What is meant by success criteria

Success criteria are the specific factors or standards used to determine whether a task or project has been completed successfully. They are clear, measurable goals that help to track progress and assess outcomes. By setting success criteria, you know exactly what is expected and how to achieve it.

For example, if you're asked to complete a report, success criteria might include:

• The report must be 1,000 words long.
• The report should include at least three recommendations.
• The report must be submitted by 5 pm on Friday.

For more complicated problems, success criteria for a project might include:

• We minimise the environmental impact of the project as far as possible.
• The solution costs less than X money to implement. 
• The solution is suitable for a full age range of 6-16 years old. 

Success criteria help to keep the task focused and give you a clear target to aim for.

Why and when success criteria are useful 

Choosing the right success criteria means thinking about what is most important for solving a complex problem. Success criteria should be:

• Relevant: The criteria should directly relate to the task and its goals. For example, if you're writing an essay, the success criteria should focus on things like structure, research quality, and clarity, rather than irrelevant details like colour of the font.
• Clear and measurable: Make sure the success criteria are specific enough that you can tell when they’ve been met. Instead of saying "do your best," set a concrete goal like "complete the task with 90% accuracy."
• Achievable: Set criteria that are realistic and possible within the time and resources available. If a project requires extensive research, don't set criteria that expect a flawless final product within a day.
• Time-bound: Setting a deadline or timeframe can help keep focus and ensure progress.

Defining the success criteria as carefully and thoroughly as possible will ensure that they are as useful as possible when choosing between options to solve problems.

How to use success criteria to choose between options 

Once you have success criteria in place, they can help guide your decision-making when there are multiple options to choose from. Here’s how:

• Compare options: Look at each option and assess how well it meets your success criteria. For example, if one solution offers a quicker completion time but doesn’t meet your quality standards, you may need to reconsider it.
• Weigh the importance: Not all success criteria are equally important. For example, in a writing task, accuracy and clarity might be more important than completing it on time if there’s a little flexibility with the deadline. Think about which criteria matter most and prioritise them.
• Avoid overcomplicating: Sometimes, it’s tempting to look at too many criteria or focus too much on minor details. Stick to the most important criteria and make sure your chosen option fits within them.

For example, if you have several possible ways to complete a project and one option provides the best outcome with the least cost, but takes a little longer, and another option offers faster results with a lower quality, the success criteria will help you decide which trade-offs are best based on what is most important for your task.

Using success criteria makes the decision process clearer and helps you choose the best option for solving the problem.