Differences between a problem and a task. The difference between a goal and a task

Aristotle defined purpose as “that for which”

Goal is a future state subject area, which, within the framework of the project, is sought through the implementation of active actions and tasks.

Goals should answer the question “what?” What should you receive by the end of the project?

Tasks should answer the question “how?” How we should act to achieve our goals.

Projects can have multiple goals and each goal has a set of tasks.

Each task should begin with an action verb, for example: prepare, carry out, develop, create, make, provide, buy, install, survey, etc. This ensures that the task is measurable and controllable.

SMART goal

Achieving a goal depends on its formulation, and the first step to success is correctly formed goals.

SMART goals concept:

Specific: The goal must be specific, i.e. describe what exactly needs to be achieved. For example, increase company profits.
Measurable: The goal must be measurable, i.e. describe in what or in what units the result can be measured. For example, increase company profits by 5%.
Achievable: The goal must be achievable. It describes how the goal is achieved and under what conditions. For example, increase the company’s profit by 5% by introducing an electronic control system, automating internal business processes and reducing the number of employees by 10% from the current number.
Realistic: The goal must be realistic. Means that achieving goals is financially and technically possible. Technical and human resources must be present in sufficient quantities. It is especially important to check the issue of available know-how.
Timely: Goal implementation must have a realistic time estimate for implementation. A time limit is indicated after which all tasks must be completed and the goal achieved.

Target	Term	Team	Expected Result	Measuring the success of the result
Development of marketing-oriented Internet access - presentation of company products on the Internet.	July 1 -	Vasya	Increasing the visibility of company X's products	At least 5,000 site visitors per month six months after the completion of the site’s implementation on the Internet.
Search for cooperation partners on the Internet	August 1 -	Ivan	Sales of “X” products through partners, at least 1% of the company’s turnover.	Three months after the launch of the E-commerce project, an increase in turnover through partners (an increase of at least 5% per month).

How to identify goals based on an idea?

Often management or a group of people have an idea for a project that needs to be formulated into goals.

To define project goals, it is necessary to define what is required from the project and the team:

What should be done?
Why should this be done?
What benefits should the project bring?
Is everyone familiar with this idea?
Does everyone understand it the same way?
Does everyone agree with him?
When should work be completed?
Who is the end user?
What quality is expected?
What functionality is expected?
What resources are available?
Who controls the achievement of success and quality, and by what criteria?
What are the minimum goals?
What should never happen?
What work is not related to the project??

The last two questions describe something that is not relevant to the project. Thus defining the scope (boundaries) of the project, as well as identifying tasks that are not paid for by the customer.

Answering the above questions, requirements for the project and goals are formed. It is necessary to approach the answers in the “smart” concept - they must, at a minimum, be measurable.

Measurability adds high degree certainty of the project and makes it possible to monitor the implementation of the project in the future. Lack of certainty will lead to controversial situations, which means loss of time and the risk of project failure.

When formulating goals, it is necessary to understand and take into account three dimensions project work: Time, Timing, Content. Thus, measurable goals are goals that can be:

measure and check;
determine by the scope of work;
determine by timing, costs.

What questions should you ask to formulate your goals:

What needs to be achieved?
How and at what cost should the goal be achieved?
When should the goal be achieved?
What are the priority goals?
Which goals are dependent on each other?
Which goals are mutually exclusive?

The result of the work is: a list of goals that are formulated according to SMART.

An example of setting goals from the concept of idea and problem

Problems that determine the emergence of the project:

slower sales growth;
inability to trade around the clock;
the complexity of regional sales, when the client cannot come to the company’s office or store to familiarize himself with the product catalogue;
customers need to visit the store to make a purchase or place an order by phone, which wastes a lot of time for the client and the operator;
complex interaction with clients and suppliers;
the need to restructure the company towards project management;
the need to optimize the company’s business processes towards simplifying processes;
conservative management style and employees;
poor visibility of the company and its products on the Internet;
difficulty finding partners;
ineffective marketing;
lack of company in search results search engines;
high cost of goods.

