Ben on OKRs

So many OKR coaches will tell you that Milestones need to be avoided at all costs. KRs must have a number or they are terrible!
But hold on, what does Ben think?
Learn about the 3 types of Key Results and think through whether or not you should allow Milestones!
There are three types of key results: metric, baseline, and milestone. Metric key results are the most common. They look like “move metric A from X to Y.” Baseline key results are used when X is not being measured and your client seeks a metric to reflect progress on a given objective. Your client should only put in the effort to establish a baseline if they expect to use that baseline as the starting point for a metric key result in a future OKRs cycle.
Most leadership teams define a solid set of metric key results for top-level objectives. However, many teams struggle to define metric key results.
Dozens of teams send us their OKRs for feedback each year. Their key results often look more like a list of tasks that reflect work output rather than measurable outcomes. Unlike metric key results, milestone key results tend not to include numbers. Milestones are binary—they are either achieved or not. Given that milestones are notorious for reflecting work output rather than outcomes, should milestone key results even be allowed?
Some OKRs coaches advise avoiding milestone key results entirely. On page seven of his OKRs book, John Doerr credits Marissa Mayer with her observation, “it’s not a key result unless it has a number.” However, in this same book, Doerr provides examples of milestone key results such as “develop a demo.” (SEE NOTE AT END)
Marissa might not be happy with this key result! As an OKRs coach, you work with your client to transform draft key results that often look like a to-do list into refined key results that reflect measurable outcomes. Here is a hypothetical OKRs coaching conversation to make this concrete:
Client: My key result is to develop a demo.
Coach: What is the intended outcome of developing this demo? How will we know the demo is a success?
Client: Well, the demo is a success if we can get positive customer feedback, but all I can commit to is developing the demo this quarter. It will be quite a stretch to get feedback.
Coach: OK, what will be demo’d and how will we know it is developed?
Client: We’re developing a demo for product X and our sales team decides if it’s developed and ready to be used. Ultimately, it is our customers that will decide if it’s a valuable product.
Coach: Are you committing to presenting the demo to the sales team or to customers?
Client: I can’t commit to showing it to customers. That is the decision of the sales team. I can commit to presenting the demo to our sales team.
A bit more OKRs coaching might lead to the following refined key result that (1) focuses on outcome, (2) distinguishes between a commitment and a stretch outcome, and (3) specifies what is being “demo’d” and who decides it is “developed.”
type="example"
Key Result: 3 customers sign an agreement to purchase product X after viewing the new product X demo
Commit = present product X demo to our sales team for feedback in our test environment
Target = present product X demo to five prospects with feedback on likelihood to purchase
In this hypothetical coaching conversation, the draft key result, “develop a demo,” becomes the commit level of progress. However, the stretch key result now reflects customer interest in the product. It is the number of customers interested in the product that reflects the needle the client is ultimately trying to move. Marissa would likely approve now that the key result has a number.
As an OKRs coach, you help your client translate milestone key results like “produce a demo of product X” into aspirational outcomes like “three customers sign an agreement for product X” that move a metric rather than simply represent completion of a task. Therefore, we might conclude that all key results should be metrics. However, while we recommend defining mostly metric key results, our clients often choose to define milestone key results as well.
Rather than declaring all milestone key results are bad, we invite you to consider the possibility that milestone key results can be used to reflect outcomes not output. Consider the following two milestone key results one of our clients drafted: (1) Present requirements to obtain a permit to build houses in Portland to leadership team and (2) Obtain a permit to begin new construction in Portland. The first milestone is a task that reflects work output. One person should be able to research required documentation for a permit and schedule a meeting with leadership. However, the second milestone is not a task; it is a potential key result that reflects a binary outcome. Ask questions to guide your client to move from task-like milestones that reflect work output to key results that reflect outcomes.
Coaching Takeaways
Help your client define mostly metric key results (i.e., move metric A from X to Y).
If your client is not already measuring the right metric to capture progress on an objective, consider defining a baseline key result. In other words, “find X” so your client can define a metric key result to improve from X to Y in the future.
Not all milestone key results are bad! Ask questions to help move your client further down the value chain to translate tasks and work output into outcomes.
Use scoring to convert output milestones to outcome milestones or metrics. As inspiration, use the hypothetical coaching conversation that translated the output milestone, “develop a demo,” into the metric key result, “3 customers sign an agreement to purchase product X after viewing the new product X demo.”
 
Note:
In reviewing John Doerr’s book, Felipe Castro, an OKRs expert and good friend of mine, notes: “Out of the 60 Key Results listed, 32 (53%) lack numbers. They include things such as “Create a retirement plan for all legacy technology,” and “Focus on hiring player managers/leaders.” Even John Doerr’s own OKRs from his days at Intel lack numbers (e.g., “Develop a Demo”).
 

