Our purpose and strategic goals define our "Why", and objectives set the direction and clarify "What" needs to be achieved. The final question in the puzzle is "How", and this is where Key Results comes into the picture. Within the KR framework are two further metrics, the leading metric which is "What are we going to do" and the lagging metric i.e. "How are we going to measure it"?
In essence, OKRs are about aligning your stakeholders and teams with a singular goal
The criticality of this concept flows from the fact that in traditional firms, different teams will work towards individual goals, for e.g. A finance team would work with a Balance Scorecard as their north star while a marketing team may look at KPIs. On the contrary, in an OKR-centric firm, all units be it business, or product, will work with an OKR in mind and as a result will be able to align everyone, towards an aspirational end state with a focus on outcomes that matter.
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Balance Scorecard: The focus is on selling strategic priorities
Key Performance Indicator: The focus is on monitoring performance
Objectives and Key Results: The focus is on defining achievement criteria to drive innovation
OKRs are a leading measure where goal setting is both top down and bottom up
An OKR helps align goals, provides empowerment by defining a mix of ambitious and committed goals, and while it may be difficult to implement owing to a change in a path from current processes, the flexibility to update and revise OKRs makes it a very attractive choice.
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