Workplace expectations can undoubtedly influence employees to deliver better performances. But simply expecting the best won’t get results. Instead, on-the-job expectations should be explicitly defined as achievable and measurable goals.

Developing key performance indicators (KPIs) at the employee level is one of the best ways to guide, measure, and motivate individual performances. KPIs focus employee efforts on the tasks and processes that the organization regards as most critical to its success.

KPIs also provide useful information that can be acted upon by both employees and management. Such metrics keep the organization aware of ongoing performance issues so workers can make better, timelier decisions to improve operational effectiveness.

But beware: While the right KPIs can drive improvements, misguided goals or inadequate management can create turmoil. Here are five crucial requirements for creating KPIs that work.

1. Make KPIs specific and easy to understand. Before employees can reach for achievement, they must understand what’s being measured and why. More importantly, they should be able to recognize the actions and behavior choices that can lead to the realization of KPIs. Goals that are as specific as possible also further their understanding. “Striving for great customer service” is too ambiguous; “conducting 50 onsite customer visits every four months” is a better objective.
   
   
   
2. Involve employees in KPI development. Setting expectations for employees is an empty practice if it’s done without their input and buy-in. People are more likely to embrace performance expectations when given the opportunity to collaborate on them. By helping to establish goals, employees maintain a stronger commitment to achieving them, have a clearer understanding of what’s expected, and intuitively recognize when objectives aren’t being met, which further encourages them to take immediate corrective actions. Once KPIs are defined, be sure they are agreed to by management and employees.
   
   
   
3. Keep KPIs relevant, measurable, and strategically aligned. Choosing the right KPIs means aligning worker behaviors and priorities with the organization’s direction. Just because work quantity or output can be measured doesn’t mean it should be. Measuring product quality or response time may be more in line with a company’s business strategy. Additionally, reviewing KPIs at least quarterly lets companies revise or discard what’s no longer relevant to their changing strategies.
   
   
   
4. Ensure that KPIs are realistic and achievable. Realistically high expectations can create outstanding performance achievement, while unrealistic KPIs will create stress, disillusionment, and disappointing performance. Goals should always be challenging but never out of reach. Likewise, having too many KPIs will diminish performance. Keep the objectives list manageable and you’ll keep employees focused. 
   
   
   
5. Build in supporting elements. To be truly effective, KPIs should be reinforced with active, two-way communication and performance incentives. Organizations can strengthen KPI impact by incorporating key practices like training, feedback, reward, and recognition.