OKR-D

Objectives, Key Results and Deliverables


OVERVIEW

OKR-D is the evolved OKR method designed to enhance strategic, tactical, and operational alignment in institutions by effectively linking objectives, key results, and deliverables. It categorizes objectives into operational, innovative, and transformational for a three-dimensional perspective.

  • The essence of OKR-D: Sets clear and measurable goals, adaptable to institutional changes.
  • Integration and Alignment: Facilitates strategic connection and tactical-operational alignment within institutions, linking objectives, results, and deliverables.
  • Advantages: Promotes integrated and adaptive planning, guiding organizations in facing challenges and seizing opportunities.


COMPONENTES OF OKR-D

  • Objectives (O): Clear statements about intended achievements.
  • Key Results (KR): Quantifiable measures to monitor the achievement of objectives.
  • Deliverables (D): Products or services of a team, resulting from the work of its members.


NEED FOR A SPECIFIC METHOD

  • Limitations of Generic Methods: "One size fits all" models do not adapt well to the specificity of deliverables or the diverse needs of each team.
  • Challenge: Aligning the generation of products and services with strategy, overcoming the gap between operational and strategic planning.


PLANNING STRUCTURE

  • Levels of Planning: Answers the questions "what" (deliverables), "why" (strategy), and "how" (work management).
  • Differentiation of Objectives: Operational (focus on efficiency), innovative (improvement), and transformational (major strategic leaps).
  • Measuring Progress: Through results and deliverables, indicating advancements towards the goals.


STRUCTURAL ALIGNMENT

  • Organization Shaped by Strategy: Organizational structure should reflect the strategy, not the other way around.


TEMPORALITY OF OBJECTIVES AND RESULTS

  • Independence of Objectives and Results: Objectives and results are not limited to predefined cycles.
  • Planning Cycles: Focused on generating deliverables and progress towards results and objectives.


OKR-D CYCLE

  1. Definition: Understanding the organization's vision and mission to define inspiring objectives, measurable KRs, and deliverables.
  2. Execution: Continuous monitoring and check-in meetings.
  3. Review: Evaluation of execution, results, and reflection on learnings.
  4. Adjustment and Renewal: Based on learned lessons, adjustments to the OKR-D, and cycle renewal.


CYCLE FEATURES

  • Flexibility: Adaptation to changes.
  • Continuous Learning: Focus on both achieving goals and learning from the process.
  • Collaboration and Transparency: Involvement and sharing among team members.


CONCLUSION

  • Innovation and Integration: OKR-D is an innovative planning method, integrating objectives, results, and deliverables, adaptable to changes and aligned with institutional strategy, while also taking into account the unique characteristics and diverse needs of each team.
  • Improvement of Institutional Performance: Encourages continuous learning, collaboration, and transparency, optimizing management and maximizing the achievement of results.


INTRODUCTION

OKR-D (Objectives, Key Results, and Deliverables) is the evolved OKR method designed to enhance strategic, tactical, and operational alignment in institutions by effectively linking objectives, key results, and deliverables. It categorizes objectives into operational, innovative, and transformational for a three-dimensional perspective. OKR-D combines the flexibility and adaptability of OKR with the dynamism that deliverables plans bring to the management of institutional performance.

The essence of OKR-D lies in its ability to set clear and measurable goals while remaining dynamic and adjustable to changes in scenarios and institutional conditions. This aligns perfectly with the characteristics of agile, responsive, and result-oriented planning of deliverables plans.

OKR-D facilitates strategic-tactical-operational alignment and integration within the institution. This synergy between planning levels not only establishes clear directions for the organization but also explicitly connects objectives, results, and deliverables.

In summary, adopting OKR-D represents a significant step towards integrated, adaptable, and effective institutional planning, capable of directing organizations in their challenges and opportunities.

What are O, KR, and D?

  • Objectives (O): Clear statements about intended achievements. They should be significant, concrete, action-oriented, and (ideally) inspiring.
  • Key Results (KR): These are measures that monitor the achievement of objectives. They should be quantifiable, easy to assess, and limited in number (usually 2 to 5 per objective).
  • Deliverables (D): Products or services of a team, resulting from the work of its members.

THE NEED FOR A SPECIFIC METHOD

Generic planning methods tend to adopt a "one-size-fits-all" approach, not meeting the specific needs of organizations.

Deliverables plans offer a powerful method for performance management. They have a cycle that begins with the planning of the team's deliverables and the expected contribution of each member, documented respectively in deliverables plans and work plans. This is followed by plans execution and development of the deliverables. After, there is the evaluation of the plan execution, as well as the evaluation of each team member's contribution in comparison to what was expected. In essence, deliverables plans solve efficiently the "what" planning level.

