The real reason OKR keeps failing

TL;DR - OKRs require empowerment. When used outside this context they simply amplify a problem. At least in the past teams were measured by outputs. Now they’re measured by outcomes they can’t control.

As I try to get a feel for the sentiment towards OKR, I find myself searching for the term on Twitter. Aside from realising that there are better things to spend your time on, I’ve learned that there is a lot of bad feeling towards the framework.

Surprisingly, this bad feeling doesn’t have its genesis in a sea of OKR success stories. It was born in the rubble of failed implementations. There are many frustrated teams, organisations and individuals who will swear at OKR rather than swear by it. Despite that, the term and the framework grows in popularity.

Why is OKR so difficult?

The bad feeling comes from bad experiences. Why are so many companies failing with OKR?

Most people think in terms of techniques, the cadence, the format of your KRs etc. In fact the web is full of articles about OKR mistakes. They all talk about techniques, but that’s a red herring.

Yes, you need to get the techniques right. That’s what your OKR coach is for. Yes, you need to get the implementation right. Radical Focus Second Edition is a good source of wisdom for this. Again, a good coach will also help.

But the real problem is closer to home.

My belief is that the number 1 reason for OKR failure is that organisations are not ready to use it. OKR needs the right context to succeed and it will only solve a limited range of problems.

The first clue in the context can be found in my opening question for organisations thinking about adopting OKR. What do you hope to achieve from adopting it? Swiftly followed by, how will you know if you’ve succeeded?

Ideally that answer will include a desire to increase alignment, while retaining empowerment.

Empowerment is a crucial term for OKR success. Teams have to be free to solve problems for themselves. Yes, there is a bi-directional conversation when setting the OKRs, but then the leaders step back and allow empowered teams to find their own path.

OKRs give the team measurable goals that they can track progress towards.

Giving teams this kind of freedom requires a certain level of leadership maturity. Many organisations are not there yet.

Sometimes I will hear leaders say they want to drive alignment with OKRs. What they really mean is that they want better control of what their teams are doing.

I don’t want to write an article about Empowerment and its context. Marty Cagan has already nailed that. One lesson I will draw fromthat book is:

“Probably the single most important, yet most often overlooked, element to capable management is coaching. At the very minimum, this involves a weekly 1:1 with the people who report to you as their people manager.

Empowerment isn’t about leaving teams to live or die by their resources. It’s about giving them the freedom to learn, but also the support to grow. These are crucial conditions for OKR.

When organisations that don’t empower people start using OKR, they make a bad situation worse. They’ve told people what they need to achieve, but also how to achieve it. At least in the past they were measured by outputs. Now they’re measured by outcomes they can’t control!

Empowerment is the single most important condition for OKR joy. Does your organisation provide that?

Photograph by Andrea Piacquadio