What is OKR?
OKR (Objectives and Key Results) is a goal setting system used by Google and other companies. It is a simple approach to create alignment and engagement around measurable goals.
I will (Objective) as measured by (this set of Key Results).
OKRs originated at Intel in the late 90s and was introduced to Google in 1999 by the famous venture capitalist John Doerr, and continued to spread to other companies in the Silicon Valley. It has supported Google growth from 40 employees until now!
I will not explain OKRs in details as there are many online resources for this purpose. I will, however, show you how I integrated this framework with the 0, 30 and 90-day rule to achieve product success and to ensure everyone is going in the same direction, with clear priorities, in a constant agile rhythm.
What is the 0, 30 and 90-day Rule?
It is a test criteria used in Agile development to test different stages of product adoption by target users (personas):
0-day: It tests product usability from each persona perspective. How easy can they use your product? Do they need to refer to a user manual to do things that was supposed to be straightforward during the UX design? Does the user have the interactions we planned for with our product?
30-day: Users are using it regularly/at roughly the frequency you established to call the feature ‘relevant’
90-day: It’s contributing to whatever is the target outcome for the user- selling more, collaborating better, etc.
Integrating OKRs with the 0, 30 and 90-day Rule
OKRs is a powerful tool because it works well at strategic and tactical levels:
- High-level, long term OKRs for the whole company. Can be annual or semi-annual
- Tactical short term OKRs for the teams
Tactical OKRs can be seen as a way to execute the high-level OKRs and the company strategy without spending hours cascading goals up and down the company. It gives teams the autonomy of setting OKRs that are consistent with their agile cadences and aligned to the company strategy and the high-level OKRs.
Exmaple
Here is an example on how the 0, 30 and 90-day rule and OKRs play together.
0-day:
Purpose: Test usability
OKRs example:
| Objectives | Key Results |
|---|---|
| Easy registration and profile update for job seekers | Job seeker should be able to register and update their profile in 3 minutes |
| Awesome job application experience for job seekers | Job application for a job seeker should take 2 minutes from the moment they click “Apply” button if they have their CV file ready
Job search result should render to job seekers in < 1 second |
30-day:
Purpose: Users are still using the system the same frequency we expected
OKRs example:
| Objectives | Key Results |
|---|---|
| Frequent job applications by job seekers | An active job seeker should apply for jobs at least 4 times a month on average |
| Frequent job posts by job providers | A job provider with 200 employee and above should post at least 1 job a month on average |
90-day:
Purpose: Outcome has been achieved by job seekers and job providers
OKRs example:
| Objectives | Key Results |
|---|---|
| Job seekers found a job | 70% of active job seekers found a job in 3 months |
|
Job providers got the candidates they are looking for |
85% of job providers found the candidates they are looking for in 3 months |
Mat Kasem 