First of all, what are OKRs?
OKRs, which stands for Objectives and Key Results, is a framework for setting and tracking performance goals. It involves setting specific, measurable, and time-bound objectives that align with an organization's overall strategy, and then defining key results that will indicate whether or not those objectives have been met. The OKR framework is designed to help teams and organizations stay focused, aligned, and accountable, and can be applied at all levels of the company, from individual employees to management.
Benefits of using an Objective and Key Results Template
Whether you’re new to OKRs or have done them before, it’s always helpful to start with a template. The hardest part about OKRs is usually the goal-setting phase, where you’re brainstorming and writing the goals for your next quarter. Templates can give you a sense of how to write good measurable OKRs (or SMART goals), get examples of proper OKR formatting, as well as show you other success metrics you can track that maybe you haven’t thought of yet.
The following are the best free OKR templates and example resources out there – and who doesn’t love free stuff?
A free Google Sheets OKR tracking template by Michael Williams
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For some, it’s best to start off with a no-frills, basic OKR tracking template. This OKR template for Google Sheets from Michael Williams gives you just that, with this OKRs tracking template that will get you familiar with the OKR methodology. If this is your first time using OKRs, this is a great place to start.
This OKR template will give you a place to track company-level and team-level objectives and a way to track progress with by inputting percentages and status colors in your excel or Google sheets.
Key benefits
- Templates is useable right away, just create a copy in Google Sheets
- Track projects as well as your OKRs
- Good for fundamentals and learning the OKR framework
Cons
- You will need to remember to update this regularly, no way to send reminders
- Allows team-level OKRs but no way to attach owners as part of the template
- No historical data so it’s hard to see where you were in previous check-ins
How to easily track OKRs in Google Sheets Martijn Burgman
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One of the most common ways OKRs are tracked is in a spreadsheet, especially at the beginner level. Though there’s a bit of heavy lifting to get started, it’s likely that this is a tool you already use with your business, and can be a very effective way to get your goals down on paper. Luckily, there are a lot of templates out there including this one by Martijn Burgman, that help you with formatting, help with calculations and even brings in some visual elements.
In this post, he also does quite an extensive starter guide to tracking OKRs, which is great if you’re trying OKRs out for the first time.
Key benefits
- No need to get a new tool so it’s easy to share or give access to your whole team
- Extremely flexible and customizable to your workflow
- Formatting done for you, just enter your goals
Cons
- No OKR examples are given, so you’ll need to go elsewhere for inspiration or metrics suggestions
- No reminders, so you’ll need to input data yourself
- No way to attach owners as part of the template
- No reporting and limited visuals
Free OKR Templates for Excel and Google Sheets by How-to-OKR.com
This detailed OKR template is great for those who want to use Excel to track their OKRs. Much like the others above, this template will help you track your Objectives and Key Results with progress percentages, and color statuses. What this OKR Excel sheet also allows you to track is confidence levels and trends on your Key Results. This means that, even though you can’t check previous scores or progress, you can show whether it’s trending up from before or down. If you’re a team that updates your OKRs weekly, this is essential.
This template also gives you a few columns to write in actionable notes or blockers, to keep your teammates informed on what's happening beyond the progress value. Comments and analysis of this sort, can be really important to communicate the whole story of your work to the team. More than 75% of teams worldwide are either remote or remote-hybrid these days, and having that context on paper, allows for teams to be on the same page asynchronously.
Key benefits
- Really in-depth template that has a lot of very actionable features
- Use it right away, just download from their site
- Made by reputable OKR coaches at How-to-OKR
Cons
- With the extensive detail this template allows, there’s also a lot of manual input. No automations could make this a tall task for individual contributors
OKR Template for Powerpoint (PPT) by Powerslides
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Now Excel and Google Sheets are usually the go-to for tracking OKRs, however some people like to work more visually, and prefer Powerpoint instead. Like the OKR methodology, the best way to do it is the way that makes sense to you.
