The major goal of Joseph Stalin's five-year plan was to rapidly industrialize the Soviet Union and transform it into a modern industrial power. The five-year plans were a series of economic development plans implemented in the Soviet Union during the 1930s and 1940s. The plans aimed to rapidly develop heavy industries, such as steel, coal, and machinery, at the expense of consumer goods industries. The five-year plans also involved a policy of collectivization of agriculture, which led to the forced merging of small peasant farms into large collective farms. The five-year plans had a significant impact on the development of the Soviet Union and laid the foundation for its future economic growth.