SMART goals

SMART goal software where the measure moves with the work.

Vindaris connects every specific, measurable, time-bound goal to the tasks and projects delivering it, so you see a miss coming weeks before the deadline arrives.

Free up to 5 users Two integrations free No credit card required
Work Graph Goal at risk
Cut churn to 3% by 31 December is at risk - the measure has not moved in 3 weeks.
Work Graph Task overdue
Ship the win-back email sequence is 11 days past its due date.
Built by the strategy execution experts trusted by:
Quick answer

What makes a goal SMART?

SMART goals are Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant and Time-bound. The criteria are forty years old and still the clearest test in goal setting. Two of the five letters are where goals fail in practice, and both fail for the same reason: they are judged once at goal-setting time and never checked again.

Which part of SMART do teams get wrong?

Measurable, usually. A goal with a number attached is not automatically measurable; it is measurable when there is a data source that produces the number without someone deciding what it should be. If a goal's current value comes from a person's estimate, the M is decorative.

How do you know if a goal is Achievable?

By looking at the capacity behind it rather than at the ambition in it. Achievable is a statement about resources, and it can only be assessed if you can see what else the same people are committed to. That is why it is the letter most often assumed rather than tested.

Are SMART goals better than OKRs?

They answer different questions. SMART is a quality test you apply to a goal you have already chosen; OKRs are a structure for choosing and aligning goals across teams. Many teams write OKRs and then run the SMART test over each key result, which is a reasonable use of both.

How should SMART goals be tracked?

From the work, if you want the M to survive the quarter. When a goal connects to the tasks and projects moving it, Measurable becomes a count rather than a claim, and Time-bound gains an early warning because pace against the deadline is visible weeks before the deadline.

Vindaris Alignment Canvas showing SMART goals connected to the KPIs, projects and tasks moving them, with at-risk work flagged Click thru live demo Pre-built workspace. No signup.

Every SMART goal on one board with its measure attached and the projects and tasks actually moving it underneath. Click through the live workspace, no signup.

Use cases

Check a goal in thirty seconds.

A SMART goal passes its test once, on the day it is written. These are the five moments afterwards when one of the letters quietly stops being true.

Alignment Canvas showing SMART goals with owner, measure and deadline as structured fields
Alignment CanvasOwner, measure and date are structural fields, not free text.
Data Studio showing a SMART goal measure derived from connected work
Data StudioQuery every goal, task and measure in one view.
My Priorities showing an owner over-committed across several SMART goals
My PrioritiesCapacity shown next to commitment, so the trade-off is explicit.
Email alert warning that a SMART goal cannot be reached in the time remaining
Email alertFires on pace, weeks before it would fire on the date.
Heatmap showing SMART goals shaded by delivered progress at review time
HeatmapClick any tile to drill into the work behind it.
The platform

The two letters everyone assumes, made checkable.

Specific, Relevant and Time-bound are decided once when the goal is written. Measurable and Achievable are claims about the world that keep being true or stop being true all quarter, and almost nothing checks them after the goal-setting meeting.

01 / Measurable

A number with a source behind it

A goal with a figure attached is not measurable; it is measurable when something produces the figure without a person deciding what it should be. Vindaris reads it from the connected work, so the M stops depending on who filled the cell.

02 / Achievable

Capacity you can actually see

Achievable is a statement about resources and it can only be assessed against everything else the same people already committed to. Vindaris tracks bandwidth next to the goal, so over-commitment shows up while there is still time to drop something.

03 / Time-bound

Pace against the deadline, not just the deadline

A date on its own tells you nothing until it arrives. Measuring pace against the remaining time turns Time-bound into an early warning rather than a post-mortem.

Step 01 | Alignment Canvas

Write goals that pass the test

Draft each goal with its measure, its owner, its deadline and the work expected to deliver it on one canvas. A goal missing any of those is visible as an incomplete card rather than as a line that reads fine.

  • Owner, measure and date are structural, not free text.
  • One goal can sit under two parents without being written twice.
Alignment Canvas: write goals that pass the test
Step 02 | Data Studio

Prove the M with a query, not a claim

Point each measure at the connected work that produces it and query the result like a table. What was a number someone maintained becomes a count you can filter, sort and schedule as a report.

  • Filter every goal, task and measure in one view.
  • Save the view and have it delivered before the check-in.
Data Studio: prove the m with a query, not a claim
Step 03 | My Priorities

Test Achievable against real load

Every person sees the goals they own next to everything else assigned to them, ranked by what it affects upstream. An owner carrying four achievable goals and no bandwidth is visible on the list rather than in the retrospective.

