My Communities

We once set a target without doing our research. We did all we could to involve some stakeholders; pumped in resources and made provisions for them to be there but at the end of the day they could not participate. We just failed to stop to consider that no matter what we did, that there are certain situations that would be beyond their control, and could hinder their participation. In the end, it was a lesson learnt the hard way.

One time that I was asked to reach an unrealistic target by holding four workshops with 50 participants over 5 days in 4 different provinces (which are hours apart and need to take flights to get to). There is a lot to factor when holding a workshop, you have to consider your travel distance but also that of the participants. Because it is rural areas you also need to make sure the traditional leaders are present and the proper processes are followed before holding a gathering in the community. Setting a tight deadline makes it impossible to achieve everything you aim to achieve.

I responded by moving 2 of the workshops to the following week. Had to outline the consequences of trying to rush through everything. In reality, some of the workshops had to go onto the following day, at the request of the communities.

@Framunga said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

One time that I was asked to reach an unrealistic target was ______ . I responded by ______ .

One time that I was asked to reach an unrealistic target was when our enterprise development project had to ensure that each of our 300 craft beneficiaries earned an income of R 10 000 per year. This was unrealistic because the market for craft products was volatile, there was lack of commitment from beneficiaries and scarcity of natural raw materials also played a major role. I responded by mobilizing my team to first conduct adequate market research to determine the needs of the customer, the level of commitment from beneficiaries and the availability of natural resources. In the end we only produce those products for which there was a need and for which there was availability of raw material and only work with those beneficiaries who displayed interest and commitment to the project.

@S-Ndlazi said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

@Course_Operations said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

Respond to this prompt after completing the content in Module 3.

Setting ambitious yet achievable targets can be difficult. Have you ever been asked to reach a target that was either too high or too low? How did you respond to the situation? What advice would you offer other learners who may be asked to work towards unrealistic targets?

Sample Post: One time that I was asked to reach an unrealistic target was ______ . I responded by ______ .

Setting of Performance Targets requires careful consideration of a number of factors:

1. Current Baseline information.
2. Resources such a

• capacity
• budget

3. It is ok to adjust target taking to account your resources and any situation in the performance environment.

@S-Ndlazi, Thanks for sharing your ideas.Have you ever said yes to an unrealistic target and realized later that it actually hurt the team’s progress?

@Ilene said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

@Framunga said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

One time that I was asked to reach an unrealistic target was ______ . I responded by ______ .

One time that I was asked to reach an unrealistic target was when our enterprise development project had to ensure that each of our 300 craft beneficiaries earned an income of R 10 000 per year. This was unrealistic because the market for craft products was volatile, there was lack of commitment from beneficiaries and scarcity of natural raw materials also played a major role. I responded by mobilizing my team to first conduct adequate market research to determine the needs of the customer, the level of commitment from beneficiaries and the availability of natural resources. In the end we only produce those products for which there was a need and for which there was availability of raw material and only work with those beneficiaries who displayed interest and commitment to the project.

@Ilene , Great Idea. It's always good to exhaust all possible resources so that you can be in a better position when setting targets.

@NolithaTiba said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

One time that I was asked to reach an unrealistic target by holding four workshops with 50 participants over 5 days in 4 different provinces (which are hours apart and need to take flights to get to). There is a lot to factor when holding a workshop, you have to consider your travel distance but also that of the participants. Because it is rural areas you also need to make sure the traditional leaders are present and the proper processes are followed before holding a gathering in the community. Setting a tight deadline makes it impossible to achieve everything you aim to achieve.

I responded by moving 2 of the workshops to the following week. Had to outline the consequences of trying to rush through everything. In reality, some of the workshops had to go onto the following day, at the request of the communities.

@NolithaTiba,Thanks for sharing your experiences. Stakeholder engagement is always essential when setting targets particularly for rural community projects. Because most times our assumptions can be an obstacle of achieving the set targets.

@ChidinmaEjike said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

There was this time we wanted to do a project for a world memorial day. there was not much time left and our project partner insisted that we do it so we went on. We set targets without doing research; pumped in resources; planned the events and the stakeholders that we wanted to feature more- whom we also spent a lot of time and resources to reach out to - ended up not coming. They could not come because they could not help it. We did not just consider the risks and the possibility that they may not be able to participate. So that was a lesson learnt the hard way.

