OKRs: The ultimate guide to Objectives and Key Results

Set ambitious and measurable goals and track their outcomes

Struggling with how to achieve meaningful outcomes in your organisation or at a personal level? Do you want to set ambitious and measurable goals and track their outcomes, but don’t know how to do it effectively? Then you may want to learn more about OKRs (Objectives and Key Results).

OKRs are a proven framework used by leading organisations such as Google, Intel, and Spotify to set measurable goals, align teams, and drive results. They make every contribution purposeful, measurable, and connected to the bigger picture.

Understanding OKRs and their purpose

OKRs stand for Objectives and Key Results. Together, they form a powerful goal-setting framework that ensures clarity and alignment from top management to individual contributors.

• Objectives (O): describe what you want to achieve. They are qualitative, inspiring, and time-bound.

• Key Results (KR): define how you’ll measure success towards the Objective (O). They are quantitative, outcome-focused, and measurable.

According to Andrew Grove, who introduced OKRs at Intel, the framework’s strength lies in its simplicity. By defining what matters most and measuring what success looks like, teams can track progress and adapt quickly.

The purpose of OKRs is to:

• Translate high-level strategy into actionable goals.

• Align everyone’s efforts toward shared outcomes.

• Foster transparency and accountability across the organisation.

• Encourage teams to set ambitious, measurable targets.

Why use OKRs: Benefits for managers and teams

OKRs provide structure and focus, helping organisations move from output-driven to outcome-driven performance. They encourage clarity, transparency, and continuous learning.

Strategic alignment and transparency

OKRs create a shared language for progress. When everyone knows the company’s key objectives, teams can align their contribution to higher goals. Transparency ensures that progress is visible, reducing duplication of effort and encouraging collaboration.

Clarity and focused execution

Instead of spreading attention across too many priorities, OKRs help teams focus on a small set of high-impact goals. By clearly defining what matters most, teams can channel their energy into meaningful outcomes rather than busywork.

Continuous improvement

OKRs are iterative. Each quarter provides a new opportunity to reflect, learn, and improve. This creates a feedback loop where teams can refine their approach and apply lessons from previous cycles.

Employee engagement and motivation

When employees understand how their individual work contributes to broader objectives, motivation increases. OKRs make each contribution visible and meaningful, fostering ownership and purpose.

How to craft effective OKRs

Crafting effective OKRs requires thoughtful balance: Objectives must inspire, while Key Results must measure progress. Together, they translate ambition into achievable outcomes.

Writing Objectives (O)

An Objective (O) defines what success looks like. It should be qualitative, ambitious, motivating, inspirational, engaging, and easy to understand, clearly defining the direction and strategic priority for the work to be done. An effective Objective answers the question, “Where do we want to go?” and serves as the ultimate goal toward which all associated Key Results measure progress.

Most teams set three Objectives per quarter to maintain focus and avoid dilution.

The three types of Objectives

1. Build: Create something new that didn’t exist before.
   Example: Launch a new product or service.

2. Improve: Enhance an existing process, product, or experience.
   Example: Increase customer conversion by improving the onboarding process.

3. Innovate: Rethink how something is done entirely.
   Example: Redesign a workflow to double productivity.

Characteristics of a strong Objective

A good Objective should:

• Be directional and inspiring, motivating teams to aim higher.

• Remain ambitious but realistic, balancing stretch with feasibility.

• Exclude metrics—it defines what, not how.

• Be understandable across teams.

• Stay aligned with company strategy.

• Be timebound, usually within a quarter.

When brainstorming Objectives, invite input from team members. Their perspective often leads to more meaningful and achievable goals.

Objectives are achieved through Key Results.

Setting Key Results (KR)

Key Results (KRs) are measurable milestones that define how an Objective will be achieved and whether it has been met. They follow the SMART goal-setting framework (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound), and are verifiable metrics that track progress toward the aspirational Objective, typically expressed as a percentage achieved, a specific number reached, or a state changed from A to B, thus providing the evidence for the successful accomplishment of the associated Objective.

Typically, each Objective includes two to five Key Results.

