Pradeep Kanagaraj is Vice President of Operations at Mendel . getty Objectives and key results (OKRs) have long been the gold standard for strategic planning in businesses worldwide. OKRs provide a structured way to set ambitious goals and measure progress, but while enthusiasm is high during the goal-setting phase, execution often falters.
The reason? OKRs focus on the what but often neglect the how . We’ve all experienced it before: It’s a new quarter, the executive team is ready to unleash the new company objectives, and everyone waits with bated breath to find out what the mission of the quarter will be. There’s applause, and the energy within the company is palpable.
But after a few weeks pass, everyone returns to doing what they were doing before the new objectives were released. Teams often lose momentum after the initial goal-setting phase because OKRs are aspirational but lack a structured execution plan. There’s a lot of fanfare in determining the next OKRs, but often weeks and months will go by while teams debate the best way to achieve the goal.
The problem lies in ambiguity and a lack of alignment on the plan to achieve the goal, which precipitates accountability issues. There is usually a person assigned to champion each KR, but in reality, it’s never one person’s duty—achieving the objective requires cross-functional collaboration. I’ve witnessed the ebb and flow of excitement and engagement surrounding OKRs throughout my career, and it continuo.