@ChidinmaEjike , Thanks for sharing your experiences. So what was the reaction of your team and project partner since you did not hit your targets. Please feel free to share with us your experiences

@Alim16 said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

@Ornela said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

Once time i was asked to reach an unrealistic goal was when i was working on a project where average income community members were to open saving account for basic healthcare and nutrition needs but the targets were too high.I responded by giving the managing personnel reasons why that could not be achieved,by collaborating with colleagues and we did a survey on households.By this we realized that most of the community members had other accounts and secured insurance policies therefore they did not need other options.

@Ornela, This is the essence of reliable data because it helps you to set ambitious but realistic targets.

That's it good to conduct formative surveys 8

Imaginary, in a situation I will be asked to distribute 80,000 condoms within one month in a particular community, I will respond to the director by letting him know it unrealistic target. Then, I will ask him for more resources like money. I will use this to provide incentive for the staff and I will tell them about the target. With the incentive this will motivate the staff to work harder. Also, I will recruit youths train them and give them T-shirt written on them ‘STAY PROTECTED, RECEIVE FREE CONDOM’. They will be wearing this and go out for awareness. Awareness will also be made through text messages both in English and the local languages and other media. Town criers will also be employed to create awareness so as to attain the target. Regardless of anything making it unrealistic, I will not panic but adjust both the target and my approach of reaching the target.

That was good of you. You adjusted the approaching on reaching the targets.

@SMBK said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

@Course_Operations said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

espond to this prompt after completing the content in Module 3.
Setting ambitious yet achievable targets can be difficult. Have you ever been asked to reach a target that was either too high or too low? How did you respond to the situation? What advice would you offer other learners who may be asked to work towards unrealistic targets?
Sample Post: One time that I was asked to reach an unrealistic target was ______ . I responded by ______ .

One time that I was asked to reach an unrealistic target was Health Screening of 1,115 orphan in a month. I planned and achieved 90% of the set target. We divided total children into 6 clusters. Each field officer arranged around 150 to 200 children in the cluster. Each officer planned the health screening in six consecutive Sundays.

That was good, you adjusted the plans to reach the target.

@remialag said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

Setting a target may involve a lot of factors and even when target are set, one should know if it is achievable. sometimes unrealistic target is set to motivate people to put in extra effort, also can be as a result of funding etc Impossibility may become possible!

Exactly, it is just a way to know whether you are ready to adjust plans and approach and work harder.

one time I was asked to reach an unrealistic target of selling about 10 Million Naira worth of Machine, It was so discouraging that I almost reigned was the Target not reviewed.,

@Course_Operations said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

Respond to this prompt after completing the content in Module 3.

Setting ambitious yet achievable targets can be difficult. Have you ever been asked to reach a target that was either too high or too low? How did you respond to the situation? What advice would you offer other learners who may be asked to work towards unrealistic targets?

One time that I was asked to reach an unrealistic target was when my Manager asked me to bring in 70 sold Insurance policies by the end of the month. Well this is unrealistic because most Nigerians are yet to see the importance of Insurance and the regime of the government did not help matters either. Well I knew very well that she is aware that the target is unrealistic and just want me and my team to work harder. I responded by telling her that I was going to do my best to meet the target . At the end of the month I had over half of target to hand in.

Please i can't view the second file so as to grade my peer 2

@NolithaTiba said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

One time that I was asked to reach an unrealistic target by holding four workshops with 50 participants over 5 days in 4 different provinces (which are hours apart and need to take flights to get to). There is a lot to factor when holding a workshop, you have to consider your travel distance but also that of the participants. Because it is rural areas you also need to make sure the traditional leaders are present and the proper processes are followed before holding a gathering in the community. Setting a tight deadline makes it impossible to achieve everything you aim to achieve.

I responded by moving 2 of the workshops to the following week. Had to outline the consequences of trying to rush through everything. In reality, some of the workshops had to go onto the following day, at the request of the communities.

You acted like M&E specialist and adjusted the approach to reach your target

It is very very important that a Programe or project has indicators and targets clearly defined. SMART criteria it is an interesting tool to formulate indicators and targets, SMART means Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant and Time-bound.
One time that a project was asked to reach an unrealistic target was changed because both the budget and the time were short. I helped them to analyse and adjust after a field evaluation of project taking into account the SMART criteria mentioned above.
This timely decision is allowing the project to realign its objectives in accordance to reality and needs.

