toggle mobile menu

OKR as part of organization’s management 


Heikki Saarenhovi



OKR (Objectives and Key Results) is a management method which is getting more and more acknowledged in today’s organizations. It is a model for management by objectives and it helps organizations to cascade their strategies. A common issue of strategic management is that strategic plans are separated from daily operations and the plans are often found quite abstract. OKR tries to tackle i.e. these kinds of problems.


Objectives or goals are something that something or somebody wants to achieve in determined schedule, and key results are measurable indicators and actions that help and aim to achieve the related object successfully. Challenging and constantly changing environment motivates and forces organizations to create bold objectives, and key results should be aligned with ambitious goals. However, key results should always be measurable, time-based and limited by amount.


OKR means tough and bold choices. There is no reason to do everything at the same time but choose certain areas where the organization should succeed in current on upcoming strategic period. In practice, this means a few main goals in the organization’s top-level that are tangible, measurable and scheduled. In other words, choices are limitations (what we do not focus on) and this might be challenging since at least in large organizations and enterprises there are a lot of so-called must-win-battles, strategic themes or focus areas. Organizations could benefit from SMART-method that helps you to consider what is relevant and what is not:



  • Specific: Objective, actions and metrics should be defined distinctly. This makes the goal more achievable and easier to approach.
  • Measurable: Can we describe the status of an objective by using some indicator?
  • Achievable: Is the objective and key results realistic when we take our resources (financial, human into account?
  • Relevant: If we succeed/fail with the objective, is it remarkable for us and our strategy, mission and vision?
  • Time-based: When the objective and key results should be accomplished?



However, SMART-method does not make the decision for you but it helps you to take the most important and relevant factors into consideration. Once the choices and decisions are made, objectives are cascaded from the organization’s higher level to the lower ones, such as business units, teams and individuals. When cascading, the management and executive board must be committed to set up those sub-goals and monitor them frequently. If management by objectives is a new thing for an organization, one should start implementing the OKR-model by executing a pilot phase. Cultural changes do not occur in short period of time, and at the beginning it pays more off to pilot the OKR in the management level.


During the decision-making process it is helpful to similarly define what is the frequency when the goals and objectives are monitored. Procedures should be commonly approved so every involved person can commit to those practices. Objectives in different organizational levels can be monitored in different time periods. For example, company goals quarterly, unit goals monthly and team goals weekly. Management’s annual planning framework can be useful when designing the monitoring processes.



Key benefits of the OKR-model

 

The key benefits of the OKR-model can be divided into three different viewpoints:


  1. Strategic management’s perspective:
    OKR helps the executive board, management and personnel to plan and design their work. With OKR an organization can ensure that their acts and work is taking the organization to the right direction towards its strategic goals and focus areas.

  2. Focusing
    With help of the OKR, every person in the organization can acknowledge what is important, and more importantly, what is not. This helps to spot those actions that do not serve person’s own or organizational main objectives. However, one should take a large perspective when considering this since operational tasks usually have an indirect impact on the main goals.

  3. Staff’s perspective
    In modern organizations, employees want to have a meaningful job and see their own impact in the big picture. The OKR model enables organizations to bring the main and most critical strategic goals and focus areas to people’s every-day work life by making the knowledge and management more transparent. This increases employees’ commitment to the organization and long-term goals.



How could your organization benefit from OKR? Start is never easy, and you can try a tool to help and support your organization’s management by objectives. Contact LATO’s team of experts and ask more about OKR-model and management tools!

In LATO we believe that transparency, employee contribution and systematic goal and action planning and follow-up is the key for successful strategy implementation.  This is why we created a tool that solves all this with speed and accuracy. 

OKR as part of organization’s management 


Heikki Saarenhovi



OKR (Objectives and Key Results) is a management method which is getting more and more acknowledged in today’s organizations. It is a model for management by objectives and it helps organizations to cascade their strategies. A common issue of strategic management is that strategic plans are separated from daily operations and the plans are often found quite abstract. OKR tries to tackle i.e. these kinds of problems.


Objectives or goals are something that something or somebody wants to achieve in determined schedule, and key results are measurable indicators and actions that help and aim to achieve the related object successfully. Challenging and constantly changing environment motivates and forces organizations to create bold objectives, and key results should be aligned with ambitious goals. However, key results should always be measurable, time-based and limited by amount.


OKR means tough and bold choices. There is no reason to do everything at the same time but choose certain areas where the organization should succeed in current on upcoming strategic period. In practice, this means a few main goals in the organization’s top-level that are tangible, measurable and scheduled. In other words, choices are limitations (what we do not focus on) and this might be challenging since at least in large organizations and enterprises there are a lot of so-called must-win-battles, strategic themes or focus areas. Organizations could benefit from SMART-method that helps you to consider what is relevant and what is not:



  • Specific: Objective, actions and metrics should be defined distinctly. This makes the goal more achievable and easier to approach.
  • Measurable: Can we describe the status of an objective by using some indicator?
  • Achievable: Is the objective and key results realistic when we take our resources (financial, human into account?
  • Relevant: If we succeed/fail with the objective, is it remarkable for us and our strategy, mission and vision?
  • Time-based: When the objective and key results should be accomplished?



