Objective

  1. In a single sentence, qualitative goal
  2. Should be inspirational, not conform to status quo or describe business as usual
  3. the goal should be time bound, but not too long
  4. Try setting only one

Key Results

  1. most often three
  2. quantitative metrics to meature if objective has been reached by the end of the period, should include evidence of completion
  3. difficult but not impossible, i.e., 50% of failing, as if it is truly random
  4. something happened because of something you did => describe impacts instead of activities
  5. can be time-related if not by default end of the whole period
  6. Don’t give different weights to key results even though they contribute different level of values=> it is about tendency, not perfection
  7. much of the value in OKRs comes from the conversation on what matters
  8. baking OKR into weekly meetings and weekly status mail
  9. DO NOT CHANCE OKR, let it fail and set better goal next time
  10. If you can’t keep on track longer than a week. Then you are not ready for OKR yet. This is especailly true for startups. OKR should be reviewed weekly or biweekly to ensure focus and progress
  11. Any observed statistical regularity will tend to collapse once pressure is placed upon it for control purposes
  12. rather than using a single number, the best assessment is usually a set of measurements. By choosing multiple metrics, we can design a solution without the unintended consequences that occur when optimizing for a narrow objective.

From YC

  • that the closer to an individual level you get the less useful OKRs are. The backward process of, “we know what we are going to do, how to we make it fit the OKR formula”
  • Spotify decided to stop using OKRs - they grow too quickly so that OKR changes a lot
  • OKRs are designed to exist in levels, “trickling down” in a way that narrows them down more and more as they reach specific teams and individuals
  • OKRs in particular are hugely reliant on leadership defining goals for others to align with.
  • For a single team, OKR is used to associate task with goals, instead of vice-versa as intended