@apostledavid58 said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

We used to file monthly report for certain organization that I once worked with and at the beginning of every month the National level would set targets for each province and being at the local level the set target would seem unrealistic due to either the target exceeding the resources at hand or the target not being applicable to the situation at hand..e.g: the target would request that only high school student be included in program by reason of age while we have student of the same age whilst in primary school.

• list item****

@Course_Operations said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

Respond to this prompt after completing the content in Module 3.

Setting ambitious yet achievable targets can be difficult. Have you ever been asked to reach a target that was either too high or too low? How did you respond to the situation? What advice would you offer other learners who may be asked to work towards unrealistic targets?

One time that I was asked to reach an unrealistic target was while I was working on a Tuberculosis Project. I and my team were asked to carry out a survey in 5 different towns within a state, and in each town, although we were given an EA map to follow, we had to reach at least 50 families all in the space of a week. I responded by making the organizers of the survey understand that it will be difficult to interview 50 different families in 5 different towns because, the number of people in the team are too small, the time we would use to engage one family would take at least 1hour, so in a day, apart from the time spent on the road, convincing people to take part in the survey etc, we might not be able to interview more than 4 families per day for each team member. So we were able to convince them that its either they extend the time frame or they increase the number of people participating in the survey. At the end of it all, they agreed to increase the number of people in each team, and also extend the time by another week
In any case you find yourself being asked to achieve either a low or high target, one needs to access if they are achievable, if they are not, you state the reasons and profer a way forward to make sure the targets are both ambitious and realistic.

I have never worked on unrealistic target before but in a situation like that, i will set on indicators and targets.

Lucky enough, i have never been given an unrealistic target to work with; but in the event such happens, i would be able to discuss with my supervisor or whoever is concerned and explain why the target cannot be achieved after carefully studying the constraints to it. Plus i trust my negotiation skill!

@Alim16 said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

@ChidinmaEjike said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

There was this time we wanted to do a project for a world memorial day. there was not much time left and our project partner insisted that we do it so we went on. We set targets without doing research; pumped in resources; planned the events and the stakeholders that we wanted to feature more- whom we also spent a lot of time and resources to reach out to - ended up not coming. They could not come because they could not help it. We did not just consider the risks and the possibility that they may not be able to participate. So that was a lesson learnt the hard way.

@ChidinmaEjike , Thanks for sharing your experiences. So what was the reaction of your team and project partner since you did not hit your targets. Please feel free to share with us your experiences

It was a pilot study. So before we conduct the project in other locations, we would be sure to consult stakeholders and do our research before setting our targets

one time I was tasked to increase the number of participants to the clinic. It was unrealistic because of a number of factors. Distance was one of them, priority was second, most young men for instance do not generally use clinician services and lastly the clinic was not youth friendly. All of these aspects were out of my control.

@Course_Operations said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

rds unrealistic targ

So, I don't have a real project yet, but I believe it is possible to set somthing near of the real target. But the point is "how?". How can I set the real target? Well! I can use some reference to begin and after I can adjust the target.

One way is to take note of the activities and tasks required to achieve the target and though they might look unrealistic, the possibility of the activities aiding in achieving same target gives a good hint of how realistic or vice versa the target is.

ACHIEVING TARGETS HAVE BEEN A BIG ISSUE FOR ME ...a little too low and i feel a little under-utilised , a little high and i am fatigued to exhaustion.

@Cutie said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

I have never worked on unrealistic traget before but in a situation like that, i will make aure i give a genuine reason why the target is unrealistic.and give a proper solution to change the target to realistic one.

that is okay but it is good to put in mind if unrealistic target occur you should solve as soon as possible to avoid risk.

@OkoTheoCamngca said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

one time I was tasked to increase the number of participants to the clinic. It was unrealistic because of a number of factors. Distance was one of them, priority was second, most young men for instance do not generally use clinician services and lastly the clinic was not youth friendly. All of these aspects were out of my control.

@OkoTheoCamngca said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

one time I was tasked to increase the number of participants to the clinic. It was unrealistic because of a number of factors. Distance was one of them, priority was second, most young men for instance do not generally use clinician services and lastly the clinic was not youth friendly. All of these aspects were out of my control.

@OkoTheoCamngca said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

one time I was tasked to increase the number of participants to the clinic. It was unrealistic because of a number of factors. Distance was one of them, priority was second, most young men for instance do not generally use clinician services and lastly the clinic was not youth friendly. All of these aspects were out of my control.

