1.
OKRs
what are they about and how to implement them
Presented in Polish at Management 3.0 Meetup in Warsaw, January 2017

2.
This presentation describes the process of implementing OKRs in the Internet
division of the Polish media company Agora in 2016
In 2017 the approach was used by 27 teams in the division
For better clarity, the slides were complemented by comments (fine print in the bottom)
If you have any questions don't hesitate to ask me

3.
We don't know what the priorities are
What exactly is our strategy?
Our goals are contradictory
We keep changing the direction
We do not know how we are doing
Popular problems in organisations
Before implementing OKRs, it is good to agree what problems we are trying to solve

4.
A man came across three stonecutters and asked them what they were doing.
The first replied, “I am making a living.” The second kept on hammering while he said, “I am doing the best job of stonecutting in the
entire county.”
The third looked up with a visionary gleam in his eye and said, “I am building a cathedral.”
Peter Drucker, The Practice of Management
People work better if they are a part of something bigger. It is easier to engage if we can see the future cathedral in the stone. The
stonecutter who is fully engaged in stonecutting and does this with the mastery is the happiest of all three.
http://charaktery.eu/psychowiesci/4207 (in Polish)
Courbet Gustave, Stonecutters, 1849

5.
OKRs - Objectives and Key Results
Management by Objectives approach
Developed by Intel
Used at Google
Easier to understand and better described than alternatives for eg. Salesforce’s
V2Moms
More than 7 startups provide SaaS applications for OKRs
They produce lot of educational material while doing content marketing

6.
Objective - what we want to achieve
Qualitative and inspiring
KRs - Key Results
„As measured by…”
They state if the objective was met

7.
Successful launch of product X
- 500.000 daily users of free version
- 8% conversion rate to paid option
- Net Promoter Score 75%
- Less than 5 critical mistakes
The example from a typical presentation: goal written in OKR approach
Most materials focus on the formal side "how to write the OKRs"
Meanwhile OKRs are also...

8.
Process of:
- Choosing what is important
- Defining exciting goals and finding the right measures (form)
- Communicating priorities
Focus and Approach
Approach affects culture of an organisation as an effect of two assumptions of
OKRs:
1. Objectives are set on the team level (60% bottom-up).
2. Stretch Goals plus no compensation

9.
a manager is responsible for the contributions that his component makes [..]
This requires each manager to develop and set the objectives of his unit himself.
Higher management must, of course, reserve the power to approve or disapprove
theses objectives. But their development is a part of a manager’s responsibility
Peter Drucker „Practice of management” 1954
60 % of OKRs are written by units
Method focuses on communicating business goals

10.
The Queen: Spain's wealth
Columbus: New way to the East
Example of goal cascade given by A.Grove’a, in one of the
best books on management

11.
Source:OBJECTIVES & KEY RESULTS, John Doerr 11/05/2014

12.
The steps in the process
„The board” defines priorities and high level goals
Units decide how to support organization goals
They consult their OKRs with bosses
…past period is scored
OKRs are published
The process begins from a board meeting
Afterwards goals are published
Then units choose theirs
The whole process should take no more than three weeks

13.
Recommendations for execution period
Do not change OKRs
Print them, stick on the nearest wall
Use in meetings and reports
Make regular checkpoints
Breathe
You should go back to OKRs in the time of execution regularly at meetings and
during conversations. It perpetuates priorities and helps to retain focus.

14.
Source:OBJECTIVES & KEY RESULTS, John Doerr 11/05/2014

15.
We measure to know the progress
Scoring less important than setting
Goals should be very ambitious
Approach has to inspire to take risks

16.
Stretch goals vs „performance and bonus”
Stretch goals are one of the most important assumptions of OKRs
Good score is 0,6-0,7 (60-70 proc.)
Do not tie to the bonuses, do not punish for not achieving
KPI - for processes, OKRs - strategy execution and new peaks
There are problems with this, especially in organizations using KPIs
This can be reconciled, but you have to find your own solution

17.
Steps for implementing
We admit that we have a problem
Learning about the method
Joint decision of board (full buy-in) - small chances for success without buy-in
Pilot + Training
Q1
Recurring: Conclusions + evaluation + training

18.
Challenges and recommendations
Need to adapt to organization
Keep 60% bottom-up
Issues and projects that last more than 1Q
"Public" goals
Tools: spreadsheet for start + Directly Responsible Executive (C-level)
Q1 will not be perfect… Q2.. the same

19.
Typical mistakes
Too many
Formally wrong - KRs don’t describe progress of an Objective
Planning instead of measuring results
Conflicting Goals of collaborating teams
Lack of post-mortem

20.
Lessons from Zalando
Measuring team’s level of happiness…
No central process for OKRs
Central support to facilitate drafting sessions
Zalando wide OKR alignment week
OKR committee to ensure enough bottom-up OKRs
All-Hands meetings where grades are shared
Source: http://blog.perdoo.com/how-zalando-sets-goals/

21.
Our recommendations and conclusions
Focus: max 5 x 4 for the whole org
For every central KR exec as a DRI
Alignment week
Monthly check
Expert team for improving the process
From time to time check the fundamentals
Training and improving never stops

22.
Our “takeaways” - what we have from OKRs?
Our "operating system" helps to align
Communication - everyone knows the goals of the organization
Regular conversations about important issues
Discipline: rhythm and focus
Clarifying responsibilities and ownership
Help in planning and coordination
History of activities and progress
Employees appreciate and praise!

23.
Thanks
Tomasz Bienias
twitter @tutebe