Guide
OKRs and KPIs, explained.
Two simple tools that help a company know where it is, decide where it is going and see whether it is getting there. What they are, how they differ, and what they can do for your business.
01 · KPI
What is a KPI?
A key performance indicator is one of the few numbers that tell you whether the business is healthy.
You measure it all the time, not just once a quarter. A good KPI has a target, a pace for getting there, and one person who owns it. When it moves the wrong way, that person explains why and what happens next.
Think of KPIs as the instruments in a cockpit: you do not change them every quarter, you watch them.
- Value now: $3.6M, measured weekly
- Target: $5.5M by December 31
- Pace: where you should be now
- Threshold: below it, it needs attention
- Owner: one person, by name
- SalesOrder intakeWin ratePipeline value
- FinanceRevenue against budgetGross marginCash runway
- CustomersCustomer satisfactionCustomers lostResponse time
- DeliveryOn-time deliveryBillable utilisationQuality deviations
- PeopleTime to hireEngagement surveyCompleted onboarding
- KR1Order intake in Sweden$0 → $5.5M
- KR2Signed reseller partners0 → 3
- KR3Customer satisfaction7.0 → 8.5
Initiatives are the work that should move the key results: open an office in Gothenburg, build a partner channel, a new onboarding for Swedish customers. They are not key results themselves.
02 · OKR
What is an OKR?
Objectives and key results: where you want to go, and how you will know you got there.
The objective is a clear, ambitious direction in words. The key results are numbers that move from a starting value to a target, so nobody has to argue about whether you made it.
- 3–5Few objectives. If everything is a priority, nothing is.
- 2–4Key results per objective, each with a from and a to.
- 1–10Confidence every week or two. How sure is the owner that we will get there?
- QSet for a period, usually a quarter, then reviewed and learned from.
In Business an objective is a goal, and its key results are the KPIs on it, shown as the goal's success criteria. You can also add actions to a goal, so the work sits next to the numbers. Progress counts all of them, so let the KPIs carry the goal: an action shows the work is done, a KPI shows that something changed.
03 · The difference
KPIs keep watch. OKRs create change.
They are not competing methods. A company needs both: one to see how things are going, one to decide what to improve.
| Question | KPI | OKR |
|---|---|---|
| What is it for? | Show whether the business is healthy | Change something that matters |
| How long does it live? | As long as the number matters, often years | One period, usually a quarter |
| How often is it updated? | Continuously, often straight from your systems | A check-in every week or two |
| What does good look like? | Stable on or above target | Ambitious; reaching 70–100 % can be a success |
| Example | Gross margin above 40 % | Win the Swedish market: three partners signed |
04 · How they work together
A loop that keeps the company moving.
- A KPI shows a problem or a chanceOrder intake in Sweden is falling behind its pace.
- You set an OKR to change itWin the Swedish market, with key results you can measure.
- Initiatives do the workA partner channel and a sales office, each with an owner.
- The KPI shows if it workedWhen it is back on pace, the OKR is done and the KPI keeps watch.
05 · What it does for a company
Less guessing, more steering.
Used well, OKRs and KPIs change how a company talks, decides and follows up.
Focus
A short list of what matters this period, so people know what to say no to.
Alignment
Every team can see how its goals connect to the company's, all the way up.
Early warning
Measured against pace, a deviation shows in week three, not at the end of the quarter.
Ownership
Every goal and number has one owner, so nothing falls between chairs.
Learning
Strategies become tests. You see what worked, keep it, and stop what did not.
Better meetings
Talk about the deviations and decisions, not round-the-table status updates.
06 · An example quarter
How Fjord Works won Sweden, one check-in at a time.
A made-up company, a real pattern: confidence falls, the team acts early, and the quarter ends on target.
| Week | Owner's confidence, 1–10 |
|---|---|
| Week 1 | 7 |
| Week 2 | 7 |
| Week 3 | 6 |
| Week 4 | 5 |
| Week 5 | 4 |
| Week 6 | 4 |
| Week 7 | 5 |
| Week 8 | 6 |
| Week 9 | 6 |
| Week 10 | 7 |
| Week 11 | 7 |
| Week 12 | 8 |
| Week 13 | 8 |
- KR1 · Order intake in Sweden$5.7M of $5.5MReached
- KR2 · Signed reseller partners3 of 3Reached
- KR3 · Customer satisfaction8.1 of 8.5Partly reached
What they learned: the partner channel worked faster than a sales office. It becomes a strategy for Denmark next year. Satisfaction moves to a KPI with its own owner.
07 · Common mistakes
What goes wrong, and what to do instead.
- Twelve objectivesEverything is a priority, so nothing is.Three to fiveChoose, and write down what you chose not to do.
- Key results that are tasks“Launch a website” says what you do, not what changes.Measure the outcome“Leads from the website: 0 → 200 a month.”
- Set and forgetOKRs written in January and opened again in December.Short, regular check-insA value, a confidence and one sentence, every week or two.
- Using OKRs to rate peoplePeople then set safe goals and hide problems.Use them to steer the businessTalk about what the numbers say, not who to blame.
- A KPI nobody ownsEveryone sees it fall, and nobody acts.One owner per numberWhen it moves, they write the cause and the next step.
Put OKRs and KPIs to work in your company.
Business holds your goals, KPIs, check-ins and initiatives in one place, from the board to every team. We will set up your first goals with you.