Goals are a great way to give clarity about what is most important for a given period of time. They are a future state to work towards and aim for. Goals can be ambitious to drive us to achieve more and they help to focus priorities with defined accountability.
OKRs, or “objectives and key results,” is a goal setting framework used by individuals, teams, and organizations to set measurable goals and track their outcomes. It helps to move the focus away from outputs to outcomes. Objectives should be ambitious and define where you want to be in the future. The key results help you measure your progress towards there.
Setting goals can help teams stay focused and motivated, as well as provide a benchmark to measure success. Goals can also help to foster team collaboration, as everyone works together to achieve a common goal. Finally, setting goals can help teams to stay on track and prioritize tasks, ensuring that everyone is working towards the same end result.
Goals can be set at any level within your business and the cadence should support your overall business rhythms. A common timeframe would be annual company goals, and quarterly team or department goals that support the annual goals. You should check in on progress towards your goals at a more frequent cadence between this, like monthly for example. This will help you take action where needed to achieve your goals.