As part of development new structure enterprise and its transformation, it is necessary to introduce an e-commerce system into the enterprise management system. At the first stage, implement dynamic system positioning the company's products on the Internet by creating an Internet site with a catalog of the company's products.
Internet access must:

Open new options for selling products;
Allow to master new market to sell your goods;
Reduce costs through more efficient customer service and optimization of internal business processes;
Trade your own goods and supply the company with others;
Simplify the exchange of data with customers or, accordingly, suppliers;
Optimize existing business processes - make them more economical, reduce costs;
Improve the company's image;
Implement high transparency of internal and external business processes;
Provide the opportunity to purchase company products without leaving home;
Reduce the cost of goods to the price level of competitors and below.

Identifying goals

Problems in a project arise when it is necessary to achieve a goal. No goal, no problem.
For example, there is a goal - to improve the operation of a service-oriented system, to make it more flexible, to provide internal services with a mechanism for communication or notification of any events, to enable the system to work with different subdatabases.
The task, in essence, is to refactor the system architecture. We are faced with a problem or problems for which solutions must be found.

The process of analyzing a problem and finding a solution:

Description of the problem
Searching of decisions
Evaluation of solutions
Finding the optimal solution
Clarifying the goal based on the solutions found to the problem
Formation of tasks

Main signs of project failure

Budget: the project may not fit within the planned budget (or must be terminated without achieving its goals due to insufficient funding)
Time: the project may take significantly longer than planned to achieve its goals (or must be terminated before achieving its goals due to the end of the target period)
Quality: The project may be completed within the target time and budget, but will not meet quality requirements (and thus will be of less value than expected)

Main reasons for project failures

Most of the time, projects fail because of unclear goals or unclear requirements.

Goals

Any activity (movement, change, development, etc.) is purposeful - aimed at achieving a specific goal.

Examples. A student studies to gain a profession. A worker grinds a workpiece to obtain a part. An athlete trains to win medals and championship titles. Relaxation, entertainment, walks, games, exercise, reading, collecting, etc. are targeted.

Target- it is a subjective image of the desired state of an object.

Causal and driving force Any activity is the presence of a contradiction - a kind of “potential difference” between the existing and desired (target) states of the object. If the ways to resolve a contradiction are not obvious, then the contradiction becomes a problem.

Concept goals is closely related to concepts such as need, desire, problem .

Problem: on the one hand, the set goal gives rise to the problem of achieving it, and on the other hand, to solve the problem, a goal is set as a way to solve it.

In this case, problems can be objective or subjective in nature, and goals can be in the nature of desires or areas of activity.

Need- this is an objective need for something to maintain the functioning and development of an object. The need is determined by the object.

Example. Management requires information, human life requires air, etc. If all this is enough, then there are no problems; they begin when a need is not satisfied.

An unsatisfied need gives rise to a problematic situation - a problem that we will call objective problem.

Objective problem- it is the difference between the required and existing state of the object.

Wish- it's subjective perceived need, correlated with the specific result of its satisfaction.

The subjectivity of desire lies in the fact that, on the one hand, we can only desire what we know and understand (or it seems to us that we understand); on the other hand, for a desire to appear, one must realize that there is a need.

Examples. 1. Available for control objective need in information, and when it is missing (or seems to be missing), there is a desire to implement information system. If a manager does not understand what an information system is, he may want to hire additional employees to collect, transmit and process information.

2. We wish to purchase mobile phone and accept it as a need. But this is not an objective need, but only a desire. We may have a need, for example, for operational communications, and it can be satisfied by other means.

Desire is goal-oriented, but this goal is only goal-desire- without critical thinking its achievability.

Goal-desire- a subjective image of the state of an object (or a specific means) that would satisfy a conscious need.

Subjective problem- the difference between the desired and actual state of an object, the elimination of which is not obvious.

Examples. 1. Let there be a desire to install an information system in the organization. In this case, problems may arise: insufficient financial resources, lack of required premises, lack of appropriate qualified personnel for its implementation and operation, and, finally, the problem of choice - there are several systems on the market, but you need one - which one to choose?

