How to Set and Achieve Corporate Objectives

Corporate objectives are specific, realistic and measurable goals that your business sets out to achieve within a given period. Objectives are important because they provide focus, direction and motivation for your business and your employees.

It is always a good time to create or review your corporate objectives. Particularly, if you are looking to launch your business into the export market. You need to understand your motivations for wanting to export and plan how exporting fits within your broader business strategy to ensure you're making you right more. In this article, we will explain why corporate objectives are important and how to make them specific, realistic and measurable so that in 2, 5, & 10 years down the track, you can be proud of the progress you've made.

What are Corporate Objectives and Why Do They Matter?

Corporate objectives are well-defined goals that your business aspires to achieve within a set time. They serve three key functions: First, they focus the business on a very clear target that all team members understand, ensuring that sales efforts are strategically planned rather than haphazardly pursued. Second, they allow for resource planning, so the export activities have the resources necessary to achieve the goals of the business. Third, they provide accountability, enabling each decision to be measured against a defined goal. The important differentiator between businesses that set objectives and those that actually achieve their objectives is the practice of holding people within the organisation accountable for actions that they were responsible for.

How to Write Corporate Objectives

To set export-focused corporate objectives start with a timeframe that makes sense to you. This may be a two-year plan or a decade-long vision. At the end of your chosen time frame, ask yourself, what position do you want your business to be in? This may be money in the bank, accreditation, performance against competitors, asset ownership or channels you are selling into.

The motivations for wanting to export are unique and varied. A few examples from our clients include:

• To set my family up for financial security. 
• To allow my husband to retire from his manual labour job. 
• To start manufacturing in-house and reduce reliance on third-party companies.
• To provide community support services for young people in our region. 

Setting corporate objectives begins with clearly defining your motivations for exporting like the examples above. The next crucial step is integrating these motivations into your overall business strategy and putting measures of accountability alongside them.

Examples of Corporate Objectives:

• To set my family up for financial security:
• Increase our profit to one million by 2027. Pay down all debts owed to financial institutions and sell the business to investors for a multiple of 12.
• To allow my husband to retire from his manual labour job:
• Increase sales to 2,000 units per month by the end of 2025 to justify hiring an additional staff member, enabling my husband to transition to a management or advisory role.
• To start manufacturing in-house and reduce reliance on third-party companies:
• Set up an in-house manufacturing facility and start production by Q4, 2025, reducing third-party manufacturing costs by 30%.
• To provide community support services for young people in our region:
• Generate an additional $500,000 in revenue by the end of 2026 to fully fund our community support services, making them completely free for disadvantaged youth and their families.
• Establish and begin offering these community support services by Q1, 2027.

How to Achieve Corporate Objectives

The keys to achieving your corporate objectives involve aligning them with your business's capabilities and capacity. Capabilities encompass the skills, abilities, and knowledge within your organisation, while capacity refers to its ability to handle tasks, absorb demand, and adapt to change. Understanding your business's capabilities is essential for identifying areas that need improvement to succeed in business in general as well as in exporting. For a full guide on capabilities and capacities see our how-to guide here.

The second step to achieving your objectives is to keep them in mind whenever you face a strategic decision. If a decision doesn't align with the organisation's goals, ask yourself, is this really a priority? Is this going to get us to where we need to be? This applies to everyone in the team. Hold everyone accountable for their choices and actions, track their progress against timelines, and ensure everyone understands their role in achieving the objectives. This accountability helps everyone stay committed to the goals and increases the chances of success.

Tips and Reminders for Corporate Objectives

• Align your motivations to export with your business goals. 
• Make sure your goals are realistic and they are given a timeframe for completion.
• Understand and build your business's capability and capacity.
• Assign resources to specific export activities.
• Keep your corporate objectives front of mind when making strategic decisions. 
• Regularly review all team members and keep them accountable to the goals of the business. 
• Corporate objectives are challenging. Set time aside to work on them, and if you need assistance, reach out to us for expert advice. 

Corporate objectives are not just aspirations- they are the compass guiding your business toward success in international markets. By setting clear objectives, businesses can prioritise effectively, enhance efficiency, and measure progress accurately. If you need help setting or reviewing your corporate objectives, contact our team at Palaudin Consulting. We have helped 100s of business get clarity on their direction and form a path to market plan that guarentees results.