Traits of effective Key Results

Key Results should be:

• Outcome-focused, measuring impact rather than activity: outcome rather than output.

• Quantifiable, using numbers or metrics.

• Ambitious but attainable, pushing teams beyond comfort zones.

• Relevant to the Objective, driving meaningful progress.

• Balanced, ensuring a mix of leading and lagging indicators.

For example, instead of saying “Improve customer satisfaction,” a measurable Key Result could be “Increase Net Promoter Score from 55 to 65.”

Writing Key Results for non-quantifiable roles

Some roles, like HR or Design, may find numerical targets challenging. In these cases, measure progress through proxy metrics or milestones, such as employee engagement scores, completion of design system rollouts, or time-to-hire reductions.

Key Results are progressed by undertaking Initiatives.

Defining initiatives: tasks, projects, and actions

Initiatives are the tactical projects, tasks, or day-to-day actions that an individual or team undertakes to drive progress toward their Key Results (KR), which in turn measure the achievement of the overarching Objective (O). They serve as the action plan, or the “how,” for accomplishing the measurable outcomes defined in the Key Results, and should be specific, actionable, and focused on delivering a tangible output.

Effective Initiatives should be:

• Specific, with clearly defined outcomes.

• Within your control, ensuring accountability.

• Prioritised, to focus efforts on what moves the needle.

Initiatives translate ambition into daily action. They bridge the gap between what you want to achieve and how you’ll achieve it.

Committed vs aspirational OKRs

There are two types of OKRs, each serving a different purpose:

1. Committed OKRs: These are realistic, must-achieve goals. The expectation is full completion (close to 100%). They ensure accountability for essential business outcomes.

2. Aspirational (Stretch) OKRs: These are ambitious, long-term goals designed to spark innovation. Often called moonshots, they encourage teams to think bigger and explore new possibilities. Achieving 60–70% of an aspirational OKR is considered success.

Managers play a key role in clarifying the difference between these two types. Doing so maintains psychological safety and ensures employees aren’t penalised for pursuing innovation.

Strategic implementation and rollout

Even well-crafted OKRs can fail without proper rollout. Implementation ensures alignment across teams and consistency in execution.

Vertical and horizontal alignment

Alignment happens on two levels:

• Vertical alignment connects company-wide goals with department and team OKRs.

• Horizontal alignment ensures collaboration between teams working on related outcomes.

A step-by-step approach to cascading OKRs:

1. Define company-wide OKRs based on strategic priorities.

2. Share them across the organisation for visibility.

3. Allow teams to propose their own OKRs aligned with the company’s goals.

4. Review, refine, and confirm alignment before launch.

Encouraging two-way planning (top-down and bottom-up) increases engagement and ownership.

Setting the OKR cadence

The OKR cycle typically follows a quarterly rhythm. However, some organisations combine quarterly OKRs with annual strategic Objectives for consistency.

A sample OKR cycle includes:

1. Pre-planning: Review past results and identify focus areas.

2. Planning: Set new OKRs collaboratively.

3. Execution: Conduct weekly or biweekly check-ins.

4. Review: Grade OKRs at the end of the cycle and reflect on lessons learned.

Tools such as Asana, Jira, or Notion can help document and track OKRs transparently.

Introducing OKRs to the team

When OKRs are introduced for the first time, teams may feel uncertain. Address this by explaining why OKRs matter, not just how they work.

Practical tips for rollout:

• Provide training sessions on OKR fundamentals.

• Communicate that OKRs are about learning, not punishment.

• Start with pilot teams before scaling company-wide.

• Encourage open discussion on goal-setting challenges.

The goal is to build understanding and trust so teams feel ownership over their Objectives and Key Results.

Executing and managing the OKR cycle

Setting OKRs is just the beginning. The real impact comes from consistent follow-up and transparent communication.

Weekly OKR check-ins

Regular check-ins help teams stay accountable and identify issues early. These meetings, typically 15 minutes long, focus on:

• Reviewing progress against Key Results.

• Updating confidence scores or health indicators.

• Identifying blockers or resource gaps.

• Adjusting Initiatives as needed.

This routine keeps OKRs active rather than forgotten documents.

