OKR Fundamentals

What are OKRs?

OKR stands for Objectives and Key Results – an agile goal-setting methodology used by Google, Intel, and many other successful companies. OKRs help teams and organizations define and measurably track their most important goals.

An OKR set consists of two components:

  • Objectives: Qualitative, inspiring goals that describe what should be achieved
  • Key Results: Quantitative, measurable results that define how success is measured

The 70% Rule: Why Ambitious Goals Matter

OKRs are intentionally ambitious. Achieving 70-80% of the goal is considered a great success. This fundamentally distinguishes OKRs from traditional goal systems that expect 100% achievement.

OKR Grading
0,7 - 1,0 (Grün)

Goal achieved – "We delivered!"

0,4 - 0,69 (Gelb)

Progress made – "We couldn't quite make it"

< 0,4 (Rot)

Not achieved – Learning opportunity for the next cycle

Why ambitious goals?
Ambitious goals encourage bold thinking and innovation. They move teams out of their comfort zone and enable development. Failures are not punished but used as valuable learning opportunities.
Important: No connection to bonus payments!
Linking OKRs to bonus systems leads to less ambitious goals. Clearly separate OKRs from performance management and emphasize the learning and development aspect.

How to Formulate Good OKRs?

Formulating Objectives

A good Objective should be:

  • Qualitative: Describes a vision or direction
  • Inspiring: Motivates the team
  • Concise: Can be formulated in one sentence
  • Time-bound: For a specific period (e.g., quarter)

Formulating Key Results

A good Key Result should be:

  • Measurable: Always contains a number or metric
  • Outcome-oriented: Describes results, not activities
  • Specific: From current value to target value
  • Limited: 3-5 Key Results per Objective
The OKR Formula

We will [Objective], as measured by [Key Results]

Best Practices

Recommended
  • 2-4 Objectives per team and cycle
  • 3-5 Key Results per Objective
  • Regular check-ins (weekly/bi-weekly)
  • Transparency: OKRs visible to everyone
Avoid
  • Too many OKRs at once
  • Measuring activities instead of results
  • Too defensive goals (100% always achievable)
  • Linking OKRs to bonus payments

OKR Examples from ERP and IT

Here are concrete formulation examples for OKRs in the context of ERP systems, software implementations, and IT projects:

ERP System Implementation

Objective:

Successful preparation of accounting for migration to the new ERP system

Key Results:

  1. Increase payroll calculation accuracy to 99.5% (from current 97%)
  2. Reduce inventory discrepancies from 5% to below 1%
  3. Increase invoice accuracy from 92% to 98%
  4. Finalize migration plan with all 4 main modules by end of Q2
System Performance & Availability

Objective:

Excellent system availability for seamless 24/7 user experience

Key Results:

  1. Increase ERP system availability from 98.5% to 99.95%
  2. Maintain average response time below 200ms (currently 350ms)
  3. Reduce unplanned downtime from 12h/month to below 2h/month
User Adoption & Training

Objective:

High user adoption through effective training and support

Key Results:

  1. Increase training rate from 60% to 95% of all users
  2. Increase user satisfaction score (NPS) from 45 to 70
  3. Reduce support tickets from 150/week to below 50/week
  4. Increase active system usage from 70% to 90% of licensed users
Data Quality & Integration

Objective:

First-class data quality for reliable business decisions

Key Results:

  1. Reduce data inconsistencies from 8% to below 2%
  2. Increase completeness of critical master data from 85% to 98%
  3. Increase automation rate of data integration from 40% to 80%
Continuous Deployment & Release Frequency

Objective:

Fast and secure delivery of new features through automated deployment pipeline

Key Results:

  1. Increase deployment frequency from 1x/week to 3x/week
  2. Reduce lead time for changes from 10 days to 5 days
  3. Increase automated test coverage from 60% to 85%
  4. Reduce rollback rate from 15% to below 5%

Ready to Get Started?

Use these fundamentals to formulate and track your own ambitious OKRs.

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