@OkoTheoCamngca said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

one time I was tasked to increase the number of participants to the clinic. It was unrealistic because of a number of factors. Distance was one of them, priority was second, most young men for instance do not generally use clinician services and lastly the clinic was not youth friendly. All of these aspects were out of my control.

@OkoTheoCamngca said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

one time I was tasked to increase the number of participants to the clinic. It was unrealistic because of a number of factors. Distance was one of them, priority was second, most young men for instance do not generally use clinician services and lastly the clinic was not youth friendly. All of these aspects were out of my control.

@OkoTheoCamngca said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

one time I was tasked to increase the number of participants to the clinic. It was unrealistic because of a number of factors. Distance was one of them, priority was second, most young men for instance do not generally use clinician services and lastly the clinic was not youth friendly. All of these aspects were out of my control.

@OkoTheoCamngca said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

one time I was tasked to increase the number of participants to the clinic. It was unrealistic because of a number of factors. Distance was one of them, priority was second, most young men for instance do not generally use clinician services and lastly the clinic was not youth friendly. All of these aspects were out of my control.

@OkoTheoCamngca said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

one time I was tasked to increase the number of participants to the clinic. It was unrealistic because of a number of factors. Distance was one of them, priority was second, most young men for instance do not generally use clinician services and lastly the clinic was not youth friendly. All of these aspects were out of my control.

@OkoTheoCamngca said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

one time I was tasked to increase the number of participants to the clinic. It was unrealistic because of a number of factors. Distance was one of them, priority was second, most young men for instance do not generally use clinician services and lastly the clinic was not youth friendly. All of these aspects were out of my control.this is a problem -identified so it is good to identify the the course and how to improve it to avoid unrealistic target

@sylrie said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

One way is to take note of the activities and tasks required to achieve the target and though they might look unrealistic, the possibility of the activities aiding in achieving same target gives a good hint of how realistic or vice versa the target is.

i strongly agree.before you start a project it is good take note required to achieve the goal.

@Rose1234 said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

@sylrie said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

One way is to take note of the activities and tasks required to achieve the target and though they might look unrealistic, the possibility of the activities aiding in achieving same target gives a good hint of how realistic or vice versa the target is.

i strongly agree.before you start a project it is good take note required to achieve the goal.

i strongly agree.before you start a project it is good take note required to achieve the goal.

@Abdallah said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

Once you understand the underlying reasons for any unrealistic targets, you have to go back to your list of indicator to see how you can let go of these goals or correct them. Correcting unrealistic targets is easy by find tuning

l agree

we had project which we we supposed to plant bananas for a certain community. Before we stated the project we had to understand unrealistic targets and how we can resolve them .

@nafulasmamai said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

@Course_Operations said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

Respond to this prompt after completing the content in Module 3.

Setting ambitious yet achievable targets can be difficult. Have you ever been asked to reach a target that was either too high or too low? How did you respond to the situation? What advice would you offer other learners who may be asked to work towards unrealistic targets?

Sample Post: One time that I was asked to reach an unrealistic target was ______ . I responded by ______ .

One time I was asked to reach an unrealistic goal was when I was working on a project where low income community members were to open a mobile money saving account for basic healthcare needs but the targets were too high. I responded by collaborating with fellow colleagues and did a short survey on households, this way we realised that most of the community members had other secured other insurance policies therefore they did not need other options.

This is a great method to respond to possibilities of unrealistic targets. You were more proactive in resolving possible pitfalls.

@Bmoraa said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

One time i was asked to reach unrealistic target was when i was moved to a new branch that i was to manage from conception. The branch i was managing prior to the transfer was smashing the target on monthly patient numbers. The management had to give me unrealistic target on total new patients. I responded by telling them to explain to me how they had come up with the target. I and my team sat down and came up with a monthly plan but despite all our efforts we did not hit our target.

Basically, you did not have an alternative to deal with the targets. Besides, you approached the unrealistic goals the right way, asking how the team had come up with the goals.

@emmyleo said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

I believe the best response to an unrealistic target as being part of a team is to give the team leader reasons why target may not be achieved based on existing facts, trends and important factors like time.

Great! I would also want to understand how the goals are arrived at. This way, as the implementer, you would know what to adjust.