However, SMART-method does not make the decision for you but it helps you to take the most important and relevant factors into consideration. Once the choices and decisions are made, objectives are cascaded from the organization’s higher level to the lower ones, such as business units, teams and individuals. When cascading, the management and executive board must be committed to set up those sub-goals and monitor them frequently. If management by objectives is a new thing for an organization, one should start implementing the OKR-model by executing a pilot phase. Cultural changes do not occur in short period of time, and at the beginning it pays more off to pilot the OKR in the management level.


During the decision-making process it is helpful to similarly define what is the frequency when the goals and objectives are monitored. Procedures should be commonly approved so every involved person can commit to those practices. Objectives in different organizational levels can be monitored in different time periods. For example, company goals quarterly, unit goals monthly and team goals weekly. Management’s annual planning framework can be useful when designing the monitoring processes.



Key benefits of the OKR-model

 

The key benefits of the OKR-model can be divided into three different viewpoints:


  1. Strategic management’s perspective:
    OKR helps the executive board, management and personnel to plan and design their work. With OKR an organization can ensure that their acts and work is taking the organization to the right direction towards its strategic goals and focus areas.

  2. Focusing
    With help of the OKR, every person in the organization can acknowledge what is important, and more importantly, what is not. This helps to spot those actions that do not serve person’s own or organizational main objectives. However, one should take a large perspective when considering this since operational tasks usually have an indirect impact on the main goals.

  3. Staff’s perspective
    In modern organizations, employees want to have a meaningful job and see their own impact in the big picture. The OKR model enables organizations to bring the main and most critical strategic goals and focus areas to people’s every-day work life by making the knowledge and management more transparent. This increases employees’ commitment to the organization and long-term goals.



How could your organization benefit from OKR? Start is never easy, and you can try a tool to help and support your organization’s management by objectives. Contact LATO’s team of experts and ask more about OKR-model and management tools!

In LATO we believe that transparency, employee contribution and systematic goal and action planning and follow-up is the key for successful strategy implementation.  This is why we created a tool that solves all this with speed and accuracy. 

toggle mobile menu

OKR as part of organization’s management 


Heikki Saarenhovi



OKR (Objectives and Key Results) is a management method which is getting more and more acknowledged in today’s organizations. It is a model for management by objectives and it helps organizations to cascade their strategies. A common issue of strategic management is that strategic plans are separated from daily operations and the plans are often found quite abstract. OKR tries to tackle i.e. these kinds of problems.


Objectives or goals are something that something or somebody wants to achieve in determined schedule, and key results are measurable indicators and actions that help and aim to achieve the related object successfully. Challenging and constantly changing environment motivates and forces organizations to create bold objectives, and key results should be aligned with ambitious goals. However, key results should always be measurable, time-based and limited by amount.


OKR means tough and bold choices. There is no reason to do everything at the same time but choose certain areas where the organization should succeed in current on upcoming strategic period. In practice, this means a few main goals in the organization’s top-level that are tangible, measurable and scheduled. In other words, choices are limitations (what we do not focus on) and this might be challenging since at least in large organizations and enterprises there are a lot of so-called must-win-battles, strategic themes or focus areas. Organizations could benefit from SMART-method that helps you to consider what is relevant and what is not:



  • Specific: Objective, actions and metrics should be defined distinctly. This makes the goal more achievable and easier to approach.
  • Measurable: Can we describe the status of an objective by using some indicator?
  • Achievable: Is the objective and key results realistic when we take our resources (financial, human into account?
  • Relevant: If we succeed/fail with the objective, is it remarkable for us and our strategy, mission and vision?
  • Time-based: When the objective and key results should be accomplished?



However, SMART-method does not make the decision for you but it helps you to take the most important and relevant factors into consideration. Once the choices and decisions are made, objectives are cascaded from the organization’s higher level to the lower ones, such as business units, teams and individuals. When cascading, the management and executive board must be committed to set up those sub-goals and monitor them frequently. If management by objectives is a new thing for an organization, one should start implementing the OKR-model by executing a pilot phase. Cultural changes do not occur in short period of time, and at the beginning it pays more off to pilot the OKR in the management level.


During the decision-making process it is helpful to similarly define what is the frequency when the goals and objectives are monitored. Procedures should be commonly approved so every involved person can commit to those practices. Objectives in different organizational levels can be monitored in different time periods. For example, company goals quarterly, unit goals monthly and team goals weekly. Management’s annual planning framework can be useful when designing the monitoring processes.



Key benefits of the OKR-model

 

The key benefits of the OKR-model can be divided into three different viewpoints:


  1. Strategic management’s perspective:
    OKR helps the executive board, management and personnel to plan and design their work. With OKR an organization can ensure that their acts and work is taking the organization to the right direction towards its strategic goals and focus areas.

  2. Focusing
    With help of the OKR, every person in the organization can acknowledge what is important, and more importantly, what is not. This helps to spot those actions that do not serve person’s own or organizational main objectives. However, one should take a large perspective when considering this since operational tasks usually have an indirect impact on the main goals.

  3. Staff’s perspective
    In modern organizations, employees want to have a meaningful job and see their own impact in the big picture. The OKR model enables organizations to bring the main and most critical strategic goals and focus areas to people’s every-day work life by making the knowledge and management more transparent. This increases employees’ commitment to the organization and long-term goals.



How could your organization benefit from OKR? Start is never easy, and you can try a tool to help and support your organization’s management by objectives. Contact LATO’s team of experts and ask more about OKR-model and management tools!

In LATO we believe that transparency, employee contribution and systematic goal and action planning and follow-up is the key for successful strategy implementation.  This is why we created a tool that solves all this with speed and accuracy.