OKR (Objectives and Key Results)
OKR stands for Objectives and Key Results: a goal-setting method that pairs an objective written in words with a few measurable key results that show whether it was reached. Company OKRs cascade into department, team and individual ones, so each person's goals trace back to the company's.
Also called: OKR, OKRs, objectives and key results, OKR full form, OKR meaning
Key facts
- Full form
- Objectives and Key Results
- Key results
- Usually 3–5 per objectiveEach one measurable.
- Cycle
- Usually a quarterCompany OKRs are often annual.
Objective or key result
An objective is what you want to achieve, in words: “Make payroll month end painless for finance.” A key result is how you will know: “Close payroll within two working days of the BS month end”, or “No payslip corrections after release”.
If a key result cannot be checked with a number or a clear yes or no, it is a task or a hope rather than a key result.
How OKRs cascade
Cascading means each level sets OKRs that serve the level above. The company sets a handful, each department writes its own beneath the ones it can move, and teams and individuals do the same. Progress then rolls up: when individual key results move, the team objective above them shows it, and so on to the top.
A cascade does not turn every company key result into somebody's objective word for word. The useful version links each goal to the one it serves and leaves the people closest to the work to write how.
OKRs and performance reviews
Many companies keep OKR scores out of the rating on purpose, so people set ambitious key results rather than safe ones. Others use goal progress as one input among several. Either works if it is decided before the quarter starts rather than after it ends.
OKR (Objectives and Key Results), answered
Objectives and Key Results. The objective is the goal in words, and the key results are the measurable outcomes that show whether it was reached.
A KPI is a measure tracked continuously to see how something is performing. An OKR is a time-bound goal to change something, with key results that say by how much. A KPI that needs to improve often becomes a key result for a quarter.
Usually three to five. Fewer can miss what matters, and more spread attention too thin to move any of them.
This page explains general practice in Nepal. It is not legal or tax advice, and statutory figures are revised from time to time. Check the current Act, rule or notice before acting on it.
Related terms
- 360-Degree Feedback360-degree feedback is a review in which an employee is rated by the people who work around them (their manager, peers, direct reports and sometimes clients) as well as by themselves. Answers are pooled by group so that raters can be candid.
- Performance Improvement Plan (PIP)A performance improvement plan (PIP) is a written plan that sets out where an employee's work is falling short, what has to change, the support they will get and the dates progress will be reviewed. It turns a general concern into a fixed, shared record before any decision about the job is taken.
- HRMSAn HRMS, or human resource management system, is software that holds employee data and runs the workflows around it: payroll, attendance, leave, performance and the approvals that connect them.
- Attrition RateAttrition rate is the proportion of employees who leave over a period, usually expressed annually. It is calculated as leavers divided by average headcount for the period, times one hundred.
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