@Benjaminfranklyn said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

ACHIEVING TARGETS HAVE BEEN A BIG ISSUE FOR ME ...a little too low and i feel a little under-utilised , a little high and i am fatigued to exhaustion.

Perhaps, depending on the work settings, you could offer improvement on certain areas. This way, your supervisor may just add targets to you because they would realize you can handle more.

@Carsheam said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

Lucky enough, i have never been given an unrealistic target to work with; but in the event such happens, i would be able to discuss with my supervisor or whoever is concerned and explain why the target cannot be achieved after carefully studying the constraints to it. Plus i trust my negotiation skill!

It's all about optimism, and you have it. unrealistic targets stretch ones skills.

@Course_Operations said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

One time that I was asked to reach an unrealistic target was ______ . I responded by _

One time that I was asked to reach an unrealistic target was about feeding rate. I responded by showing up the past values of feeding to demonstrate that this target was too ambitious according to our capacity

i never saw some unrealistic information as it's my first time i'm doing project planning

Once I was asked to complete an unrealistic target of training 4 PHCs in a month. The training was of six days and it would be like 4 batches in a month i.e. 1 batch per week. This was unrealistic because we required time for booking place for training, meeting vendors and finalizing logistics, food, tea, etc. Also planning such tight schedule would lead to compromise in the quality. So we fixed the realisitc target of training of 3 PHCs in a month.

@Toni5459 said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

One time that I was asked to reach an unrealistic target was while working on a survey as a field monitor. Following administrative delegation and planning prio to kick off, i and my team were assigned to minitor atleast 2 survey teams daily, these survey teams could be in the same region or sometimes more than 50km apart on land or across body of water in remote areas. I was to locate and monitor their activities without the help of a local guide and in some places without GPS mapping.

I responded by adjusting my daily take off time into the field to as early as 6.30am in the morning to meet my daily targets. I requested GPS location from the survey teams in the field to help me locate my way.
I also had to make use of indigenous drivers and helmsmen who could navigate the area with less difficulty so as to save time.

Good

What advice would you offer to other learners who may be asked to work towards unrealistic targets?
Sample Post: One time that I was asked to reach an unrealistic target was ______ . I responded by ______ .

The advice I would give to other learners who might be asked to work on unrealistic targets is to demonstrate the likelihood of working on unrealistic targets. When working on realistic targets, it will not be enough to document the project. It will not be possible to prove that the change obtained comes directly from the implementation of the project, and that the initial situation is missing.

Once I was asked to achieve an unrealistic goal, it was when I was working on the 2014 Access to Justice for Vulnerable Groups Project. I responded with a need to do a baseline study. to know the initial situation and to know the indicators and targets achieved by previous projects.

@Rose1234 said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

@nafulasmamai said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

@Course_Operations said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

Respond to this prompt after completing the content in Module 3.

Setting ambitious yet achievable targets can be difficult. Have you ever been asked to reach a target that was either too high or too low? How did you respond to the situation? What advice would you offer other learners who may be asked to work towards unrealistic targets?

Sample Post: One time that I was asked to reach an unrealistic target was ______ . I responded by ______ .

One time I was asked to reach an unrealistic goal was when I was working on a project where low income community members were to open a mobile money saving account for basic healthcare needs but the targets were too high. I responded by collaborating with fellow colleagues and did a short survey on households, this way we realised that most of the community members had other secured other insurance policies therefore they did not need other options.

This is a great method to respond to possibilities of unrealistic targets. You were more proactive in resolving possible pitfalls.

Good way!

@Course_Operations said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

Respond to this prompt after completing the content in Module 3.

Setting ambitious yet achievable targets can be difficult. Have you ever been asked to reach a target that was either too high or too low? How did you respond to the situation? What advice would you offer other learners who may be asked to work towards unrealistic targets?

**Sample Post: One time that I was asked to reach an unrealistic target was when I was working on a project providing cash assistance to gbv survivors.
It was under the assumption that when you mention cash you would get more beneficiaries. The set target for the month was 200 girls between the ages of 10 to 24 receiving cash grants.
We then received 38 girls to assist against a target of 200

@Course_Operations said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

Respond to this prompt after completing the content in Module 3.

Setting ambitious yet achievable targets can be difficult. Have you ever been asked to reach a target that was either too high or too low? How did you respond to the situation? What advice would you offer other learners who may be asked to work towards unrealistic targets?

