What are the best OKRs for businesses to use

Objectives and key results are helpful tools backed by the theory that parts of the company contribute to the whole. These key results essentially benchmark how the objectives are achieved. The results are goals that are broken down into timely, specific, and measurable aspects. While the objectives are qualitative, the key results rely heavily on numbers to prove that the goals were successful. Since every company and business objective is different, there are many different examples out there. Here we’ve narrowed down examples of the best ones for businesses to use.

Why They Work

Objectives and key results are applicable for all business levels, which means you can have company-wide or individual goals. While goals will look different between sectors, integrating this strategy allows everyone to sense that they are working towards similar goals. This method has been integrated by major companies, including Google and Spotify, and is gaining popularity across different businesses and industries because of their success.

Realistic OKR Examples

Company-wide OKR examples are increasing company revenue by different percentages within a set period of time. If a company was to increase revenue by 10% within the next year, the key results for this would be broken down into measurements that relate to these objectives. The company would likely track the monthly revenue, the increase in the number of online sales per quarter, and the additional objectives that pertain to the sectors that are second in line, such as marketing executives and social media managers. Within the secondary lines, further objectives and key results would be created. Ultimately, the main goal, (which would be increasing the revenue by 10%), is still being accomplished, but it is being broken down across different parts of the company. This is how parts become a whole in the context of a large company goal.

Human Resources Examples

Objectives and key results will look differently depending on the business function as well. For example, human resources may have an objective of increasing employee engagement. This specific goal is in-line with human resources’ responsibilities, so it is not an objective that would likely be seen outside of the sector. Since key results have to be quantitative, the measurement could include the number of sign-ups that were achieved for a particular company program or increased positive employee feedback using scaled surveys.

Customer Service Examples

Customer service would have its own set of objectives and key results as well. An objective that is appropriate for customer service would be to improve the customer experience. Key results could look like calculating the number of complaints received in a day, as well as the length of time it would take to resolve these complaints. 

Collectively, these examples highlight the inclusion of specific, timely, and measurable factors that make up respective objectives and key results. As long as company goals include these three components, the company will be working together as a whole, and the business will not fail to integrate and complete the individual goals successfully.