This is the first in a series of episodes featuring "Real OKR Implementation" stories.
Many organizations adopt OKRs because they want focus, alignment, and execution discipline.
But small and fast-growing companies face a unique challenge:
They must move quickly
They cannot afford bureaucracy
They cannot rely on heavy process
Yet they still need clarity and coordination
GoNoodle, a company focused on helping kids stay active and engaged, successfully launched OKRs in a growth-stage company in just 18 days!
The Situation: Growth Created Urgency
After raising new capital, GoNoodle entered a period of aggressive growth. Leadership knew that without a clear system, the organization could quickly lose focus.
As their co-founder described:
“The growth plan was aggressive. We knew it would introduce a new level of complexity and potential chaos. How would we stay focused on the right things? How would we define and measure our most important work?”
They discovered OKRs and immediately saw the potential — but also understood the risk:
“Failure to launch OKRs well could jade the staff and undermine the whole effort. We had to get it right.”
So they moved quickly — but intentionally.
A Fast Start, With Structure
GoNoodle launched OKRs in just 18 days. But speed alone wasn’t the secret. Structure and cadence were. They began by defining company-level OKRs, then worked closely with each department to translate strategy into measurable team-level outcomes.
Along the way, they discovered: “Writing good key results is an art. In theory it’s simple, but it was much more difficult than expected.”
They also recognized the value of defining success upfront: “We set the scoring criteria for every key result at the time of creation. This was difficult — and extremely valuable.”
Within weeks, OKRs were visible across the company and supported by a regular execution rhythm.
The 2-Cycle OKR Launch Model
The GoNoodle experience closely mirrors what we now formalize at OKRs.com as a two-cycle launch model, designed to build both clarity and capability.
At GoNoodle, this included defining company OKRs first and ensuring each team’s objectives directly supported the company’s direction. They reinforced this through leadership reviews and shared visibility. As their co-founder explained:
“We review every OKR weekly at the executive level to make sure we are focused on what matters most.”
“The connecting nature of OKRs, linking company goals to the work of each team, was one of the most compelling parts of the framework.”
“We now have a level of operating rigor that we never had before.”
“Clarity of our most important work, more focused execution, transparency around what we are doing, and improved culture.”
GoNoodle reinforced OKRs through:
Weekly executive OKR reviews
Mid-quarter team check-ins
Quarterly company OKR reviews
Shared visibility of all OKRs
OKR onboarding for new employees
“OKRs became part of our operating DNA.”
What GoNoodle Achieved
Following the OKRs.com structured approach, GoNoodle experienced:
Clearer definition of their most important work
Stronger alignment across teams
Improved focus and execution
Greater transparency and accountability
A disciplined operating rhythm
Cultural adoption of OKRs
Implications for Small/Growing Organizations
If you are launching OKRs in a smaller or growth-stage company:
Move fast, but take a structured approach leveraging the 3 phases over 2 cycles.
Define commit/target/stretch levels of each KR upfront to ensure alignment.
Make OKRs visible to all!
Build cadence early.
Expect improvement with each cycle.; commit to 2 cycles from the start.
Launch Your OKR Program the Right Way!
How to Launch Your OKR Program
If you’d like to learn how to launch OKRs using our 3-Phase approach over 2 cycles, contact:
Ben@OKRs.com
Thanks for listening!
 

Are you suffering from OKR planning fatigue? Are you feeling like you're always behind?
Before 2019, most teams set OKRs each quarter by default. That's just how it's done. But is that what's best for you?
One of the most practical decisions in any OKR implementation is determining the length of the OKR cycle.
Should it be quarterly, four months or longer?
Ben explains why cycle timing matters and how the right cadence can strengthen focus alignment and execution across your organization.
You learn why most organizations begin with a common cycle length typically quarterly and why very short cycles often fail to provide enough time for meaningful progress.
Ben also explores when a four month cycle can be more effective how cycle timing may vary across different levels of the organization and why strategic OKRs often remain stable throughout the year while operational OKRs evolve more frequently.
Drawing on real world examples including multi tier OKR structures used in large organizations this episode provides practical guidance for choosing a cycle length that balances learning execution and adaptability helping teams build a sustainable rhythm for long term OKR success
Request a free 1:1 OKR consult via Ben@OKRs.com
 

Why do OKRs in the first place? You MUST be clear on the answer to this question BEFORE deploying OKRs.
Do you know YOUR answer? And it should not be just because "Google does it" or "My CEO read a book and she loved it so now we're all doing OKRs"
The Benefits include 5 General Ones:
1-Shorter Cadence
2-Focus
3-Transparency/Alignment
4-Engagement
5-Stretch Thinking
+ 2 More that Ben has identified:
6-Common Goal Language
7-Learning Culture
If you're using OKRs, please share why you chose to deploy OKRs in the comments. Was it one of the 7 benefits covered in this episode? If not, please share your "why" so we can all benefit:)
Progress Principle TedTalk demonstrating how okrs can drive engagement:
https://youtu.be/XD6N8bsjOEE?si=IWbrRMwZyeQDQxgY
As always, get your free 1:1 OKR consult with Ben via Ben@OKRs.com
Thanks for listening