Sample Post: One time that I was asked to reach an unrealistic target was ______ . I responded by ______ .

Setting targets as equal importance as setting project indicators. Therefore when targets are been set it is very important to have all data to avoid setting unrealistic which can potentially destroy the all lot of project. Unrealistic targets has a very strong way of discouraging team members even donors too because what was planned has failed to be reached.

In my previous employment we set target to disseminate food post-harvest technologies to 1000 farmers in one district. We had not conducted a baseline study to understand the farmers' need.
The output could not reach 60 % of the target. The interest of the farmers was quite different. We then tasked ourselves to first understand the farmers' major interests and needs.

When unrealistic targets are given, the amount of money and time required should also be provided. I ask for them when I am given an impossible project.

The time I was asked to reach an unrealistic goal was 2018, my team and I embarked on a field work. We wanted people to register and make use of our site. At the beginning, we were charging stipend as the administration fee, just to cover our feeding and transportation. We noticed once people discovered there were monetary attraction to the form, they tends no to enroll, we had to discontinue the fee attached to achieve our target.

@Abdallah said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

Once you understand the underlying reasons for any unrealistic targets, you have to go back to your list of indicator to see how you can let go of these goals or correct them. Correcting unrealistic targets is easy by find tuning

This was great

@Natabirwa said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

In my previous employment we set target to disseminate food post-harvest technologies to 1000 farmers in one district. We had not conducted a baseline study to understand the farmers' need.
The output could not reach 60 % of the target. The interest of the farmers was quite different. We then tasked ourselves to first understand the farmers' major interests and needs.

That was great idea

@MahithaKasireddi said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

When unrealistic targets are given, the amount of money and time required should also be provided. I ask for them when I am given an impossible project.

wow this was good

A typical example of what I did when I was giving an unrealistic target to meet was explaining clearly and ensuring the person in-charge why it can be met and also give suggestions and possible solutions on how it can be met.

@PiliraniTembo said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

In

One time i was asked to reach unrealistic target was when we developed a mobile security solution and i was asked to set a target of 3000 sales a month. It was unrealistic because the product was new and i had to meet with other marketers to held disseminate the solution. Through the 3rd party we were able to sell 1000 solution each month.

One time that i was asked to reach an unrealistic target, was when the team leader asked us to hold 5 workshops in 2 days in 5 different locations. I responded by adjusting the approach to how we were going to handle the workshops.

I took a hard look at the processes, worked to optimize the timings, logistics involved and lastly the risks. I therefore informed my team leader that target is unrealistic and unattainable. I proposed that we stick to the original workshop programs of 5 days.

ACHIEVING TARGETS HAVE BEEN A BIG ISSUE FOR ME ...a little too low and i feel a little under-utilised , a little high and i am fatigued to exhaustion.

One time I was asked to reach an unrealistic target in one of my projects. The target was an annual target: 100% of under one children are fully immunized within District X catchment population. There are many factors required to reach this target which were beyond our control. The distant between the towns and clinics, the parents willingness to take their kids for vaccination etc... However, as a team, we were able to adjust the target to a specific limited that was achievable with resources available.

I was told by Coordinator once that each of us target for the year is to resolved at least 20 land disputes cases.
It was one of my biggest challenge, but careful planning and commitment was my secret that enabled me to have
gone beyond the target. It takes courage to sometimes reach your target that may seem impossible.

One time we were asked to reach an unrealistic target was when we are working with community disaster climate change committees so the target we set was too high as we worked only in some communities that the number of people we work with cannot reach the target, so we had to change the target to make it fit with the number of communities we worked in. so the target has changed and we are now working with them and nearly reached the target.

During a voucher plus activity, we were tasked to provide delivery, anc vouchers for 40,000 mothers in a year,but this failed because the population wasn't sensitised about their importance or validity. We struggled only yo hit less than 1500mothers.

One time that I was asked to reach an unrealistic target was by reducing (process) a total pending refund applications submitted by clearing agents from 1,120 refund applications in week 26 to 309 or less in week 30. I responded by explaining to my Manager that a target can be ambitious but realistic, to make the target an achievable one and also avoid re-work (due diligent), overtime & weekend work should be approved for the time frame to be able to put extra input outside the normal working hours for deliverables.

Dear learners, please do not bite more than you can chew. Always say it the way it is, do not try to impress anybody at your own detriment but please be diligent in all your doings because you never know who is watching.
I wish you all the best in your career.

