Goal setting is a well-known and fundamental component to organisational achievement. Providing focus, goals linked to the teams broader mission are vital in setting the direction and defining the path success.

“Setting goals is the key to success. It makes sense — goals are like a road map for a business. It’s hard to make progress when you aren’t even sure where you’re going.” – Forbes, 2024

However, despite the acceptance and importance of goal setting, many businesses do not meet their strategic goals, with studies showing up to 90% of organisations fail to meet all of theirs. Failure to meet strategic goals can be attributed to so many factors, such as lack of team buy-in, poor planning and execution, insufficient accountability and shifting market dynamics. Yet often and most importantly, goals fail due to a lack of specificity and clarity. With researchers estimating that the value of the increased productivity from setting specific, challenging goals over ‘do your best’ goals is approximately 18%.

One of the most effective, collaborative goal-setting methodologies is Objectives and Key Results (OKRs). This framework, popularised by companies like Google and Intel, provides a structured way to define ambitious goals and measure progress effectively.

Simply put, OKRs are “how you track progress, create alignment, and encourage engagement around measurable goals.”

Objectives – What do we want to achieve? An objective is a concrete, inspirational goal that sets a clear direction. Ideally and when designed effectively, they combat any blurred and wish-washy execution.

Key Results – How will we know we’re making progress? Key Results benchmark and monitor how to achieve the Objective. They are specific, measurable and time-bound metrics, with ‘no grey area, and no room for doubt’.

“Where an Objective can be long lived, rolled over for a year or longer, Key Results evolve as the work progresses. Once they are all completed, the Objective is achieved.”

To better understand OKRs and how they work in practice, here are two examples:

Example 1: Marketing Team

Objective: Increase brand awareness and audience engagement.

• Key Result 1: Grow social media followers by 20% in the next quarter.
• Key Result 2: Increase website traffic by 30% within six months.
• Key Result 3: Generate 50% more leads from content marketing efforts.

Example 2: Sales Team

Objective: Improve sales performance and increase revenue.

• Key Result 1: Increase quarterly revenue by 15%.
• Key Result 2: Reduce the sales cycle from 45 to 30 days.
• Key Result 3: Improve customer retention rate by 10%.

Generally, the value of OKRs can be illustrated by five core areas:

Alignment and focus – Visions are distilled into specific, actionable goals, helping teams to align their efforts and develop an understanding of how their work contributes

Measurability – The key results ensure that progress can be tracked with tangible metrics, eliminating ambiguity

Accountability – With defined OKRs, individuals and teams take ownership of their responsibilities and are motivated to meet their goals

Agility and adaptability – OKRs allow organisations to remain flexible. If a goal is not on track, adjustments can be made to improve performance

Encourages ambition – Since OKRs are designed to be ambitious, they push teams to go beyond their comfort zones and achieve breakthrough results

Despite their effectiveness, OKRs can be ineffective if not implemented correctly. Common mistakes include setting too many OKRs, which can create confusion and reduce focus—it’s best to limit them to 3-5 per team. Another pitfall is failing to establish measurable key results, making progress difficult to track. Additionally, using OKRs as a basis for performance reviews can be counterproductive, as they are intended to promote ambitious goal setting rather than direct employee evaluations. Lastly, neglecting regular reviews can diminish their impact, as frequent check-ins are essential for maintaining progress and ensuring success.

OKRs are a powerful tool for goal setting that is practical and effective, helping businesses drive performance, alignment, and measurable success. By clearly defining objectives and tracking key results, organisations can ensure that everyone is working toward common goals. Adopting the OKR framework can lead to increased efficiency, transparency, and motivation through a simple mantra – Set goals (objectives) and measure your progress towards them (key results).