The Relationship of Goal Setting to Organizational Profitability

Abstract

A survey was conducted of organizations as to the extent of use of goal-setting theory and applications, and it was investigated whether organizations that used goal setting were more profitable than those that did not. A positive relationship was found between the use of goal setting and profitability. Thus the results provide some initial evidence for the possible impact of goal setting on organizational-level measures of performance. Industry type and organizational size appeared to have little influence on the use of goal setting; however, the relationship between the use of goal setting and profitability did vary somewhat by industry classification.