Complete OKR & Strategy Execution system — from company vision to weekly execution. Covers goal hierarchy, OKR writing methodology, scoring rubrics, alignment cascading, KPI dashboards, review cadences, team accountability, and quarterly planning rituals. Use when setting goals, running planning cycles, tracking OKRs, building KPI dashboards, running retrospectives, or aligning team work to strategy. Trigger on: "OKR", "objectives", "key results", "goal setting", "quarterly planning", "KPIs", "strategy execution", "annual planning", "team goals", "alignment", "review cadence", "what should we focus on", "prioritize", "goal tracking", "north star metric".
Set bold objectives. Measure what matters. Execute with discipline. Review ruthlessly.
Before building anything, score your current goal system:
| Signal | ✅ Healthy | ❌ Broken |
|---|---|---|
| Written goals exist | Documented, shared | In someone's head |
| Goals have metrics | Every goal is measurable | "Improve customer experience" |
| Cascade is clear | Team goals → company goals | Disconnected silos |
| Review cadence exists | Weekly check-ins happen | Goals set then forgotten |
| Scoring is honest | Red/yellow/green with data | Everything is "on track" |
| Goals are ambitious | 70% hit rate = healthy | 100% hit rate = sandbagging |
| Resource allocation matches |
| Top goals get most time |
| Urgent eats important |
| Retros happen | Quarterly learning cycles | Same mistakes repeat |
Score: /8 → ≤3 = rebuild from scratch, 4-5 = fix gaps, 6+ = optimize
Your vision is a direction, not a destination. 1-2 sentences max.
Formula: We exist to [verb] [who] by [how], creating a world where [outcome].
Quality test:
Mission = how you pursue the vision right now. Changes every 2-5 years.
Formula: We [what we do] for [who] by [unique approach], delivering [measurable impact].
One metric that captures the core value you deliver. Everything else is a supporting metric.
Selection criteria:
By business type:
| Business Type | North Star Metric | Why |
|---|---|---|
| SaaS | Weekly Active Users or NRR | Usage = value = retention |
| Marketplace | Transactions per week | Liquidity = value for both sides |
| E-commerce | Revenue per visitor | Combines traffic quality + conversion + AOV |
| Services | Monthly recurring revenue | Predictable value delivery |
| Media/Content | Engaged time per user | Attention = ad/subscription value |
| B2B Enterprise | Expansion revenue % | Proves ongoing value post-sale |
Pillars are the 3-5 themes that your goals cluster around. They persist for 1-3 years.
strategic_pillars:
- name: "Product-Led Growth"
description: "Make the product the primary acquisition and expansion engine"
north_star_contribution: "Drives WAU through self-serve onboarding"
- name: "Enterprise Readiness"
description: "Build features and processes that enterprise buyers require"
north_star_contribution: "Drives NRR through larger deal sizes"
- name: "Operational Excellence"
description: "Reduce cost-to-serve and increase team velocity"
north_star_contribution: "Enables more output per headcount"
Rule: If a goal doesn't map to a pillar, it doesn't get resourced.
Set 3-5 annual goals. Each must connect to a strategic pillar.
annual_goal:
id: "AG-2026-01"
statement: "Reach $1M ARR through product-led acquisition"
pillar: "Product-Led Growth"
why_now: "Market window closing, competitors raising Series A"
success_metric: "ARR ≥ $1M by Dec 31"
current_baseline: "$120K ARR"
milestones:
q1: "$250K ARR"
q2: "$450K ARR"
q3: "$700K ARR"
q4: "$1M ARR"
dependencies:
- "Hire 2 engineers by Feb"
- "Launch self-serve by March"
risk_factors:
- "Churn > 5% monthly kills growth math"
- "Engineering capacity if hiring delayed"
owner: "CEO + CRO"
Pre-work (1 week before):
Day 1: Review & Align
Day 2: Prioritize & Commit
OBJECTIVE: [Qualitative, inspiring, time-bound statement]
KR1: [Metric] from [baseline] to [target] by [date]
KR2: [Metric] from [baseline] to [target] by [date]
KR3: [Metric] from [baseline] to [target] by [date]
| Rule | Good | Bad |
|---|---|---|
| Qualitative | "Become the fastest way to onboard" | "Increase onboarding by 30%" |
| Inspiring | "Delight enterprise buyers" | "Complete enterprise features" |
| Time-bound | "This quarter" (implicit) | No deadline |
| Achievable-ish | 70% confidence of hitting | 100% or 10% confidence |
| Verb-forward | "Launch", "Build", "Dominate" | "Continue", "Maintain" |
| No metrics in objective | Described in key results | "Achieve 50% growth" |
Every KR must pass ALL of these:
| Score | Meaning | Signal |
|---|---|---|
| 0.0 - 0.3 | Failed to make progress | Wrong goal or wrong approach |
| 0.4 - 0.6 | Made progress but fell short | Decent goal, execution gap |
| 0.7 | Hit target (this is the goal!) | Sweet spot — ambitious but achievable |
| 0.8 - 1.0 | Exceeded target | Either amazing execution or goal was too easy |
Healthy OKR program: average score across all KRs = 0.6-0.7
| Anti-Pattern | Example | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Task masquerading as KR | "Launch new onboarding flow" | "Reduce time-to-first-value from 7 days to 2 days" |
| Vanity metric | "Reach 10K Twitter followers" | "Generate 50 qualified leads from social" |
| Binary KR | "Ship enterprise SSO" | "Enterprise accounts using SSO: 0 → 15" |
| Sandbagging | Target you'll hit by week 3 | Stretch to what you'd hit with exceptional execution |
| Too many OKRs | 8 objectives, 24 KRs | Max 3-5 objectives, 2-4 KRs each |
| No owner | "The team" owns it | One person accountable per OKR |
| Moving goalposts | Change target mid-quarter | Lock targets; add context in scoring |
| Activity KR | "Send 500 outreach emails" | "Book 30 discovery calls from outbound" |