What Is a Growth Target?

Why Growth Targets Are Important

Growth targets give the organisation a clear direction. They show which development is most important in the coming years and make it easier to rally people around a shared ambition. Without growth targets, the strategy risks spreading across too many areas, which slows down progress and dilutes focus.

A good growth target answers three questions:
Where do we need to strengthen ourselves? Where do we want to grow? And what is most important right now?
It creates a frame for the strategic goals that then turn the ambition into concrete results in each perspective. When the growth target is clear, it also becomes easier to determine which initiatives belong in the strategy and which are less important for the development ahead.

How Growth Targets Differ From Strategic Goals

The growth target describes the organisation’s overall level of ambition. It explains the development that matters most over a period of a few years, without specifying exact outcomes. It is a direction, not a result.

The strategic goals make the ambition concrete. They describe the results the organisation must have achieved in each strategic perspective. Together, they create the strategic goal picture that shows what needs to be true for the growth target to be considered achieved.

The difference is clear:
The growth target shows where the organisation is going.
The strategic goals show what must become reality along the way.

How Growth Targets Connect to Vision and Mission

The vision describes what happens for customers when the organisation succeeds in the market. It paints the picture of the future customer value the organisation wants to create and should inspire, attract, or challenge the market to want to be part of that development.

The mission explains how the organisation creates value today. It clarifies which customers you serve, which problem you solve, and how the offering creates benefit.

The growth target connects these two perspectives.
It translates the vision’s future customer value and the mission’s current direction into a clear level of ambition for the coming years. The growth target shows which development is most important to move closer to the vision while strengthening the organisation’s ability to deliver on its mission.

The vision describes the customer’s future experience.
The mission describes how you create value today.
The growth target describes the development needed to build the bridge between the two.

How to Formulate Growth Targets

A growth target should be easy to understand and simple to carry with you. It describes which development is most important in the coming years, without getting stuck in numbers or details. A few principles help.

1. Describe a clear future position

The growth target should show where the organisation wants to be within a few years.
It may relate to markets, offerings, customer relationships, or capabilities.

Examples
We are a natural partner for our most important customers.
We have established ourselves in new markets where our offering creates strong value.

2. Avoid numbers in the formulation

The growth target does not need figures, percentages, or levels.
The ambition is made concrete through the strategic goals that follow.
This makes the language simpler and the direction clearer.

3. Keep the wording short and concrete

A growth target should be easy to say out loud.
Short sentences, simple words, and a clear picture of what should have happened are more important than sophisticated phrasing.

4. Connect the growth target to vision and mission

The growth target should be a step toward the vision while strengthening the mission.
When someone reads the wording, it should be clear how customer value increases and how the organisation develops.

5. Make sure it can be broken down into strategic goals

A good growth target always leads naturally into strategic goals in the different perspectives.
If the target cannot be translated into concrete results in the organisation, it needs to be rewritten.

When these principles are used, the growth target becomes a clear compass for the coming years. It shows which development is most important, without being confused with either strategic goals or lists of activities.

How Growth Targets Are Followed Up

Growth targets are not followed up with their own metrics. They are not designed as measurable result goals but describe the ambition the organisation wants to reach over several years. For that reason, the follow-up is indirect, through the strategic goals.

1. The growth target is an ambition level

It describes the development the organisation wants to see, but not exactly what must have happened or at what level.
It is a direction, not a result with a calculated measurement.

Example
We are a natural partner for our most important customers.

The wording shows the desired position, but not how many customers, what share, or what level in a specific measure.

2. Strategic goals carry the metrics

The strategic goals make the ambition concrete. This is where metrics and measurements appear.

Each strategic goal has

• a responsible person

• at least one metric

• a person who reports progress regularly

• conditions that make the goal achievable

These metrics show how things are progressing. When the strategic goals move in the desired direction, it is a clear sign that the growth target is becoming reality.

