Choose your first performance review goals by picking two or three that line up with what your manager is measured on, then write each one so it is specific, has a number attached, and fits inside the review period. This guide shows how to set that first set of goals at work, agree them with your manager, and prove your wins.
Start with what your manager is measured on
Your goals only matter if they move something the team already cares about. Before you write anything, find out how your manager is judged: the numbers their boss asks about, the deadlines that cause stress, the reports that go up the chain. Your first-year goals should quietly help those numbers. A goal that looks impressive but sits outside the team's priorities gets politely ignored at review time.
If you are unsure what good looks like for your role, the SkillsFuture Skills Framework lists the core skills and tasks expected at each job level across most Singapore sectors. Read the entry for your role, note the skills one rung above where you sit now, and turn one or two of them into a goal. Workforce Singapore's career guidance pages cover the same ground if your job is not listed.
New to the company as well? Your first review goals sit on top of the basics you should already be nailing. If you are still in early days, our guide on how to succeed in your first 90 days at a new job covers the groundwork before goal-setting even starts.
Turn each goal into a SMART goal
SMART means specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound. For a junior, the two that trip people up are measurable and time-bound. "Get better at Excel" is not a goal. "Build the monthly sales dashboard in Excel without help by the end of Q2" is one. You can prove it, and there is a date.
Keep the list short. Two or three real goals beat six half-goals you forget by month two. Mix them: one skill goal, something you learn; one delivery goal, something you ship; and one behaviour goal, how you work with the team. That spread gives your manager an easy story to tell when they argue for your rating.
- Specific: name the exact output, tool, or task.
- Measurable: attach a number, a yes or no, or a clear done state.
- Achievable: hard enough to stretch, not so hard you miss it.
- Relevant: tied to the team target you found earlier.
- Time-bound: a date inside the review window.
A goal-examples table for your first year
Here are sample goals you can adapt. Swap the tool and the number for your own role. Notice how each one is written so a stranger could tell whether you hit it.
| Vague version | SMART version | How it is measured |
|---|---|---|
| Get better at reporting | Produce the weekly team report on my own by the end of month 3 | Manager stops editing it before it goes out |
| Learn the product | Pass the internal product quiz and answer client emails without escalating by Q2 | Quiz score plus count of solo replies |
| Be more proactive | Flag at least one process fix each month in the team stand-up | Number of ideas logged, one per month |
| Improve my Excel | Automate the month-end reconciliation with formulas, cutting it from 3 hours to 1 | Time taken, tracked before and after |
| Work better with others | Run one handover session for the next intern by year end | Session done plus feedback from the intern |
Agree the goals with your manager before you submit
Write your draft goals, then book fifteen minutes with your manager to talk them through. Ask two questions: are these the right things for me to focus on, and what does hitting each one look like to you? You often learn that the number in your head is too low, or that a goal you skipped is the one they most want done. Getting this agreement in writing, even a short email, protects you later. When the review comes, nobody can move the goalposts.
This is also the moment to ask how ratings work at your company. Some firms grade on a curve, some on hitting agreed goals, some on both. Public sector officers can read how appraisal is framed on the Public Service Division site; private firms usually explain their cycle in the staff handbook. Knowing the rules changes which goals are worth setting.
Document your wins as you go
The biggest mistake juniors make is remembering nothing at review time. Start a running note on day one, a simple doc or a pinned chat to yourself. Every time you finish something, ship a report, fix a bug, get a thank-you email, drop one line in with the date. By review season you have a month-by-month record instead of a panicked scroll through old emails.
Save the proof next to each line: the email, the dashboard link, the before-and-after number. When you write your self-appraisal, you paste from this note and it takes an hour, not a weekend. The same habit makes the case for your next step much easier. Our guide on how to get promoted in your first job in Singapore shows how this evidence feeds a promotion argument.
Prep for the actual review conversation
A week before the review, do three things. Re-read your agreed goals and mark each one hit, partly hit, or missed, with the evidence beside it. Draft two or three lines on what you want next: a project, a skill, more responsibility. Write down any support you need to hit next year's goals, like training or access to a tool. Going in with this makes you look organised and gives your manager material to push your case upward.
Expect feedback you did not ask for, and take it well. How you react to criticism in the room often matters more to your rating than any single goal. If feedback makes you defensive, read our guide on how to give and receive feedback at work before you sit down. You can also browse open roles and salary context on MyCareersFuture so your what-next ask is grounded in what the market pays.
Frequently asked questions
How many performance review goals should I set in my first year?
Two or three is plenty for a junior. A short list you actually finish beats a long one you abandon halfway. Each goal should be something you can point to and say done with proof.
What if my manager never set goals with me?
Set them yourself and send a short email proposing them. Ask for fifteen minutes to confirm they are the right focus. Managers rarely say no to someone who turns up with a clear plan, and you now have a written record either way.
Should my goals be about output or about learning?
Both. Set at least one delivery goal you can ship and one skill goal you can learn, plus a behaviour goal if it fits. That mix shows you can do the job now and grow into the next one.
Can I change my goals halfway through the review period?
Yes, if the business changes and your manager agrees. Send a quick note explaining why and get a reply. Do not quietly drop a goal, because an unexplained miss looks worse than an agreed swap.
Setting goals well is a skill you can learn early, and it pays off at every review after. FINternship runs a free six-week mentor-led apprenticeship in Singapore that covers this and the rest of the early-career basics with someone who has done it. If you want a head start, apply to join a cohort.