  • Ranked by upstream impact, across every connected tool.
  • Bandwidth shown next to commitment, so the trade-off is explicit.
My Priorities: test achievable against real load
Step 04 | Work Graph

Get warned while the deadline can still move

The Work Graph measures pace against the time remaining and flags a goal that cannot be reached at its current rate, naming the work responsible. That is the warning a date alone never gives you.

  • Twelve alert types, each naming the blocking work.
  • Fires on pace, not on the deadline passing.
Work Graph: get warned while the deadline can still move
Try step 01

Say the goal, then let it be checked.

Write the goal as you would tell a colleague. Tag the measure, the owner and the work with @, and anything the SMART test needs and the sentence did not supply is left visibly blank rather than assumed.

Strategy Narrative
Write your @strategy, @goals, @kpis, @projects and @tasks and automatically map them on the Alignment Canvas in one click. Type @ to mention
Mention existing
expand into the European enterprise market
grow ARR to $10M
land 25 enterprise logos
build a repeatable outbound motion
launch the partner & referral program
hire two enterprise account executives
Create new
New Goal…
New KPI…
New Project…
New Task…
Start from an example:
Risk alerts

Four of the twelve alerts, aimed at the letters that fail.

Specific and Relevant are settled when the goal is written. Measurable, Achievable and Time-bound keep being true or stop being true all quarter, and these are the alerts that notice.

Work Graph alert naming the single task blocking a SMART goal
Work GraphRanked by what it blocks, so the alert is one task rather than forty.
Data Studio view listing goals whose measures have no connected data source
Data StudioFinds goals that are measurable on paper and not in practice.
Email alert showing a SMART goal that cannot be reached in the time remaining
Email alertFires on pace, which is weeks earlier than firing on the date.
Heatmap showing one owner carrying four goals beyond their available capacity
HeatmapAchievable is a claim about capacity, so it is checked against capacity.

Twelve deterministic and AI-driven alerts watching for slipping work, broken routines and misaligned focus.

Built for the way you work

Your framework, your language, your data in Europe.

Vindaris takes SMART seriously on the two letters tools usually skip: Measurable, which needs a real data source, and Achievable, which needs visible capacity.

Runs SMART goals alongside everything else

Vindaris ships without a prescribed methodology, so a SMART goal is a goal with a measure and a date attached. Teams that outgrow the format can move to OKRs or Rocks in the same workspace without a migration or a second tool.

OKRs EOS OGSM KPIs SMART Goals Hoshin Kanri
Pricing

Free forever, including two integrations.

Free covers goals, measures, owners and the connected work that proves them for up to 5 people. Pay when you add people, integrations or AI summaries.

Free
€0/forever

Best for individual contributors, small teams or startups. No credit card required.

  • All views: Canvas, My Priorities, Heatmap, Data Studio and Task Board
  • Two integrations of your choice
  • Up to four additional members
  • Five ad-hoc AI risk summaries per month
Sign up for free
Pro
€20/user/mo

Best for multiple teams, exec teams, Chiefs of Staff or full-org deployments.

  • Everything in Connect
  • Unlimited users in one organization
  • Direct human support, 24h response
  • Human-led onboarding
Start with Pro

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Free tooling

Check a goal in thirty seconds.

Real Excel and PowerPoint files and browser tools that run without an account. Start with the grader if you suspect your goals are not as measurable as they look.

Frequently asked questions

Common questions, answered

What is SMART goal software?

SMART goal software helps teams define goals that are Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound, then track progress against them. Vindaris adds traceability by connecting each SMART goal to the tasks and projects that actually move it forward.

How do SMART goals connect to strategy?

In Vindaris, SMART goals can nest under higher-level objectives, OKRs, or other strategic frameworks. This creates a clear line of sight from company strategy to individual goals to the daily work delivering them.

Can Vindaris track SMART goals and OKRs together?

Yes. Vindaris supports SMART goals, OKRs, KPIs, OGSM, Balanced Scorecard, and Hoshin Kanri in one platform. Teams can use whichever framework fits their planning style while leadership keeps a unified view.

How does Vindaris make SMART goals traceable?

Each SMART goal links to tasks in Jira, Microsoft Planner, Google Tasks, or HubSpot. Progress updates automatically from task completion, so you always know whether a goal is on track before the deadline arrives.

Get started

Know which goals will miss their deadline while you can still act.

Connect your first tool in 90 seconds. Free forever for SMART goal management. Comparing options? See our broader goal management software or goal tracking software.

Start tracking SMART goals free

No credit card | No migration | No minimum contract