If you’re a CEO or on the leadership team, tracking your OKRs in Powerpoint could possibly save some time. You’re likely presenting OKRs often to an all-staff or leadership meeting, and having it already in it’s final, presentable state, can be a massive time save. Why track it somewhere else when it’s going to end up in your Powerpoint anyway?
Of course, there will be features you aren’t going to get with Powerpoint vs Excel or Google Sheets. Calculations can be tedious done manually and updating and formatting a design file like Powerpoint can sometimes be tricky. Not every template is going to fit the text or images that you may want displayed.
That said, we probably don’t really recommend using Powerpoint as a way to track, but certainly a great way to present. For someone who prefers to work more visually, a combo of a Excel template to track, and a Powerpoint template to present, may be a prefect combo. They are all free after all 😉
Key benefits
- Great visual way of displaying and presenting your Objectives and Key Results
- Makes it easy to go from tracking to showing off in your meeting
- Can also export to PDF easily for quick sharing
Cons
- Tracking can be tedious with a free flowing format like Powerpoint
- No way to do calculations or formulas
- Collaborative options are limited
The Best Way to Track OKRs? Track OKRs in Tability
If tracking your OKRs sounds like a chore, that’s because it truly is. Without proper tooling, there’s a lot of manual work that goes into keeping the momentum up in your OKRs. Creating a progress report every week, sending reminders every week, locating and updating your numbers every week, doing maths (yuck) – it’s all a lot.
Luckily, there is software out there made for OKR tracking. Tability, is the top OKR tracking platform that’s easy to use with simple setup, and a robust set of features, to track OKRs (try it for free today).
Tracking your OKRs in a sheet or ppt will work fine for many, but most of the time, you’ll reach your limitations with them. The beauty of Tability, is that not only is it easy to get started, it’s also built to guide you through the process. So if you’ve never done OKRs, a tool that teaches you best practices as part of using the tool can be a huge advantage.
Key benefits
- Sends automated reminders to your team so you don’t have to – your goals stay on track and updated!
- Automatically formats and structures your OKRs in a way that makes sense
- Gives you visuals on your progress and historical data that shows trends
- Shows you what’s on track and what needs attention with status colors
- A built in presentation mode, that turns your OKRs into a powerpoint like visual presentation
- Keeps you and your team accountable so that you can achieve your OKRs more efficiently!
Cons
- It’s a great value, but it’s not free (try it with a free trial period!)
Conclusion
That’s our list! Those are some free OKR tracking templates for Excel, Google Sheets and Powerpoint. Once you’ve got your free template set up, browse through this free OKR template library to get some inspiration for OKRs you can track in your Google Sheet or Powerpoint. There’s hundreds of free OKR examples that you can copy and paste into your OKRs.
If you have any questions about tracking OKRs or other general OKR questions, feel free to reach out to us at [emailprotected]!
FAQs
What is the best OKR program? ›
The best available OKR software in the industry are ClickUp, WorkBoard, Ally.io, Gtmhub, Koan, Lattice, Perdoo, and Profit.co.
How do I track my OKR progress? ›- Write qualitative Objectives and quantitative Key Results. ...
- Assign percentage benchmarks for each Key Result. ...
- Set responsibilities and accountability for Key Results. ...
- Share OKRs with your team. ...
- Track results on a regular schedule (with calendar reminders). ...
- Discuss key learnings along the way.
- Step 1: Share the department sheets. Open the Department files by clicking on Workflow in the side panel and double click on the folder icon. ...
- Step 2: Teams set their OKRs. ...
- Step 3: Teams set their Key Results. ...
- Step 4: Teams start logging OKRs. ...
- Step 5: Automate the workflow.
Effective OKRs represent meaningful change, improvement and growth. They're our priorities for the next 30-90 days. Effective Objectives are meaningful, audacious and inspiring. Effective Key Results are specific and timebound, aggressive and realistic, and measurable and verifiable.
Is Google still using OKRs? ›Yes, Google still uses OKR
If you're not familiar with OKRs, they are a way to set and track progress against specific objectives. Every company is different, but typically OKRs are set at the company, team, and individual levels. Google's OKRs are updated quarterly, and they are open to anyone within the company.
