Quick answer: what are OKRs? Objectives and Key Results are a goal-setting method that pairs one qualitative objective with measurable key results. Reviewed quarter by quarter, they turn a chosen strategy into commitments a team can score.
Choose OKRs when a strategy already exists and teams need to know what to deliver this quarter. They do not choose the strategy for you, so they sit at the execution end of the wider set of business strategy frameworks.
What OKRs are made of
An OKR has two parts, and each does a different job. The objective says where the team is heading, in words people can remember. The key results say how anyone will know it is getting there. Wrike’s guide describes objectives as typically qualitative and key results as the quantitative outcomes that indicate progress toward them.
| Element | What the guidance says | Planning use |
|---|---|---|
| Objective | Qualitative; resonates with the organization’s mission and values | Write it as a direction, not a number. If it could be mistaken for a metric, rewrite it. |
| Key result | Quantitative, expressed as numbers or percentages, and time-bound | Every key result needs a figure and a deadline, or it cannot be scored later. |
| Set size | One objective with 2-5 key results | Keep each set narrow. A long list of key results signals several objectives in one. |
| Cycle | Quarterly OKRs break annual goals and priorities into more manageable objectives | Use the quarter as the commitment window and the year as the context. |
Definitions follow Wrike’s OKR guide and the set size follows Miro’s OKR overview.
OKRs versus KPIs
OKRs and KPIs both use numbers, so the difference lies in the job each number does. Miro defines KPIs as metrics that measure performance against specific targets or benchmarks. A key result, by contrast, belongs to an objective and indicates progress toward it.
- Reach for a KPI when the question is whether performance is meeting a target or benchmark.
- Reach for an OKR when the question is whether a stated objective is being achieved this cycle.
- Check the wording if a key result reads like a standing performance measure. It may be a KPI that has not yet been tied to any objective.
Writing an objective and its key results
Write the objective first and the key results second. An objective that is already full of figures leaves the key results with nothing to add. Shortform’s methodology guide advises deciding on three to five key results for each objective, which is a workable default for a first cycle.
A simple template keeps sets comparable across teams:
- Objective: one qualitative sentence tied to the strategy.
- Key results: each a measurable outcome with a number or percentage and a deadline.
- Cycle: the quarter in which the set applies.
- Score: filled in when the cycle ends.
Wrike notes that key results are typically expressed as numbers or percentages. A key result that cannot be written that way is usually a task or a hope.
From strategy to team key results
OKRs answer how a chosen strategy becomes this quarter’s work, not which strategy to choose. Strategy comes first, through frameworks such as the one explained under what is the bcg matrix or what is the business model canvas. The OKR layer then converts that direction into commitments. Wrike states that team-level goals should be aligned with company-level goals so each team can contribute to them.
Wrike’s sales example can be read as a cascade, from a hypothetical strategy of growing revenue down to a team commitment:
- Strategy: grow revenue. This is an illustrative direction, set before any OKR is written.
- Company objective: a qualitative statement of the sales ambition.
- Company key result: a 25% rise in sales revenue in Q2.
- Sales team key result: close 8 deals worth a combined total of $750,000.
Each level narrows the one above it, so a team can see exactly how its quarter feeds the company’s. If a team key result cannot be traced up to a company-level goal, either the key result or the company goal needs rewriting.
Quarterly cycles, check-ins and scoring
Quarterly is the cycle most guidance centres on, because it breaks annual priorities into objectives a team can finish or clearly measure. Annual and monthly cadences also appear, and the quarter works best when the year’s goals are already agreed.
Shortform says that check-ins ideally happen weekly, monthly, quarterly and annually. Short weekly check-ins catch a stalled key result while there is still time to act. The quarterly review is where the set is judged. The same source notes that OKRs are measurable and that you score them at the end of each cycle.
Scoring is only possible because each key result carries a figure and a deadline. That is why vague key results are the most common reason a review turns into an argument about what the goal meant.
OKRs in a small business
A small business can use OKRs. WhatMatters.com, the resource co-founded by Ryan Panchadsaram and John Doerr to help leaders set and achieve ambitious goals, says OKRs have been used well at startups all the way to organizations with more than 100,000 people.
For a small team, the practical choice is scope. Start with a single objective for the quarter and a handful of key results, and check progress in a short weekly meeting rather than a formal review. Add a second objective only after the first cycle has been scored and the team agrees the numbers were measurable.
Troubleshooting weak OKRs
- The key results read like a to-do list. Rewrite each one as an outcome with a number or percentage. Tasks can sit underneath, but they are not the measure of progress.
- The objective contains a target. Move the figure into a key result. Objectives are typically qualitative, and the numbers belong below them.
- The set keeps growing. Return to the range in the table above and move extra items into another objective or the next quarter.
- Nobody scores the set. Schedule the end-of-cycle scoring when the quarter begins, and keep the regular check-ins so the score holds no surprises.
- Team goals drift from company goals. Rebuild the cascade from the strategy down, as in the sales example, until every team key result traces upward.
Frequently asked questions
Are key results just tasks?
No. Wrike describes key results as quantitative outcomes that indicate progress toward an objective, so they measure results rather than list activities.
Is quarterly the only OKR cycle?
No. According to Wrike’s guide, common cadences are annual, quarterly and monthly. Quarterly OKRs break the annual goals and priorities into more manageable objectives.
What does a product launch key result look like?
Miro gives the example “Launch product with 95% of target features”. It names an outcome, carries a percentage and can be scored when the cycle ends.
