Recently there was a post on twitter about how Google grew up in spite of OKRs and hands down they were the worst management tool.
That kind of post reminds me of click bait title on YouTube and doesn't provide a sufficient understanding or description of how OKRs can be applied as be part of an effective ecosystem for most any business. However, the exercise of setting OKRs can be a little daunting, particularly when there is a rapid change in the business and the process by which they are created or managed varies over time. Humans like some amount of consistency.
While there has been much written about OKRs, my intent here is to add some context on my approach to OKRs at a team level, or some might refer as the execution layer of the business. It is worth noting that there are OKRs that are set at higher levels within the organization and may be structured differently as they are attempting to communicate broader goals, like "Awesome user experience".
Objective and the key results. The objective is the goal, in order for it to be useful it should be clear, concise, measurable and stated with invariant language. Setting objectives in this manner helps the reader understand the outcome that will be achieved if the OKR is successful. For example:
Objective: Design an exterior door that will withstand an intruder attack with no tools for 7 minutes.
The key results are the milestones that need to be realized in order to achieve the objective with an associated date.
KR1 - Door material selection and testing to be done by mm-yyyy.
KR2 - Door frame and mounting to be designed, agreed to and tested by mm-yyyy.
KR3 - Lock selection and completed unit testing to be completed by mm-yyyy.
KR3 - Reference bill of materials including door, frame with recommended locks to be completed by mm-yyyy.
OKRs should be:
clear and concise
measurable
usable by an individual to understand how their work contributes to the overall objective
used to inspire
OKRS should NOT be:
a primary management tool, e.g. "the proverbial stick"
used as an input for compensation
The ecosystem, creating good OKRs does not necessarily set the team up for success. OKRs go hand in hand with program management and metrics. For example, from each KR there is a list of tasks and constraints to meet the KR, which in turn leads to work break down structures and resource planning.
Without sound metrics it is impossible to derive the progress toward the KR and hence the Objective. Metrics would require one or more posts, maybe another time.