Next year’s goals on one page
Photo: Avila Ops Tecnologia
Next year’s goals fit on one page with five rows. Each row has four columns: the number today, the number you want, the date, and the first January action taking you from one to the other. If the page has more than five goals, you do not have goals; you have a wish list. If a goal has no number, it is not a goal; it is an intention.
The page exists to be read every Monday, not written on December 31 and put away. That is why it is one page rather than a 20-page plan. Nobody opens a 20-page plan in March.
Which numbers go on the page?
The same five that closed the year, because you already know the starting value. If you have not closed it yet, Closing the year: five numbers that fit on one screen is the preceding step.
| Goal | Today (year-end) | Target (next year) | By | First January action |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cash: months of fixed costs in reserve | [e.g., 0.5 month] | [e.g., 2 months] | [e.g., June 30] | [e.g., cut R$ 800/month in subscriptions and set money aside weekly] |
| Annual revenue | [actual value] | [target value] | December 31 | [e.g., launch the annual plan for customers current on payments] |
| Margin | [%] | [%] | June 30 | [e.g., reprice the five lowest-margin products] |
| Nonpayment rate | [%] | [%] | March 31 | [e.g., first purchase upfront only, deposit on custom orders] |
| Repeat purchase rate | [% of customers who returned] | [%] | December 31 | [e.g., automatic follow-up message 30 days after purchase for opted-in recipients] |
The values in brackets illustrate the format rather than suggest numbers. Yours come from year-end results. The guide What a metric is and how to choose yours helps replace a row if your business needs another (appointments, no-show rate, average order value).
How do you set a target number without guessing?
Look in this order:
- What has already happened. If the year’s best quarter had an 18% margin and the average was 12%, a 16% annual target is ambitious and possible. A 30% target is a wish.
- What actually changes. A goal needs a cause. “Reduce nonpayment from 9% to 4%” is only a goal if accompanied by “because first purchases become upfront.” Without the cause, the number has no way to happen.
- What cash can support. In an inventory business, growing revenue 40% requires buying close to 40% more before selling. If cash does not permit it, the revenue target is limited by the cash target, and their order needs to reflect this.
The “by” column prevents a goal checked only the following December. Cash and nonpayment usually have short deadlines because they depend on rules rather than the market. Revenue and repeat purchases have longer deadlines because they build over time.
What should you leave out, and how do you track without forgetting?
Leave out anything without a number, date, or first action. “Improve customer service,” “strengthen the brand,” “grow on Instagram.” Not because they do not matter, but because you cannot tell in March whether they are happening. If they matter, translate them: “answer every message within 1 hour during business hours” has a number and can be measured.
Also leave out goals depending on someone else’s decision: credit approval, a contract a large customer “will sign,” a partnership “almost there.” They are possibilities, not goals.
Tracking: print the page on the wall or pin it on your phone, and spend five minutes every Monday updating the “today” column. If updating is hard because it requires four systems and a spreadsheet, January’s implied goal is to make the five numbers appear automatically. Goals nobody can measure without an afternoon of work stop being measured in February.
What to do now
Fill in the table today with year-end numbers and one first action per row. Print it. Schedule the first Monday in January as the first review. If January’s first actions include things you do not know how to set up (the automatic follow-up message, the upfront-payment rule at the counter, numbers on screen), describe your business; the assessment is at our expense: avilaops.com/jornada or contact us on WhatsApp: wa.me/5517997811471.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need to share the goals with the team?
Those depending on them, yes, and in a way they can act on: “4% nonpayment” becomes “first purchases are upfront, without exceptions.” The cash goal can stay with the owner. What the team does not know, it does not do.
What if I realize in March that the goal was wrong?
Correct it and record why. A goal is a decision tool, not an oath. The mistake is keeping an impossible goal and stopping looking at the page, or changing goals every week. One review per quarter is a reasonable pace.
Revenue goal or profit goal?
Profit, whenever you can measure it. Revenue is the easiest number to hit and the least protective of the company: you can bill 30% more and earn less profit. If margin is on the page, revenue can stay, because together they give profit.
Turn what you learned into your next step.
Tell us about your company and what you want to improve. We can explore the right tools, integrations or custom project together.