@nafulasmamai said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

@Course_Operations said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

Respond to this prompt after completing the content in Module 3.

Setting ambitious yet achievable targets can be difficult. Have you ever been asked to reach a target that was either too high or too low? How did you respond to the situation? What advice would you offer other learners who may be asked to work towards unrealistic targets?

Sample Post: One time that I was asked to reach an unrealistic target was ______ . I responded by ______ .

One time I was asked to reach an unrealistic goal was when I was working on a project where low income community members were to open a mobile money saving account for basic healthcare needs but the targets were too high. I responded by collaborating with fellow colleagues and did a short survey on households, this way we realised that most of the community members had other secured other insurance policies therefore they did not need other options.

Good, that was a smart thing to do, team work always produce a positive result.

@shamsuddeen said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

@Course_Operations said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

Respond to this prompt after completing the content in Module 3.

Setting ambitious yet achievable targets can be difficult. Have you ever been asked to reach a target that was either too high or too low? How did you respond to the situation? What advice would you offer other learners who may be asked to work towards unrealistic targets?

Sample Post: One time that I was asked to reach an unrealistic target was ______ . I responded by ______ .

One time that I was asked to reach an unrealistic target was when I was requested to teach and cover a non verbal reasoning book 2 to a 6 year old child in three hours which would not be possible for the child. I responded by given the managing trustee reasons why that could not be achieved and suggested 10 hours with 20 minutes break after each hour to enable the child comprehend effectively.
I would advice myself and anybody reading this, that it's inevitable to run away from such kind of unrealistic targets from our managers, supervisors e.t.c but how we respond back to them is very important. We should be calm and clear to the reasons why the targets can not be achieved and give alternatives to achieving such a target. I believe it would go a long way in helping us achieving our targets.

Hmm, true talk! wisdom is more profitable. I have always learnt that you can say NO in a polite way.

@Umar007 said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

One time that i was asked to reached unrealistic target was not long ago regarding maternal mortality. The inputs from the donors were grossly inadequate to realize such outcome and impact within the stipulated time. So we outlined all these challenges and forwarded to them, to make necessary adjustments where need be.

Smart work, dear learners anytime you find ourselves given an unrealistic target to execute, you should not dwell so long after highlighting the challenges before communicating to your Manager/Supervisors for proper corrective measures to be put in place.

While writing proposals for my educational projects we have been provided with unrealistic data of students studying in the schools. As a matter of fact we have conducted survey and interviews of some of the community members whereby we came to see the actual picture or figures in the relevant projects.

@charlesngandu said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

This is an excellent example

I agree with you. Asking them to sit and calculate a target brings more understanding of the difficulty.

I was on a project to improve the livelihoods income of rural farmers as our target it look like a realistic target but I didn't know it wasn't. It was already middle of the project before I found out majority of the farmers don't have basic knowledge of registering money spent on production and money made after sales. So I took it upon myself to train them on this before giving them the initial trainings and support that will enhance their income.

One time that I was asked to reach an unrealistic goal was when we were asked to carry out advocacy visits to governors of 6 states, with the aim to intimate them on prevalent mal nutrition issues in their states and get their by in to make nutrition a priority in the states.
The project target was to meet with at least 5 out of the 6 governors in 6 months of project kick off. by the end of the 6 months, we were yet to meet with any governor owning largely to their tight schedules.
We reported same to our donors during the project mid line review. it was agreed that another way to achieve the same project target was to influence policies via the governors wives offices.
The targets were therefore reviewed and changed to 'advocacy visits to 3 governors wives in the next 6 months of the project'.

@Alim16 said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

@ChidinmaEjike said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

There was this time we wanted to do a project for a world memorial day. there was not much time left and our project partner insisted that we do it so we went on. We set targets without doing research; pumped in resources; planned the events and the stakeholders that we wanted to feature more- whom we also spent a lot of time and resources to reach out to - ended up not coming. They could not come because they could not help it. We did not just consider the risks and the possibility that they may not be able to participate. So that was a lesson learnt the hard way.

@ChidinmaEjike , Thanks for sharing your experiences. So what was the reaction of your team and project partner since you did not hit your targets. Please feel free to share with us your experiences

@ChidinmaEjike ,Good. Thanks for your response.