Google often uses “Objectives and Key Results” (OKRs) to try to set ambitious goals and track progress. OKRs at a glance: Objectives are ambitious and may feel somewhat uncomfortable. Key results are measurable and should be easy to grade with a number (Google uses a scale of 0 – 1.0)
How do you make an OKR roadmap? ›The Key Parts of Objectives and Key Results (OKRs)
Draft your OKRs as short, clear statements (try to make them easy to memorize). Make your OKRs ambitious and even out of your team's comfort zone. Assign each Key Result (KR) an owner. Create a standard scoring system to measure your OKRs' outcomes.
OKR Cards by Screenful is a free Power-Up that allows tracking your objectives and key results to improve focus and align teams around company goals. Track goals and see the progress. It's a simple board utility that is free and runs entirely within the Trello UI.
How frequently do you have to track OKRs? ›OKR provides a framework just for that. It includes setting, tracking and evaluating the goals, all done frequently on a monthly or quarterly basis.
What is OKR spreadsheet? ›More from Google Sheets. OKRs (objectives and key results) is an actionable framework for setting and tracking company goals.
How do you track measurable goals? ›
- Identify what you want to achieve. To develop long-term and short-term goals, it's important to identify what action you want to accomplish and what type of outcome you're seeking. ...
- Set a deadline. ...
- Set milestones. ...
- Turn your goals into SMART goals. ...
- Document and review progress.
Bad OKR Example: Key Results Influence Eachother. Another common mistake I see with OKRs is that they're containing too many key results. This often causes them to influence each other, meaning that if a team shows progress on one, they're automatically also showing progress on the other.
What common mistakes you should avoid when making OKRs? ›- Too many Objectives. ...
- Everyday To-Do's as OKRs. ...
- Set and Forget approach. ...
- Objectives set are not aspirational enough. ...
- Creating OKRs in silos. ...
- Breaking OKRs linked to compensation.
Both KPIs and OKRs have three elements i.e. goals, metrics and targets that aid functioning.
Does Microsoft use OKRs? ›Microsoft leverages the proven goal-setting framework of Objectives and Key Results (OKRs) with Microsoft Viva Goals.
How many OKRs should a company have? ›Having too many OKRs can undermine the purpose of the framework. We typically recommend setting a maximum of 3-5 OKRs per team per quarter. This is a maximum, not a minimum – it's perfectly appropriate to have only 1-2 OKRs.
Do OKRs really work? ›OKRs are a powerful tool for setting and measuring goals, but like all power tools, they can become dangerous in unskilled hands. When used in informed ways, they can improve focus and lift outcomes, but when mishandled, they can increase waste and inflict real damage upon the organizations that adopt them.
Does Netflix use OKR? ›Netflix implemented OKRs tracking software to help them make decisions about new projects, prioritize projects that need to be done, and evaluate the success of previous projects. Netflix set goals for its brand by focusing on three key areas: customer experience, growth, and culture.
Does Facebook use OKRs? ›Many businesses are deploying OKRs and seeing the benefits they bring. Companies like Airbnb, Spotify and Intel used OKRs in the early days to accelerate their growth. Other brands like Facebook, Microsoft, Slack, Trello, Uber, Amazon, Yahoo all use OKRs.
What comes first OKR or roadmap? ›What many product teams do is use OKRs as part of the product roadmap. After all, the roadmap is, at its essence, a list of deliverables: product features, updates, and so on. In contrast, an OKR may be focused on more strategic goals such as “Encourage more users to download our app”.
What is OKR structure? ›
An OKR consists of an Objective, which tells you where to go, and several Key Results, which are the results you need to achieve to get to your Objective. Initiatives are all the projects and tasks that will help you achieve your Key Results.
How do you brainstorm OKRs? ›- Scheduling a meeting 📆
- Preparing the room 🏡
- Introducing the problem space ⛳️
- An ideas dump 💡
- Presenting and clustering 🎁
- Voting
- Prioritization matrix ⊹
- Stakeholder debrief 🗣
KPIs can be great for measurement, but they're standalone metrics — they may tell you when a measure is good or bad, but they don't necessarily communicate context or what direction your team needs to go in. OKRs, which stands for Objectives and Key Results, provide that much needed direction and context.