Ideally, the development of products and services should be guided by strategy. Deliverables plans solve the issue of team planning (operational planning, in some cases containing tactical deliverables). However, generic planning methods often do not align well with the operational level, resulting in a lack of strategic guidance for the teams.

PLANNING STRUCTURE: OBJECTIVES, RESULTS & DELIVERABLES


THE LEVELS OF PLANNING

The different levels of planning aim to answer three basic questions: what, why, and how. "What" refers to what is produced by teams, the deliverables in the form of products or services. "Why" guides and brings purpose to what should be produced, being the strategic and guiding part. "How" deals with management at the level of activities and tasks, related to how the work of teams is managed. It is greatly influenced by the leadership style and the nature of the deliverables.

It is important to realize that each level of planning has a specific purpose and, together, they complement each other. Having all levels aligned brings meaning to action, increases clarity of purpose, and works as a guide for teams.


DIFFERENTIATING OPERATIONAL, INNOVATIVE AND TRANSFORMATIONAL OBJECTIVES

There are three types of objectives: operational, innovative, and transformational. Each type has a distinct role, from focusing on efficiency to enabling major strategic leaps. Distinguishing between them is crucial for effective planning.

The first and most common type of objectives are operational objectives. These objectives specify what must be done, whether by regulatory imposition, commitments, or obligations. As they are not optional, operational objectives should focus on efficiency, i.e., optimization, increasing capacity, reducing costs, and making better use of available resources.

The second type of objectives are innovative objectives. These objectives are a deliberate choice by leaders to do something different. They are not obligations and are driven by the desire to improve by changing something that is already done. Their focus is improvement.

Finally, there are transformational objectives. They allow organizations to make big leaps, change their strategic positioning, and actively affect reality. Due to this nature, they are rare and highly strategic.

When an organization does not distinguish between types of objectives and places them all in the same basket, institutional planning becomes more complex to manage and, at the same time, less strategic, as the larger volume of operational objectives tends to overshadow innovative and transformational objectives.

Hence the importance of distinguishing types of objectives and managing them according to their purpose: efficiency, improvement, or transformation.


MEASURING PROGRESS: RESULTS AND DELIVERABLES

The measurement of progress towards achieving objectives is done through results assessment. For an objective to be achieved, one or more results must be attained. Thus, for each objective, it is necessary to identify which results are needed for its achievement.

But for there to be a result, one or more deliverables must be produced. Thus, deliverables, as products or services, are tangible indicators of progress toward results and, consequently, toward objectives.


STRUCTURAL ALIGNMENT: ORGANIZATION AND STRATEGY

The organizational structure should be shaped by the strategy, not the other way around. Structures are designed to execute the strategy. While the strategy may remain constant despite organizational structural changes, a change in strategy may require adjustments in the structure. Therefore, it is essential to formulate objectives independent of the organizational structure, not restricted or subordinate to it. The strategy is defined first, followed by the structuring appropriate to achieve the proposed objectives.

TEMPORALITY OF OBJECTIVES AND RESULTS

The timing for achieving objectives should not be limited to fixed periods established by strategic management cycles. It is important to consider the complexity of each objective, the available resources, and the specific context to evaluate the necessary time for its maturation and achievement.

The most effective metric for verifying the achievement of objectives is the attainment of results. Each objective should have clear and well-defined results, which, once achieved, indicate that the objective has been met.

The cycles, on the other hand, are pre-established, uniform, and stable, covering stages of planning, execution, evaluation, and replanning. These cycles represent periods of planning and management should not be treated as rigid deadlines for the start and completion of objectives. Imposing such rigidity, aiming for greater control over deadlines, can lead to the definition of less ambitious and even irrelevant objectives.

Therefore, the deadlines for achieving objectives are independent of planning and management cycles and are directly related to the analysis of their complexity, available resources, and context. These deadlines are established individually for each objective.

However, each cycle is expected to generate deliverables and progress towards the desired results. These cycles should specify in deliverables plans which deliverables the teams should work on during the period, as well as the expected performance.

Institutional planning should connect each deliverable to a specific result for better outcomes. This is why the duration of deliverables plans should be aligned with the cycle of strategic management. Deliverables are fundamental to achieving the desired results. Considering that results are measured and established in specific cycles, the period of deliverables plans should be aligned with the OKR-D cycles.

In summary, the hierarchy follows from the most general and strategic to the most specific and concrete: objectives, results, and deliverables. The objectives (operational, innovative, and transformational) are at the strategic level, the results at the tactical level, and the deliverables, in general, at the operational level.