Are your KRs stretch? Are they commitments? Are you using Radical Focus? Measure What Matters? Ben's Stretch-Target-Commit model?
Are you not even sure what approach you are taking?
You need to know how key results are scored and how progress is tracked during the OKR cycle.
Without a STANDARD, clear approach, teams can misjudge success, create confusion, or miss early warning signs that execution is off track.
This episode explores how the way you define and measure the level of “stretch” and "commitment" in your key results can shape behavior, expectations, and ultimately outcomes.
You’ll learn why objectives should not be scored, and why the real focus belongs on key results. Ben walks through the three most common scoring systems used in practice: 1) Radical Focus, 2) Measure What Matters, and 3) Stretch-Target-Commit.
He explains how each approach influences how teams set goals, interpret progress, and learn from results.
He also shares why aligning on scoring criteria upfront can spark critical conversations that prevent misalignment and unrealistic expectations later in the cycle.
Beyond end-of-cycle scoring, this episode dives into how to track progress during execution. You’ll discover the difference between historical progress (“what has happened”) and predictive progress (“what is likely to happen”), and why predictive scoring can serve as an early warning system for leaders.
Ben also explores how numerical scores alone don’t tell the full story — and how adding a qualitative “health” signal can surface hidden risks, unintended behaviors, and opportunities for course correction.
This episode reframes scoring as a tool for communication, expectation management, and learning (not performance evaluation of individual staff) and will help you design a scoring and progress approach that drives clarity, better conversations, and stronger execution throughout the OKR cycle.
Request your free 1:1 OKR consult with Ben via Ben@OKRs.com
 

How Many OKRs Should You Set? And Should You Include an Internal Objective?
One of the most practical questions in any OKR implementation is simple: How many OKRs should we set? Too many, and focus is lost. Too few, and important priorities may be missed.
In this episode, Ben Lamorte explains why the modern OKR approach favors fewer, more focused objectives. And he introduces the mantra “less is more” to drive better execution.
You’ll learn when teams should start with a single objective, why most teams benefit from limiting themselves to two or three objectives, and when it may actually make sense to capture most of your work inside OKRs.
Ben also explores the important distinction between external objectives (impacting customers and growth) and internal objectives (improving processes, teams, and capabilities), and how balancing the two can strengthen your OKR system.
Whether you're just starting with OKRs or refining your approach, this episode provides practical guidance to help you create sharper focus, clearer priorities, and more effective execution.
Post a comment and let's get a discussion going...
Ben introduces all 10 deployment parameters in THIS VIDEO TRAINING
Request a free 1:1 OKR consultation via Ben@OKRs.com
 
 

At What Level Should You Set OKRs? Company, Team, or Individual
One of the most important decisions in any OKR deployment is where OKRs should be set. Should you start at the company level? Roll out to teams immediately? Require individual OKRs? Get this wrong, and even well-designed OKRs can fail.
Your decision to this question can dramatically impact the type of culture you're creating.  
In this episode, Ben Lamorte explains how to thoughtfully introduce OKRs across organizational levels over time. You’ll learn when company-level OKRs make sense (and when they don’t), to structure effective team-level OKRs beyond the org chart, and why mandating individual OKRs can lead to an OKR failure.
Through real-world examples, Ben explores three powerful approaches to defining OKR teams: merging highly dependent teams, leveraging cross-functional squads, and forming teams around strategic priorities. The episode concludes with practical coaching guidance to help leaders build alignment, avoid common pitfalls, and create a scalable, sustainable OKR system.
Ben introduces all 10 deployment parameters in THIS VIDEO
Contact Ben@OKRs.com to get your free consultation now!

You get the context for why Ben created "10 universal deployment parameters" (the questions you must answer BEFORE deploying OKRs) as context for the next 10 episodes!
Ben shares a pivotal moment early in his OKRs coaching journey, a training workshop in Paris that did not go as planned. What seemed like a straightforward workshop quickly turned into hours of debate about alignment, KPIs, performance reviews, and how OKRs should actually be deployed.
On the long flight home, Ben reflected deeply and identified a powerful insight: before any OKRs training begins, organizations must first align on a clear set of foundational decisions. He later named these decisions deployment parameters.
You will learn why every successful OKR program begins with clarity on how OKRs will be implemented, and why skipping this step often leads to confusion, misalignment, and weak execution.
The episode also explores one of the most critical starting points: Why OKRs? You will hear why imitative answers (like "Google did it" or "Our CEO read Measure What Matters and lots of successful companies do OKRs" fail.
And more importantly, how strong OKR deployments begin with a clear understanding of the ONE BIG PROBLEM leadership is trying to solve with OKRs.
Request your free OKRs 1:1 Consult via Ben@OKRs.com