Setting Targets

With the suite of environmental measures established, based on firm-data collection methods and aligned to the priorities of the business and its stakeholders, target setting is possible.


The process by which targets and objectives are set should reflect the improvement that the organisation and its stakeholders require over the plan and target period, and the relative significance of issues such as:
1. current regulatory and legislative requirements, and the extent to which the business is performing against these;
2. the scope for setting the measures that allow the business to comply with anticipated or announced future legislation, or to get it on the correct path to do so;
3. the role that the environmental performance measure can play in delivering the organization's strategic objectives;
4. the effect that measures can have on improving costs and efficiency, especially relative to the cost of implementation; and
5. the stakeholders' view of which environmental measures are most critical and/or require most in terms of improved performance, potentially as an enabler for the organization to achieve a brand-enhancing, stand-out leadership position in a particular environmental dimension.



Once the choice of target is made, the measurement of progress against them, and the review of the targets and measures themselves, should be an ongoing process, conducted at least annually for target review, and often more frequently for measurement.