SMART (project management)
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SMART is a mnemonic used in project management at the project objective setting stage. It is a way of evaluating if the objectives that are being set are appropriate for the individual project.
A SMART objective is one that is:
- Specific (or Clear):
- your goal and methods must be clearly defined
- Measurable (or Quantifiable):
- define your objectives numerically
- Achievable
- humanly possible, and you have all the required resources
- Relevant
- avoid the temptation of defining a goal just because it fits nicely to the previous three criteria
- Time framed
- set deadlines
There is no clear consensus about precisely what the 5 keywords mean, or even what they are. You will sometimes see Realistic in place of Relevant, or Appropriate instead of Achievable.
This tool is very commonly used in public services in the UK.