3. Follow-up happens at the level of the strategic goal picture

The growth target does not get its own line in the report.
Instead, it is evaluated through the combined development of the strategic goals.

During for example strategy meetings, the organisation looks at

• how the strategic goals are developing

• whether the overall picture matches the ambition the growth target describes

• whether anything needs to be adjusted in direction or pace

The question is not only whether each goal moves, but whether the whole picture points toward the development the growth target describes.

4. Why a growth target should not have its own metrics

If you attach a metric directly to the growth target, it becomes a strategic goal.
The levels become mixed. The model works better when

• the growth target describes direction and ambition

• strategic goals describe concrete results

• metrics sit on the strategic goals, not on the growth target
  
  

Examples of Growth Targets

Growth targets describe the development that is most important in the coming years. They are broad and formulated without metrics. Here are examples from different areas.

Market

We are the natural choice for customers who benefit most from our offering.
We are established in markets where our competence creates clear customer value.

Sales

We have a stable and predictable flow of business from our prioritised segments.
We have built a sales organisation that creates long term customer relationships.

Operations

We run operations that deliver with high quality and without unnecessary interruptions.
We have developed ways of working that create clarity, efficiency, and stability.

People

We are a workplace where employees choose to stay and contribute to development.
We have leadership that creates energy, sustainability, and accountability.

Finance

We create stable financial conditions that make long term development possible.
We have built a cost structure that enables investment and growth.

All these examples show the position or development the organisation wants to reach, without specifying levels. They create the direction that the strategic goals then make concrete.

Common Mistakes

Growth targets are simple in form but can easily become unclear if strategic levels are mixed. Here are common mistakes and how to avoid them.

The growth target becomes too detailed
A growth target should not include numbers or levels. It should describe direction and ambition. When numbers sneak in, the wording has turned into a strategic goal.

The growth target looks like an internal project
Wording about internal routines, systems, or workflows belongs among conditions, not growth targets. A growth target should describe development in the market or in the business at a higher level.

The growth target cannot be translated into strategic goals
If you cannot derive clear strategic goals from the growth target, the target is too vague. A good growth target naturally leads forward.

The growth target becomes too broad
“We will grow on all fronts” is not a direction. A growth target must be focused and show which development matters most.

The growth target is confused with the vision
The vision describes future customer value. The growth target describes the organisation’s development in the coming years. Mixing the two weakens the model.

The growth target loses connection to the mission
The growth target should strengthen the mission, not replace it. If it cannot be linked to how you create value today, it needs to be adjusted.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the purpose of a growth target
To describe the development the organisation needs in the coming years to move from the current state toward the vision while strengthening the mission. It gives direction before the concrete strategic goals are formulated.

How long does a growth target apply
Most growth targets span two to three years, long enough to create direction but short enough to remain relevant despite market changes.

How many growth targets do you need
Most organisations manage best with one growth target. Sometimes two are needed, but more than that splits focus and weakens the strategic goal picture.

Is a growth target measurable
Not directly. It is an ambition level. Measurability comes through the strategic goals that make the ambition concrete and that have clear metrics.

What makes a good growth target
It links to the vision and mission, can be broken down into strategic goals, is easy to understand, and describes a development that is meaningful for the organisation’s future.

Can a growth target be changed
Yes, but not often. It should be stable over time, but can be adjusted if market conditions shift or if the organisation reaches its ambition sooner than expected.

Growth targets describe the ambition an organisation aims to reach in the coming years. They provide direction between the vision and the strategic goals. The vision describes the future value for customers when the organisation succeeds. The mission describes how value is created today. The growth target shows the development needed to take the next step.

Growth targets are broad and formulated without metrics. They become concrete through the strategic goals that describe the results the organisation must achieve in the different perspectives. When the strategic goals develop in the right direction, it shows that the growth target is being realised.

With a clear growth target, it becomes easier to maintain focus, make the right priorities, and create a shared understanding of which development matters most. It gives the organisation a direction that holds for several years and makes the strategy both understandable and actionable.

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