5. Goal setting must include a target time by which they must be achieved. Goals must move from abstract concepts into something more tangible. Deadlines for goal achievement can specify either a target number, such as 92 percent patient satisfaction by year end, or a rate, such as 5 percent market share growth each year. If a particular rate of improvement is specified, setting deadlines is similar to the concept of improving “cycle time” in quality improvement initiatives.

The aim of improving cycle time is to accomplish the same number of tasks or more in a shorter period. If overall patient satisfaction was improved by five percentage points in a year, an improvement goal might be to reach that milestone the following year in six to nine months.