A goal setting framework for thinking big
Organizations striving for business agility and talent alignment are increasingly adopting a different approach for goal setting, created in Silicon Valley.
Made famous by John Doerr, it has been successfully adopted by great companies such as Google, Spotify, LinkedIn and Reliance.
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What does it really mean?
In a nutshell OKRs are a simple but powerful goal-setting methodology. They describe a limited set of ambitious objectives and key results, in order to set hyper-focus for the company and individual teams for each 90-day cycle.
O = objectives
- Motivating
- It’s the big idea. “Where are we going?”
- It’s always ambitious, even a tad uncomfortable.
- It’s easy to remember.
KR = key results
- Specific & Measurable path to objectives.
- It’s the GPS. “How are we getting there?”
- It’s quantifiable. It’s not a Key Result unless it has a number.
- It results in objective grading.
Anatomy of an OKR
| Objectives | Identify & communicate 3-5 things you want to achieve this quarter or year | The big idea. Where are we headed? | Inspire & motivate team with a sense of purpose | Example: Provide awesome customer experience |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Key Result | 3-5 best possible results for each objective | How are we getting there? | Numbers quantifying an end state | Example: NPS 80 by end of Q3 |
| Tasks/ Initiatives | Projects, sprints & deliverables | Unique action items owned by different team members that will get you to the result | May support one or more OKRs | Example: Conduct use case training for all CX teams |
- Identify & communicate 3-5 things you want to achieve this quarter or year
- The big idea & why?
- Inspire & motivate team with a sense of purpose
- Example: Provide awesome customer experience
- 3-5 best possible results for each objective
- Numbers quantifying an end state
- Where will you focus efforts to create most value
- Example: NPS 80 by end of Q3
- Projects, sprints & deliverables
- Unique action items owned by different team members that will get you to the result
- May support one or more OKRs
- Example: Conduct use case training for all CX teams
OKRs deliver two sets of valuable results
How do you measure?
A3 to scale
How do OKRs Work?
Not surprisingly, there are several different interpretations of OKRs out there and not all result in successful adoption. I have developed a straightforward method that is easy to follow and agile.