Handling mid-cycle adjustments and reframing

Not all OKRs go as planned. Market shifts, new information, or changing priorities may require adjustments.

When this happens:

• Evaluate whether the Objective is still relevant.

• Update or drop outdated Key Results.

• Communicate changes transparently to maintain trust.

Adapting OKRs mid-cycle isn’t a failure—it’s an opportunity to stay agile.

Integrating OKRs with other workflows

To avoid redundancy, integrate OKRs into existing tools and processes. Link them directly with project management systems, sprint planning, and performance reviews.

For example, linking Jira epics or Asana projects to Key Results keeps progress visible in daily workflows, reinforcing alignment between strategy and execution.

Grading and continuous learning

Evaluation and learning complete the OKR cycle, ensuring that every contribution informs future success.

The OKR grading scale

Each Key Result is graded on a 0.0–1.0 scale:

• 0.0–0.3: Little or no progress.

• 0.4–0.6: Partial achievement.

• 0.7–1.0: Strong or full achievement.

A score around 0.6–0.7 is typically ideal—it reflects ambitious goal-setting balanced with realistic execution.

Qualitative Objectives can be graded using narrative evaluations or evidence of outcomes achieved.

Decoupling OKRs from compensation

Many organisations separate OKRs from bonuses and performance reviews. This encourages experimentation and prevents employees from setting safe, easy goals.

Instead, OKRs should be treated as learning tools: a way to improve focus, performance, and strategic alignment without fear of failure.

The OKR retrospective

At the end of each cycle, hold a retrospective meeting. This is a structured discussion that reviews:

• What worked well.

• What didn’t work as expected.

• How to improve next cycle.

By analysing both achievements and shortfalls, teams build a culture of reflection and continuous improvement.

OKRs vs traditional goal-setting methods

Traditional goal-setting often focuses on tasks or outputs. OKRs shift the focus to measurable outcomes and strategic alignment.

OKRs vs KPIs

OKRs and KPIs (Key Performance Indicators) are both crucial for performance management, but they serve different, complementary purposes.

The simplest way to distinguish them is:

• OKRs are a goal-setting framework that defines what you want to achieve and how you will measure the achievement of that goal. They are about driving change and ambition.

• KPIs are metrics that indicate the health and performance of your ongoing business activities. They are about monitoring the status quo.

KPIs (Key Performance Indicators):

• Definition: A metric used to gauge the success and health of an ongoing business process or activity.

• Structure: A standalone, quantitative measure (e.g., Website Visitors, Average Deal Size, Employee Turnover Rate).

• Focus: Health and Status Quo. They track how well existing processes are performing.

• Ambition: Designed to be achieved 100% to maintain a baseline standard of performance.

• Purpose: To monitor and evaluate the performance of an activity or department.

• Time: Can track performance over longer periods (monthly, annually) to monitor long-term trends.

• Action: When a KPI is “red” (off-track), it often triggers the creation of an OKR to fix the issue.

How they intersect:

• A KPI can be a great Key Result when the goal (Objective) is to drastically improve that particular metric.

• KPIs show you the current state (e.g., “Revenue is £xxx”), while OKRs tell you where to go next (e.g., “Objective: Achieve market leadership by increasing revenue Key Result: Grow Annual Recurring Revenue by 25%”).

How OKRs and KPIs work together

OKRs and KPIs are most powerful when used in combination:

1. KPIs inform OKRs: If an important KPI is showing poor performance or a critical business area is stagnant, that KPI becomes the basis for a new, ambitious OKR to fix it.

   • Example: The KPI for “Customer Churn Rate” is too high. This triggers a new OKR.

   • Objective: Delight our customers to drastically reduce churn.

   • Key Result 1: Reduce monthly customer churn rate from 15% to 5%. (The poor KPI is now an ambitious Key Result).

2. KPIs can be Key Results: A good, quantifiable KPI can often be an excellent Key Result if the goal is to significantly change that KPI’s performance. The difference is the context provided by the Objective.

   • Simple KPI: Increase Website Traffic to 450,000 visitors/month.

