ELEAP

Posted by perfomance on October 28th, 2021

With pinpoint accurate global positioning systems, it’s hard to imagine that there was once a time when you needed a road map to go anywhere long distance. Without a clear and detailed map, you’d easily get lost and end up asking for directions in a local diner. But nowadays, you wouldn’t plan a trip without using the GPS on your phone or an integrated navigation system. Objective and Key Results or OKR can be one of the most powerful engines of success for any organization.

The same should go for your business. You can’t expect employees to proficiently do their jobs without first laying out clear objectives. They need to know where the company’s goals lie before they can achieve any growth. That’s why you should be implementing objectives and key results (OKR) into your employees’ performance management.

Look at it this way—who is going to be more productive, a worker given a clear list of company goals and instructions on how to achieve them, or a worker who’s left to figure things out on their own? If this is all news to you, don’t worry. We’re going to walk you through the details and break down exactly what OKR means, where it came from, some of its benefits, and how to build it into your company’s employee evaluation system. Download the ebook, “

OKR is an abbreviation that stands for “objectives and key results”. Essentially, it is a framework that lets companies manage their goals and actualize on growth strategies. This framework helps employees focus on their yearly expectations, improve transparency between workers and upper management, and keep everyone in line with the corporate standards. This is all possible by structuring who does what work around the objectives at hand. This way, the right employee is working on the right job.

Before we go too much further, let’s break down the parts of the acronym OKR.

• Objectives refer to the goals that a company wants to achieve in a set amount of time. This ideally fits a year-end model but could also be lengthened to beyond a year or shortened to quarterly results. Effectively, objectives state where the company wants to go. If we are sticking with the roadmap analogy, think of this as your final destination.
• Key Results are the steps on the way to achieving a final objective. Generally, companies break their objectives into five or so main steps that employees can work through to get to the final result. Think of key results as the road signs telling you how much further you need to drive.
• From there, some companies even break key results into more specific initiatives. These detail exactly what work employees must do to meet their deadlines. Consider initiatives as your navigator telling you when and where to turn.

Setting up a framework gives employees a set of rules so they know where they should be focusing and what points need prioritizing first. With OKR, final outcomes are measured rather than employee output.

How OKR Can Benefit Your Business

Compared to employees who lack a clear set of objectives and key results, workers using OKR perform more productively and complete their assignments more effectively. You’ll see a boost in overall performance which will translate to a boost in sales. More importantly, though, you’ll see a change in how your employees interact with their work and management.

One of the most significant benefits of  into your company’s performance management process is that employees will want to take an active role in their work. By making the company’s objectives transparent to employees, they will feel more inclined to engage with their assignments as they can see how their input works towards a final goal.

Employees want to feel that their efforts are going towards something and, by clearly laying out the full process, employees understand their place in the larger system. They can then prioritize what will have the biggest impact and align with their work to move it forward before a deadline. More engaged employees equate to more productive employees and productivity is profitability.