2. We want to purchase a mobile phone, and then problems arise: lack of funds to purchase it, there are no phones with the desired functions, etc.

From subjective problematic situation flows out goal-intention.

Goal-intention- a subjective image of a non-existent but desired state of an object that would solve the problem that has arisen and towards which the activity will be aimed.

Purpose and point of view

IN system analysis the goal occupies a central place, in fact one of initial stages system analysis is the formulation of goals.

However, speaking about the goal, we must not lose sight of the fact that choosing a target is purely subjective. If a goal is set or exists, then there is always subject of goal setting, point of view which is reflected in it. The fact is that the chosen goal is aimed at satisfying a specific life need of a specific subject. At the same time, the choice of goal is always limited by the specific knowledge and understanding of the subject - you cannot desire what you do not know about.

In connection with the above, during research it is always necessary to determine whose point of view on the object is taken as the basis. In system analysis, the goal can be considered from the perspective of the subject and object of research.

Goal from the subject's perspective defines the purpose of analysis, description, design (creation or reorganization) and management:

purpose of analysis object - to identify the presence and location of contradictions (problem situations), the reasons for their occurrence and ways to eliminate them;

purpose of description object - to present the problem situation in a form convenient for analysis;

design goal- resolve a problematic situation with the help of a new object or reorganization of an old one;

management goal- resolve a problematic situation by maintaining the functioning of an object in a given state or transferring it to a new state.

With all this, the subject pursues his goals, satisfies his needs (for example, making a profit, self-realization, etc.). In addition, the subject of analysis itself is often the focus of goal-setting subjects: these are individual performers (each has their own goal), these are managers at various levels.

Target from the object's position determines the purpose of its functioning (existence), which can be laid down during its creation or formed within it.

Examples. 1. If a problem situation in a certain technical device is analyzed, then first it is necessary to understand the purpose of this device.

2. When analyzing an economic or organizational object, it sometimes becomes clear that the actual purpose of its operation differs from the purpose for which it was created.

And here we also have several goal-setting subjects: a team or individuals of the research object, the head of the object, a higher-level manager, etc.

In addition, the customer of the analysis can act as the subject of goal setting. Thus, we can talk about three groups of goals of the participants in the analysis, having different needs, and hence different goals- the analyst has to solve three tasks related to the goal: understanding the customer’s goals; determining the internal goals of the object of analysis; formulation of your analysis goals.

01.01.2016

When we dream and plan our future, then among these dreams we highlight for ourselves what we want to achieve in the near future or in the near future. We begin to think about how we will achieve and what exactly we will achieve. Carrying out our bold ideas, we highlight specific goals, objectives and ways to implement them. But many do not know what is the difference between a goal and a task? The answer to this question is often sought in order to better understand what work needs to be done to achieve any goal.

Indeed, as they say, success is 10% talent and 90% hard work, so it is very important to work correctly to achieve your goal. And any work begins with setting goals and objectives, which are not the same thing, although they are similar in some ways. In order to focus all your efforts on achieving the desired result, you need to clearly understand your goal, to achieve which tasks will be performed.

What is a goal?

Goal - expresses the desire to achieve a certain result, for which we want to consciously begin to act. A goal is needed to build a certain structure of work, the result of which can be compared. The goal simultaneously has a specific, final result and a share of uncertainty in future work. A goal appears as a result of a person's need to have something or achieve something.

How the task relates to the goal?

We choose a desired goal and to achieve it we begin to develop a specific plan, each step of which brings us closer to it. Specific ways to solve this situation depend on what tasks we set on the way to the goal. It is these steps on the path to a dream that are called tasks. There may be many tasks, but they are all subordinate to the goal and are carried out for the benefit of its implementation.

How to set tasks correctly to achieve your desired goal?

First we choose a goal, then we concentrate our attention on it. This is the desired result, for which we are ready to try and move mountains. Then we evaluate our real capabilities, because this is the only way we can work fruitfully and act adequately to achieve the goal. Now you can build a chain of tasks based on the goal and the given direction.