   • As a Key Result: Objective: Become the leading voice in the industry. KR1: Increase website visitors to 450,000/month.

3. OKRs track strategic improvement: OKRs are used to build, launch, and prove the value of a new initiative. Once that initiative becomes a standard, ongoing process, its key metric can then be converted into a standard KPI for continuous monitoring.

OKRs vs MBOs

Management by Objectives (MBOs), introduced by Peter Drucker, is a precursor to OKRs. However, OKRs improve upon MBOs by introducing measurable Key Results, shorter cycles, and transparent tracking.

Summary of Differences:

• Clarity and Measurability: OKRs explicitly link the Objective (what to achieve) with 3-5 measurable Key Results (how to measure progress), offering a clear path to success. MBOs tend to be broader and may lack the built-in system of explicit progress metrics.

• Agility: The quarterly cycle and frequent check-ins of OKRs make them more suitable for fast-paced, dynamic environments than the traditional annual MBO cycle.

• Motivation: OKRs use a “stretch” mindset divorced from pay, encouraging innovation and ambitious goals. MBOs, by linking goals to compensation, incentivize conservative goal-setting to ensure 100% achievement and secure a bonus.

• Alignment: The public nature of OKRs fosters organization-wide transparency and cross-functional alignment. MBOs’ private goals can inadvertently create departmental or individual silos.

In essence, MBO is often viewed as a framework for planning, steering, and controlling individual performance, while OKR is a modern approach for driving innovation, alignment, and accelerated growth across teams.

OKRs vs KRAs

Key Result Areas (KRAs) describe responsibility zones, not specific outcomes. OKRs take this further by quantifying results, making them more actionable and measurable.

OKRs vs balanced scorecard (BSC)

The Balanced Scorecard (BSC), developed by Kaplan and Norton, measures organisational performance using Objectives, Measures, and Initiatives. While both frameworks align goals, OKRs are more agile and iterative, making them ideal for fast-paced environments. Many organizations find value in using them together:

Rather than choosing one over the other, many organizations combine the two frameworks to get the benefits of both (often called the “Two-Speed Execution” model):

1. BSC sets the long-term strategy: The Balanced Scorecard, with its four perspectives and Strategy Map, defines the organization’s overarching, long-term strategic direction (the “What” and the “Why”).

2. OKRs drive agile execution: OKRs are then used to break down the BSC’s annual strategic goals into concrete, ambitious, measurable quarterly objectives for teams and departments. This provides the speed and adaptability needed for execution.

In this complementary approach, the BSC provides the strategic context and holistic view, while OKRs provide the agility and focus for short-term results.

Advanced OKR management and common pitfalls

Scaling OKRs in larger organisations requires structure and cultural commitment.

Scaling OKRs in growing organisations

Many companies appoint an OKR Champion or OKR Coach to oversee the process. This role ensures consistency, facilitates training, and maintains alignment across regions or departments.

For global teams, digital OKR platforms help maintain visibility and coordination across time zones.

Common OKR anti-patterns to avoid

Even well-intentioned OKRs can fail if misapplied. Watch out for:

• “Business as usual” OKRs that track routine tasks rather than meaningful change.

• Vanity metrics that look good on paper but lack real impact.

• Too many OKRs, which dilute focus.

• Misalignment between team and company strategy.

• Resistance to transparency, which undermines accountability.

Overcoming these pitfalls ensures that OKRs deliver measurable contribution to strategic success.

Aligning OKRs with business strategy

OKRs are most powerful when directly connected to business strategy. They act as a bridge between vision and execution, ensuring that every goal contributes to long-term success.

By aligning OKRs with strategic priorities, organisations create a unified direction where every individual effort reinforces the same overarching mission.

A brief history of OKR

The concept of OKRs has deep roots. In 1954, Peter Drucker introduced Management by Objectives (MBO), focusing on aligning personal and organisational goals. In 1968, Andrew Grove at Intel refined this idea into what we now know as OKRs: adding measurable Key Results to track progress.

When John Doerr joined Intel in 1974, he adopted and later popularised OKRs at Google. The framework has since become a global standard for goal-setting and strategic alignment across industries.