality improvement goals to keep its competitive edge. This way, an organization can evaluate its services and make the necessary adjustments. To achieve quality improvement in your organization, you must set goals that are specific and have a certain timeline. You should also research and design strategies on how to set achievable goals and keep employees committed.

Write down your strategic plan and long-term goals aimed towards quality improvement. Identify the services you want to improve. Derive your goals from these services. Make your goals specific and simple.

Develop your quality goals against yardsticks available in your industry. Set your goals against the highest standards in the industry rather than settling on incremental upgrading. For example, if you are a manufacturing company seeking to achieve quality management, measure your standards against ISO 10002, an international customer satisfaction standard. If no standards are available or you have already achieved the existing ones, strive to set goals that stretch your organization.

Create a timeline for your goals. Each goal should have a specific accomplishment time. For example, if your goal is to improve customer service and increase customer satisfaction to 90 percent, state clearly the time it should take.

Tie your goals to the organization’s operative and financial objectives. For every quality improvement goal you set, show its financial implications; clearly indicate how much money the organization will save through the exercise. Define how a goal impacts your operational standards and costs.

Set tasks to help you keep track of progress toward goals. Establish tasks that are directly involved in achieving your goal. If the aim is to achieve customer satisfaction up to 90 percent, outline tasks such as developing a feedback channel in six months. The tasks must be achievable in a lesser period than the time you are planning to achieve the overall goal. Match tasks with departments highly suitable to fulfill the task. Appoint leaders to oversee the completion of the tasks.