It would seem that we can start implementing it sooner cherished goal! But this is the case when it is better to prepare longer, but then do everything quickly. Therefore, you first need to come up with a plan and define tasks that will be specific steps towards the goal. Each task should bring us closer to the goal, in small but confident steps.

Each task may be different, but it leads to the same result. By checking the plan, we will not go astray and will not do anything unnecessary on the way to the goal. Every time we complete a task, we compare the current state of affairs with what we want to achieve. We feel satisfied with the work done because we see that we are closer to the goal.

Sometimes we encounter obstacles along the way or something turns out not to be what we thought. We can then adjust tasks, which may force changes to other related tasks, although it may not change our plan. It is important to check the relevance of the plan based on completed tasks and relevance desired result. Perhaps in the process you will understand that you want to change the goal, then the plan will have to change, but that’s okay, because life always asks for changes, this gives us a feeling of the uniqueness of our life.

There are goals that are easy and quick to accomplish. It is enough to complete a few tasks, and we will get what we so passionately desire. However, some goals may take a long time to achieve. In order not to get lost on the way to the result, you need to set subgoals for several tasks.

What are the goals??

Goals can be short-term or long-term. For example, losing a couple of kilograms in a week is a short-term goal. But if you want to lose ten kilograms, then the goal will be long-term and will take a long time to achieve. Usually, short term goals have a specific completion time, and long-term goals do not have a clear time frame.

The goal is always determined for the future with a possible change in the time of obtaining the result, but the tasks must be solved within a specific time frame. Of course, completing tasks is faster than achieving a goal or subgoal.

What result do we get from the task and goal??

The task is solved and considered completed; the goal is repeated in each task until it is achieved. It is important to remember that without completing tasks, the goal will not be achieved. At the same time, even the most useful tasks without a goal will lead to nothing. Therefore, be aware of your goals, bringing them closer by fulfilling clear and real problems for myself.

To be the master of your life, you don’t have to be the smartest or capable person in the world. It is important to organize your life so that it has meaning. And the meaning of life is to achieve goals, in the process of which we complete tasks , and this process can also be important for our development. We wish you to always achieve your goals, which complex tasks would not have to perform to implement them!

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When starting a new project, you need to decide what the end result should be. You should consciously choose a subject of activity and direct all your strength and means to achieve what you want. But before you start, you need to clearly formulate the purpose of your work and follow it steadily, setting yourself new tasks at every stage of your activity.

It seems that there is nothing difficult in setting goals and objectives. However, not everyone can clearly explain the difference between goals and objectives, and many generally believe that they are one and the same thing. In fact, this is not true.

Target expresses a desire for a specific end state. Setting goals in activity is an indicator of the awareness of the subject’s actions. The goal helps to build some consistency in the work and analyze the result.

The target has the following characteristics:

specificity of the final result;
is a direct consequence of the subject’s needs;
has some uncertainty;

Task– this is a specification of ways to solve a problem situation. A task always comes from a goal and is a means of its implementation.

Establishment sequence

First, a goal is selected, based on which, taking into account real opportunities, a chain of tasks is built. The goal is to determine the direction of work. In order for the goal to be achieved faster, it is necessary to spend time and formulate tasks, since they represent specific actions towards achieving this goal.

The goal indicates the final result, the solution of each task brings the subject closer to this result.

If achieving a goal requires a lot of time, it is divided into several subgoals, each of which is assigned a set of tasks.

Time costs

Goals can be short-term and long-term. The first usually imply the completion of the process by a certain time. Long-term goals, as a rule, do not have a time frame.

The goal is always determined for the future (regardless of long-term), while tasks require solutions in certain deadlines. The time spent on solving problems is always significantly less than the cost of achieving not only the goal, but even subgoals.

A task has one solution and is considered completed, while the goal is repeated in each new task.

Conclusions website

The goal answers the question “What needs to be done?”, and the task answers “How?”.
A task is a single step towards achieving a goal.