OKR (objectives and key results)
OKR (objectives and key results) is a goal-setting method in which a team sets an ambitious qualitative objective and a few measurable key results that show it was reached.
What it is
An OKR has two parts. The objective says where the team wants to go, in words that people remember. The key results say how everyone will know that the team got there, in numbers. A period is usually a quarter.
How it looks in practice
An illustrative OKR for a sales team: Objective: “Clients who wrote to us do not get lost.” Key results: first response under 10 minutes in working hours for 90% of chats; share of conversations without a reply after 24 hours below 5%; conversion from first message to deal from 12% to 15%.
Key results are scored at the end of the period, often on a scale from 0 to 1. Reaching about 0.7 on an ambitious OKR is usually seen as a good result.
How it differs from KPI
A KPI tracks the steady health of the work: the numbers that must stay in range every month. An OKR is about change: what the team wants to improve this quarter. A business normally has both. KPIs are often linked to pay, OKRs usually are not, so that people can aim high without fear of losing money.
Why it matters and the typical mistake
OKRs focus the team on a few priorities and make them visible to everyone. The common mistake is writing tasks instead of results (“launch a new script”) or setting too many OKRs at once. Another one is tying them to bonuses, which makes people choose safe targets. Keep one to three objectives per team, write key results as outcomes, discuss progress in regular one-on-ones and close every period with an honest review.
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