Unrealistic targets always occurs where there is low level of expectation,time choke,resource materials,weather changes can effect target too.also when there is no availability of money some of the projects will be unrealistic.

We observed that most of the managers in organizations expect their employees to achieve unreachable targets and the employees mostly accept the targets without having clarity and arguing with their bosses only to secure their jobs and also secure a good relationship with the manager. This is not fair to expect from employees to meet the unrealistic results.
During my whole professional life, I never accepted any unrealistic targets. I always preferred to argue with my boss if I feel the set targets are unreachable and convinced him to exclude such targets.

@Natabirwa said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

In my previous employment we set target to disseminate food post-harvest technologies to 1000 farmers in one district. We had not conducted a baseline study to understand the farmers' need.
The output could not reach 60 % of the target. The interest of the farmers was quite different. We then tasked ourselves to first understand the farmers' major interests and needs.

Conducting baseline is mandatory to start any new project.

@PiliraniTembo said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

@Bmoraa said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

One time i was asked to reach unrealistic target was when i was moved to a new branch that i was to manage from conception. The branch i was managing prior to the transfer was smashing the target on monthly patient numbers. The management had to give me unrealistic target on total new patients. I responded by telling them to explain to me how they had come up with the target. I and my team sat down and came up with a monthly plan but despite all our efforts we did not hit our target.

It is always a good a idea to re plan and have realistic goals and targets as it helps to build confidence with our donors.

@Bmoraa >thanks for the good advice ... it will be workable when we handle such situation like that.

@AyoubAnsari said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

We observed that most of the managers in organizations expect their employees to achieve unreachable targets and the employees mostly accept the targets without having clarity and arguing with their bosses only to secure their jobs and also secure a good relationship with the manager. This is not fair to expect from employees to meet the unrealistic results.
During my whole professional life, I never accepted any unrealistic targets. I always preferred to argue with my boss if I feel the set targets are unreachable and convinced him to exclude such targets.

that's awesome, facing a realistic game is good for the best results... i do agree with you.... bosses should always be realistic when it comes to maintaining good results

So far i have not been made to reach unrealistic targets

I don't understand how targets can be unrealistic

Respond to this prompt after completing the content in Module 3.

Setting ambitious yet achievable targets can be difficult. Have you ever been asked to reach a target that was either too high or too low? How did you respond to the situation? What advice would you offer other learners who may be asked to work towards unrealistic targets?

In my present project of using agriculture to support education, we had high target . Our target was to plant 4 bags of ginger and two acres of maize but we were unable to meet our target due to financial challenge and lack of full corporation amongst the beneficiaries in the community.

Yes, I was at a time given an unrealistic target to multi task during a programme planning. All I did was simple. I didn't handle most job responsibilities except the sensitive jobs, but gave them to abled group members and supervised them handle it. It came out great.
My advice for learner is to believe, be optimistic and start out little then grow to greatness.

Thanks.

@Course_Operations said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

Sample Post: The first step to managing the situation is not to panic. You’ve identified an issue you need to resolve; now, there are several steps you can take to improve it.Then i speak up with a sound of effort and explanation to team members so that we can adjust our approaches and assess our working practices.

@PiliraniTembo said in Module 3 Discussion: Unrealistic Targets:

In our project we had goals which were not realistic based on the reality of the country, and as the organization didnt want to comittee itself to a goal that could not be reached, we then adjusted the goals and communicate with the donor.

I think an important thing is to create room to adjust some targets that are unrealistic.

In one of our projects, we set an unrealistic target of ensuring majority start business from the skills trained yet not all were interested in the skills.

The time I was given unrealistic target and I knew that I would not achieve the target, I responded in the following way:

We cannot achieve this target because it is unrealistic and the reasons are as follows: a) due to the short period in which we need to carry this task, we wont have the capacity considering the number of staff in the department and considering the processes that are followed in procurement. We can only achieve this target if we do the following:
a)seek approval on certain procurement to shorten the processes
b) fast truck the processes in order to achieve the targets
c) Every person involved in procurement decision making should be ready to be called upon at anytime when a meeting is called upon
d) to engage a few interns to assist the procurement department in order to achieve that target
My suggestions where approved and we worked accordingly and we achieved the target.

I was once a victim of such were the target set for a project was unrealistic we had to go back to the community and carried out a need assessment which actually help out and we wrote back to the donor and it was change. is not all about doing what the donor want let also consider the outcome of the whole process.