Can OKR replace KPI? ›OKRs actually replace the several methods of managing your KPIs. KPIs and their trends indicate how well your business is doing or parts of your business are doing. Another way to look at this is to think of OKRs as the process of taking the value of a KPI from value A to value B.
What is the Google equivalent of Trello? ›What can I use instead of Trello for Google Workspace? Try out Kanbanchi. It is a project management and team collaboration tool made specifically for Google Workspace (formerly G Suite). Kanbanchi integrates with Google Workspace immediately after signing up.
Should OKRs be top-down or bottom-up? ›The OKRs process balanced the concept of top-down and bottom-up. It is a top-down process in that the company OKRs are declared first and set the stage for the creation of OKRs at lower levels of the organization.
Should OKRs be quarterly or yearly? ›OKR, which stands for objectives and key results, is a planning and goal-setting technique made famous by Intel and Google. OKRs represent aggressive goals and define the measurable steps you'll take towards achieving those goals. They're typically used to set quarterly goals, but can also be used for annual planning.
Should OKRs be leading or lagging? ›Rather, leading indicators are the best for achieving the right key results for OKRs. This is because they look in the future, unlike lagging indicators that look into the past. As a result, the organization or teams can grow with the OKRs and achieve greater success when using leading indicators.
What are OKR tools? ›Objectives and key results (OKR) software are dedicated tools for setting, communicating, tracking, and measuring goals and results within businesses. Within OKR software, management can easily set and monitor goals for teams and individuals.
How do I choose an OKR tool? ›- Be clear on the objective. ...
- Measure your team size and scale up needs. ...
- Identify the integrations you use. ...
- Gauge your experience with OKRs. ...
- Explore features and functions. ...
- Understand your budget. ...
- Focus on user experience. ...
- Understand data protection compliance.
What is OKR dashboard? ›
An OKR dashboard is a visualization tool that accumulates data and key insights about a specific company or team's objectives and progress. It allows you to break down objectives into projects or initiatives and distribute them to specific teams and departments.
What are the 7 smarter objectives? ›The process of S.M.A.R.T.E.R goal-setting follows the acronym, which stands for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-Bound, Evaluate, and Reward.
What are the 5 areas of SMART goals? ›Setting specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART) objectives is a good way to plan the steps to meet the long-term goals in your grant. It helps you take your grant from ideas to action.
What are the 5 SMART objectives? ›What are SMART goals? The SMART in SMART goals stands for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-Bound.
Is there an OKR certification? ›Professional OKR certifications are created for different experience levels. OKRI certificates are recognized worldwide because they test a deep and true understanding of the OKR framework and how to implement OKRs and apply them.
Do OKRs actually work? ›OKRs are simple but require certain key aspects that need to be considered for successful implementation. OKRs don't work and fail in some companies; there is no practice to vocalize the resources or requirements to accomplish meaningful outcomes.
Which is better OKR or KPI? ›Differences between OKRs and KPIs
OKR is a goal-setting framework. For each OKR, there is an objective to be achieved, along with a set of metrics that will measure the achievement of that objective, called key results. KPIs determine factors needed to achieve success in an organization.
Netflix implemented OKRs tracking software to help them make decisions about new projects, prioritize projects that need to be done, and evaluate the success of previous projects. Netflix set goals for its brand by focusing on three key areas: customer experience, growth, and culture.
What is the most recognized OKR certification? ›OKR International's highly acclaimed Certified OKR Practitioner Program is the first and only OKR accreditation endorsed by ICF & HRCI for continuing education units.
What is the salary for OKR certification? ›The average salary for jobs that require the skills of Objective & Key Results (OKR) is $123,481 based on United States National Average.
What is OKR PowerPoint? ›
The OKR PowerPoint Template is a collection of creative management diagrams. The template provides a variety of Objective and Key Results diagrams to support business information. These include various hierarchy style diagrams, labeling bullet lists, timeline, and tables.