OKR-D CYCLE


1. DEFINING OKR-D


DEFINING OBJECTIVES (O):
  • Understand the Organization's Vision: Before setting objectives, it's important to comprehend the organization's vision and overall goals. This ensures that the objectives are aligned with the strategic direction.
  • Deliverables Definition Workshops: Conduct workshops with teams to generate ideas and discuss objectives. Facilitation methods such as Design Thinking can optionally be used. These workshops should be open and creative, encouraging everyone to contribute.
  • Be Inspirational and Challenging: Objectives should be ambitious and inspiring. They should challenge the team to leave their comfort zone and strive for excellence.
  • Clarity and Simplicity: Objectives should be clear and understandable. Avoid jargon and be as specific as possible.
  • Focus on Impact: Objectives should have a significant impact on the organization. Ask how each objective contributes to the overall vision.


DEFINING KEY RESULTS (KR):
  • Success Measurement: Key Results should be specific metrics used to measure progress toward the objective. They should be quantifiable and easily measurable.
  • Relevance: Each KR should be directly related to the objective it intends to measure. Ask yourself: "If we achieve this KR, will we be closer to achieving our goal?"
  • Challenging, yet Achievable: KRs should be realistic but at the same time challenging. Setting KRs too easy can lead to complacency, while unrealistic KRs can be demotivating.
  • Limit the Number of KRs: Generally, it's recommended to have between 2 to 5 KRs per objective. Having too many KRs can dilute focus and make tracking progress difficult.
  • Deadline: KRs should have clearly defined deadlines. This creates a sense of urgency and helps with prioritizing actions.


DEFINING DELIVERABLES (D):

Refer to 4W1H guide, each deals exclusively with deliverables.


2. EXECUTION

During the cycle, teams execute their deliverables plans and employees’ work plans, always focusing on progress toward the defined KRs. This phase involves:

  • Continuous Monitoring: Track the development of deliverables and the progress of KRs regularly, which can be weekly or monthly.
  • Check-in Meetings: Conduct regular meetings to discuss progress and challenges, and adjust strategies if necessary.


3. REVIEW

At the end of the cycle, a detailed analysis of the OKR-D is performed:

  • Evaluation of Deliverables Plan Execution: Verify the development of deliverables in relation to planned goals and deadlines. The satisfaction of each deliverable's requester can be evaluated directly, and the benefit to the recipients can be studied.
  • Evaluation of Results: Measure the success in achieving the KRs and analyze the impact of the results on the objectives.
  • Reflection and Learning: Identify lessons learned, challenges faced, and opportunities for improvement.


4. ADJUSTMENT AND RENEWAL

Based on the lessons learned and the results achieved:

  • Adjustments to OKR-D: Make adjustments to the objectives, results and deliverables as necessary for the next cycle.
  • Development of Deliverables Plans: New deliverables plans are agreed upon, considering ongoing deliverables and intended results for the period.
  • Renewal of the Process: A new OKR-D cycle begins, taking into account the insights gained.


CHARACTERISTICS OF THE OKR-D CYCLE

  • Flexibility: The ability to adapt and modify OKR-D in response to changes in the environment and context is crucial.
  • Focus on Continuous Learning: The OKR-D cycle is as much about achieving goals as it is about learning from the process.
  • Collaboration: The involvement and commitment of all team members are key to the success of OKR-D.
  • Transparency: Sharing progress and challenges helps to create an environment of trust and mutual support.
    Implementing and maintaining an effective OKR-D cycle requires discipline, clear communication, and a commitment to continuous improvement. It serves as a mechanism to ensure that everyone in the organization is working aligned and effectively towards common goals.

    CONCLUSION

    OKR-D emerges as an innovative method of institutional planning, offering a robust yet flexible framework for institutional performance management. OKR-D is designed to integrate with team deliverables plans and enhance them. Through the integration of objectives (O), key results (KR), and deliverables (D), it establishes a clear path for strategy execution. This not only aligns institutional goals with individual actions but also ensures that each level of planning - strategic, tactical, and operational - is interconnected and functions in synergy.

    The distinction between operational, innovative, and transformational objectives, along with the measurement of progress through results and deliverables, highlights OKR-D as a comprehensive tool for the realization of institutional strategy. This approach allows organizations to quickly adapt to contextual changes while maintaining a clear vision of their objectives.

    The OKR-D cycle, with its phases of definition, execution, review, and adjustment, encourages continuous learning and improvement. It promotes collaboration, flexibility, and transparency, vital elements for efficient and responsive institutional performance management. Ultimately, adopting OKR-D enhances organizations' ability to face challenges and capitalize on opportunities, paving the way for a more innovative, strategic, and successful future.