13 Supper - OKR Writing Templates and Examples #

Hello, I’m Liuliu.

In the process of implementing OKR, there are many key milestones, such as OKR formulation, daily stand-up meetings, mid-quarter OKR review, and end-of-quarter OKR grading. If standardized discussion content presentation and basic workflow can be established at these key milestones, work efficiency can be improved.

Next, I will share with you the OKR templates used internally at Jingdong (JD.com), and help you familiarize yourself with the templates through application scenarios and specific operational processes. By designing and arranging OKR work based on the elements in the templates, we can timely record the progress of OKRs, view and modify them as needed, and promote the dissemination and mutual learning of OKR culture.

Of course, what suits you best is the best choice. When introducing OKR within your organization, you can refer to the templates I provided. If you feel that they are not suitable, you can improve and tailor them based on my templates to find an application form that suits your organization.

Template 1: OKR Formulation Template #

Use Case: Use this template when formulating OKRs at the beginning or during the process, following the performance-based rhythm within the organization (the templates provided here are based on quarterly OKR formulation rhythm).

Operational Process: First, determine the Objective (O), then generate the Key Results (KRs) for each O. All OKRs need consensus from both superiors and subordinates (refer to Lesson 08 on OKR formulation process for detailed case explanations).

Points to Note:

• O and KR should follow the top-down and bottom-up generation rules (refer to Lesson 04).
• The formulation of O and KR should follow the principles I mentioned earlier (refer to Lesson 05 and Lesson 06).
• Each KR should clearly assign responsibilities to individuals, and if there are dependencies, the collaborating parties should also be specified.
• The autonomy of OKRs is also reflected in proactive communication and consensus-building with relevant stakeholders.
• Each KR requires different resources and effort input, so comparisons should be made and weighted.

Template 2: OKR Physical Kanban Prototype #

Use Case: Use this OKR physical kanban during daily stand-up meetings.

Operational Process: First, set up the physical kanban in the team’s workplace, and then establish rules for using the kanban within the team. This means that at a fixed time each day, the progress of each work task is discussed based on the three questions asked during the daily stand-up meetings.

Points to Note:

• Once rules for the team’s daily stand-up meetings based on the kanban are established, they must be strictly followed; otherwise, the kanban becomes useless.
• It is recommended to differentiate different projects or business areas with horizontal swimlanes.
• It is suggested to display the avatars of team members on the physical kanban to provide transparency on the distribution of their work.
• It is recommended to display the entire team’s OKRs on the kanban.
• The work tasks on the kanban support the completion of KRs and are derived from the KRs.

Template 3: OKR Work Weekly Report Template #

Use Case: Use this template when writing weekly reports.

Operational Process: Both O and KR are generated during formulation and can be directly copied into the weekly report. However, the progress and confidence level of each KR need to be updated. The more problems and obstacles encountered, the lower the confidence level should be marked, and the problems and risks corresponding to the KR should be described in detail. Conversely, the higher the confidence level, the completion of the KR can be described as obstacle-free and the problems and risks can be marked as none. In addition, the weekly report should also reflect the daily work done to complete each KR, including a detailed account of the work done this week and a brief outline of the work plan for next week. Key Points:

• 1. 2. 3. correspond to the tasks discussed in the daily stand-up meeting;
• Completely finished KR, it is recommended to mark it in gray in the weekly report;
• It is suggested to highlight the content of “problems & risks” in the weekly report, mark it in red and bold;
• You can explain changes in OKRs and manage business changes through the weekly report;
• The weekly report should be sent to relevant stakeholders associated with the completion of OKRs.

Template 4: Mid-term OKR Assessment Template #

Use Case: Use this template to assess the progress of OKRs during the process. The assessment can be done monthly or at the mid-point of a quarter.

Process: During the assessment, individuals should update the overall progress of their OKRs and then schedule a time with their superiors to conduct the OKR assessment. Alternatively, superiors can initiate the assessment to organize the whole team.

Key Points:

• The assessment of OKRs during the process must be formalized, meaning that managers must be involved;
• Problems discovered during the assessment should be discussed and recorded on the spot for follow-up;
• For more serious issues discovered during the assessment, a special discussion should be initiated to reach a new consensus;
• During this time, managers should act as coaches, providing guidance on performance and helping subordinates solve problems in achieving their objectives;
• Subordinates should proactively describe their performance, openly discussing problems and striving to obtain support from their superiors.

Template 5: End-of-Quarter OKR Closure Evaluation Template #

Use Case: This template is used for performance closure management in the organization.

Process: Generally, HR initiates the evaluation of the entire OKR performance closure. Individuals in the team start with self-evaluation, and then involve stakeholders in the OKR implementation process to rate each KR. The O score is automatically calculated (refer to the O calculation formula in Lesson 08).

Key Points:

• Stakeholders involved in the OKR implementation process should participate in the evaluation and provide feedback;
• Superiors must rate their subordinates, provide evaluation feedback, and pay attention to the evaluation feedback from other stakeholders;
• KR rating is a comprehensive evaluation of progress and difficulty and should not be based solely on progress (refer to the explanation of OKR closure evaluation in Lesson 08);
  • KR ratings should be performance-oriented, focusing on revenue, users, efficiency, and capability growth;
• Pay attention to the implementation of self-driven OKRs and provide encouragement and motivation;
• Organizational incentives should be based on OKR evaluation results, otherwise OKRs will become formalities.

Conclusion #

To become efficient from chaos, standardized management is necessary, and templates are one of the tools for implementing standardized management.

Likewise, templates for key time points of OKR methodology are effective aids in implementing OKRs efficiently.

Finally, you can also use the OKR Net Promoter Score (NPS) I introduced in Lesson 12 to collect feedback on the application of OKR templates, continuously improve, and iterate to create the most suitable OKR templates for your organization.