OKRs are a system that helps organizations set and track progress towards specific goals. OKRs have been used by companies like Adobe, Amazon, Facebook, Dell, and Google to achieve success, and they can be used by any organization, no matter its size or industry. To implement OKRs properly, you need to set clear and achievable objectives, identify key results that will help you achieve those objectives, and track your progress over time. Here is a great way to use OKRs to accelerate growth.
At ConectoHub, we have years of experience working with different businesses and teams. We’ve learned that OKRs may not be the best solution for every team. In this post, we’ll share our insights and advice on how to choose the right solution for your team.
There are a few key things to keep in mind for successful OKR implementation, even though they may seem simple. There are a few reasons why teams might fail when implementing OKRs. Technical reasons, like not having the right tools in place, can be fixed. But if the problem is fundamental, it might be a sign that the organization should look into different management methodologies.
1. Not Setting OKRs Correctly
If goals are vague or ambiguous, it can be harmful to the culture of OKRs. Goals that are only qualitative and cannot be quantified are a red flag when implementing them. The main purpose of OKRs is to create clearly defined OKRs goals and bring the company together to work on. • New to OKRs? Start with the OKR fun course
2. No Follow-Up
OKRs need to be measurable, with the key results being quantitative. In a dynamic organization, it’s easy to lose track of these objectives, and monitoring these is crucial. The organization needs to complete weekly check-ins and evaluations to complete and track these. With software packages available, this process has become a lot easier and cost-effective. OKRs are a great methodology to drive growth within an organization and, when implemented correctly, allow for razor-sharp focus to be applied. But although they are easy to understand, the management and cadence of review can’t be underestimated
3. Implementing OKRs in the entire company.
It is important to set clear objectives for your teams, and to test if these objectives are achievable through a pilot program. Not every team or department may need OKRs, and every company’s OKRs should be tailored to their specific needs.
4. Using OKRs as performance evaluation.
The original intent for objectives was for them to be aspirational. Team members are encouraged to set goals that are beyond what they think is achievable and to seek out creative solutions to try to achieve such targets. However, most of the time team members miss several such targets. And if they are punished for it, the next time teams would set lower goals they know they’d hit. And the next time – even lower, to reduce the risks.
Eventually, you’d end up with the list of trivial tasks for OKRs, that everyone uses only to get their salary and bonus.
5. Wrong cadence
It is a common misconception that OKR only works with quarterly cycles. While company OKRs are strategic, team & individual ones are tactical. For mid & large organisations, this tactical OKR cadence is usually a quarter or half year. These companies typically serve a long list of customers so for them quarterly/half yearly cadence works well, with regular check-ins to assess progress. Do note that going beyond half yearly frequency may not be advisable, especially because of rapid speed of technological changes happening within business landscapes.
Startups are dynamic in nature and grow at a rapid rate. Their goals are constantly evolving. Thus the frequency of setting OKRs for a startup needs to be much higher to match its growth. Particularly for a startup that is trying to achieve a product-market fit, monthly OKRs tend to be sufficient. Normally it will be difficult for them to get it right for the first of couple of times. They will need to constantly keep a track on what’s working and what’s not till the time they get it right.
6. Too many Objectives
A company should have a maximum of 4-6 annual OKRs to avoid overwhelming employees and obscuring the company’s vision and goals. Having more OKRs typically backfires as employees struggle to accomplish anything.
7. Setting Objectives Top-Down only
Leadership needs to work with teams to develop and deploy strategy. While leadership decides what the future should look like, teams figure out how to create that future. Teams can not be expected to define short-term goals (OKR) if there is no clear strategy and focus (North Star Metric). Managing the flow between these levels is the key to success.
8. Business as Usual OKRs
The main point of OKRs is to focus on outcomes that will have an impact, rather than on tasks that are part of your daily routine like customer meetings for sales team. Having too many OKRs (more than five) can actually signal a lack of focus. So, if your goal is simply to keep doing what you’re doing (business as usual), then there’s no need to include those items in your OKRs. However, if your objective is to change the way you go about your daily tasks, then including something like “Get everybody to inbox zero” in your OKRs. Need more OKR examples for your business? Reach more OKR Examples
9. Following Industry Practices Without Question.
It’s a good idea to take inspiration from industry practices, but blindly copying them can backfire. The OKR framework became popular because of Google’s success, and many organizations try to replicate Google’s approach without understanding the context. This often leads to disappointing results.
10. Not Tracking with Data
If a company does not have access to data or if the data is not up to date, the company will likely use their OKRs as a to-do list. This can be problematic because it creates more work for the company and may not be worth the effort. In this case, the company has two options: get serious about data or abandon OKRs.
With ConectoHub you can link your goals with your business data, like sales, profit, and user metrics, from more than 5,000 platforms, and track your goal progress automatically.
If you want to create an effective OKR strategy, you can use ConectoHub‘s OKR software which you can connect your goals with business output. This software will help you manage team members, processes, and performance more effectively and efficiently.
If you’re looking to implement an OKR system, our experts can help get you set up on the platform. Schedule a free demo today!