# What is OKR? Setting and tracking OKRs in a company What OKR is, how it differs from KPI and where to start: a short guide for small companies, with an example and how KDIGI runs on OKRs. A short guide to setting goals with OKR: how to write them, how to track them and how to review at the end of each cycle. ## In short OKR (Objectives and Key Results) is a goal-setting method in two parts. The Objective is what you want to achieve, written short and with a clear direction. Key Results are measurable outcomes that say how close you are. Andy Grove used it at Intel; John Doerr brought it to Google. ## What one OKR contains - Objective — A qualitative sentence with a clear direction. For example: “New customers choose us because deliveries arrive on time.” - Key Result — A measurable number with a target. For example: on-time delivery from X% to Y%. - The work — The activities that move the Key Result. The work can change during the cycle; the Key Result stays. ## How OKR and KPI differ The two tools can run side by side. | Criterion | OKR | KPI | | --- | --- | --- | | Used for | making a change | keeping a running operation healthy | | How it is set | an Objective plus ambitious Key Results | indicators tracked continuously | | Review rhythm | per cycle, with weekly check-ins | continuous, by indicator | ## Where to start with OKR 1. Pick a cycle and a scope — Start with one level, the company or a single team, and a short cycle. 2. Write few Objectives — With few goals, the team can remember them and focus. 3. Attach measurable Key Results — Each Objective gets a few Key Results, each with a number and a target. 4. Check in weekly — Update progress, raise blockers and adjust the work. 5. Score and review — At the end of the cycle, look at what landed and what did not, then set the next cycle. ## Common mistakes - Turning OKR into a to-do list — Key Results written as activities instead of outcomes leave you unable to tell whether the goal was reached. - Unmeasurable Key Results — Without a number and a target, the review at the end of the cycle is just opinion. - Too many OKRs — With many goals, none of them is the priority. - Tying OKR straight to pay — People will set low goals to be sure of hitting them. - Objective: New customers choose us because deliveries arrive on time. - Key Result: On-time delivery from X% to Y%. This illustrates how to read an OKR; it is not real data. X and Y are numbers you set yourself. ## How I apply it KDIGI runs on OKR to set a shared direction. Every team and every person connects their work to that goal, and people are encouraged to develop their skills. How OKR connects to feedback and review is on the performance management page. [See KDIGI](/du-an/kdigi/) ## Common questions ### What is OKR? OKR is a goal-setting method made of an Objective, what you want to achieve, and Key Results, the measurable outcomes that show progress. Andy Grove used it at Intel and John Doerr introduced it at Google. ### How is OKR different from KPI? A KPI tracks the health of an operation that is already running. OKR aims at a change during the cycle, with a directional Objective and measurable Key Results. Many organisations use both at once. ### How long is an OKR cycle? Many organisations use a quarterly cycle. You can go shorter or longer, as long as there are regular check-ins and a review at the end. ### Can a small company use OKR? Yes. Start with one level, a few Objectives and a spreadsheet. Dedicated software can come later, once the check-in rhythm works. ### Should OKR be linked to pay? Many organisations keep the two apart so people dare to set ambitious goals. If you link them, do it indirectly through the overall review, not Key Result by Key Result. ## Want to run OKR? Tell me the size of your team and the goal for the next cycle. We start with one conversation. [Consulting & speaking](/tu-van-dien-gia/) [Contact](/lien-he/) [What is company culture?](/blog/chuyen-muc/van-hoa-doanh-nghiep/) [What is performance management?](/blog/chuyen-muc/quan-tri-hieu-suat/) Source: