Measuring Objectives and Key Results: A Comprehensive Guide

Objective and Key Result (OKR) methodology is a powerful tool that helps us structure our objectives and measure results. It's important to understand what good outcomes look like and why it's important to measure results. Rick Klau explains that one way to evaluate a full OKR is to average the scores of key results that belong to an objective. Key results are a set of metrics that measure your progress toward the goal.

For each objective, you should have a set of 2 to 5 key outcomes. OKR measurement is the process by which specific key outcome success criteria are established or qualified to create success thresholds for the objective. Objective and Key Outcome Progress and Difficulty Together, the percentage of progress and the level of difficulty show how the goal is progressing. Group objectives should always align with company objectives and support the ultimate goal of your organization.

The way in which success is measured and the ambition it dares to be is defined in the Key Results and their measures and objectives. Google Ventures partner Rick Klau recommends scoring key results between 0.0 and 1.0, although not required, and 0% to 100% or “A” to “F” as useful scoring options. While OKRs cultivate alignment by allowing teams to link their team's OKRs to the company's goal and be responsible for driving company objectives independently. Progress on Key Results should be monitored and discussed weekly to ensure better prioritization of initiatives and continuous alignment within a team.

The group's key results should reflect a big change, something that, if you reach 70-80% of your goal, the rest of your organization will notice. If the company has a goal that spans several quarters, such as Increasing Revenue by X, different key results can be tested in each quarter and learn what kind of activities help increase revenues and by how much. Measuring results is what really matters and what will lead us to victory. Everyone on the team knows exactly how their key results contribute to the company's goal, making it easy for that key outcome to stay in mind during the OKR quarter. This comprehensive guide will help you understand how to measure objectives and key results effectively.