Ben on OKRs copertina

Ben on OKRs

Ben on OKRs

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A proposito di questo titolo

Ben on OKRs is a practical, real-world (and FUN) podcast hosted by Ben Lamorte, the founder of OKRs.com. Ben wrote The OKRs Field Book in 2022, the first book dedicated to the field of OKRs coaching. In fact, it's been rumored that Ben is the most experienced OKR coach on the planet.

Ben shares insights from mentoring 50+ OKR coaches and working with 300+ organizations to help leaders turn OKRs into a powerful execution system to drive focus, alignment, and bottom-line results.

This podcast is designed for:

  • Executives and senior leaders

  • Strategy and operations professionals

  • HR and transformation leaders

  • Agile coaches looking to broaden their skill set

  • Managers responsible for execution and alignment

  • Anyone implementing or improving OKRs

You’ll learn:

  • Why OKRs fail and what to do about that

  • How to leverage AI to 10x OKR execution

  • How to write meaningful, outcome-driven OKRs

  • How to align teams around strategy

  • How to run effective OKR cycles

  • How to turn OKRs into a sustainable execution system

Contact: Ben@OKRs.com

Copyright 2026 All rights reserved.
Episodi
  • What are the 3 types of KRs? What about milestone KRs? (5/10)

    What are the 3 types of KRs? What about milestone KRs? (5/10)
    Feb 20 2026
    So many OKR coaches will tell you that Milestones need to be avoided at all costs. KRs must have a number or they are terrible! But hold on, what does Ben think? Learn about the 3 types of Key Results and think through whether or not you should allow Milestones! There are three types of key results: metric, baseline, and milestone. Metric key results are the most common. They look like “move metric A from X to Y.” Baseline key results are used when X is not being measured and your client seeks a metric to reflect progress on a given objective. Your client should only put in the effort to establish a baseline if they expect to use that baseline as the starting point for a metric key result in a future OKRs cycle. Most leadership teams define a solid set of metric key results for top-level objectives. However, many teams struggle to define metric key results. Dozens of teams send us their OKRs for feedback each year. Their key results often look more like a list of tasks that reflect work output rather than measurable outcomes. Unlike metric key results, milestone key results tend not to include numbers. Milestones are binary—they are either achieved or not. Given that milestones are notorious for reflecting work output rather than outcomes, should milestone key results even be allowed? Some OKRs coaches advise avoiding milestone key results entirely. On page seven of his OKRs book, John Doerr credits Marissa Mayer with her observation, “it’s not a key result unless it has a number.” However, in this same book, Doerr provides examples of milestone key results such as “develop a demo.” (SEE NOTE AT END) Marissa might not be happy with this key result! As an OKRs coach, you work with your client to transform draft key results that often look like a to-do list into refined key results that reflect measurable outcomes. Here is a hypothetical OKRs coaching conversation to make this concrete: Client: My key result is to develop a demo. Coach: What is the intended outcome of developing this demo? How will we know the demo is a success? Client: Well, the demo is a success if we can get positive customer feedback, but all I can commit to is developing the demo this quarter. It will be quite a stretch to get feedback. Coach: OK, what will be demo’d and how will we know it is developed? Client: We’re developing a demo for product X and our sales team decides if it’s developed and ready to be used. Ultimately, it is our customers that will decide if it’s a valuable product. Coach: Are you committing to presenting the demo to the sales team or to customers? Client: I can’t commit to showing it to customers. That is the decision of the sales team. I can commit to presenting the demo to our sales team. A bit more OKRs coaching might lead to the following refined key result that (1) focuses on outcome, (2) distinguishes between a commitment and a stretch outcome, and (3) specifies what is being “demo’d” and who decides it is “developed.” type="example" Key Result: 3 customers sign an agreement to purchase product X after viewing the new product X demo Commit = present product X demo to our sales team for feedback in our test environment Target = present product X demo to five prospects with feedback on likelihood to purchase In this hypothetical coaching conversation, the draft key result, “develop a demo,” becomes the commit level of progress. However, the stretch key result now reflects customer interest in the product. It is the number of customers interested in the product that reflects the needle the client is ultimately trying to move. Marissa would likely approve now that the key result has a number. As an OKRs coach, you help your client translate milestone key results like “produce a demo of product X” into aspirational outcomes like “three customers sign an agreement for product X” that move a metric rather than simply represent completion of a task. Therefore, we might conclude that all key results should be metrics. However, while we recommend defining mostly metric key results, our clients often choose to define milestone key results as well. Rather than declaring all milestone key results are bad, we invite you to consider the possibility that milestone key results can be used to reflect outcomes not output. Consider the following two milestone key results one of our clients drafted: (1) Present requirements to obtain a permit to build houses in Portland to leadership team and (2) Obtain a permit to begin new construction in Portland. The first milestone is a task that reflects work output. One person should be able to research required documentation for a permit and schedule a meeting with leadership. However, the second milestone is not a task; it is a potential key result that reflects a binary outcome. Ask questions to guide your client to move from task-like milestones that reflect work output to key results that reflect outcomes. Coaching Takeaways ...
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    14 min
  • How GoNoodle Launched OKRs in 18 Days (Small Company -> Rapid Success with OKRs)

    How GoNoodle Launched OKRs in 18 Days (Small Company -> Rapid Success with OKRs)
    Feb 19 2026

    Many organizations adopt OKRs because they want focus, alignment, and execution discipline.

    But small and fast-growing companies face a unique challenge:

    • They must move quickly
    • They cannot afford bureaucracy
    • They cannot rely on heavy process
    • Yet they still need clarity and coordination

    GoNoodle, a company focused on helping kids stay active and engaged, successfully launched OKRs in a growth-stage company in just 18 days!

    The Situation: Growth Created Urgency

    After raising new capital, GoNoodle entered a period of aggressive growth. Leadership knew that without a clear system, the organization could quickly lose focus.

    As their co-founder described:

    “The growth plan was aggressive. We knew it would introduce a new level of complexity and potential chaos. How would we stay focused on the right things? How would we define and measure our most important work?”

    They discovered OKRs and immediately saw the potential — but also understood the risk:

    “Failure to launch OKRs well could jade the staff and undermine the whole effort. We had to get it right.”

    So they moved quickly — but intentionally.

    A Fast Start, With Structure

    GoNoodle launched OKRs in just 18 days. But speed alone wasn’t the secret. Structure and cadence were. They began by defining company-level OKRs, then worked closely with each department to translate strategy into measurable team-level outcomes.

    Along the way, they discovered: “Writing good key results is an art. In theory it’s simple, but it was much more difficult than expected.”

    They also recognized the value of defining success upfront: “We set the scoring criteria for every key result at the time of creation. This was difficult — and extremely valuable.”

    Within weeks, OKRs were visible across the company and supported by a regular execution rhythm.

    The 2-Cycle OKR Launch Model

    The GoNoodle experience closely mirrors what we now formalize at OKRs.com as a two-cycle launch model, designed to build both clarity and capability.

    At GoNoodle, this included defining company OKRs first and ensuring each team’s objectives directly supported the company’s direction. They reinforced this through leadership reviews and shared visibility. As their co-founder explained:

    • “We review every OKR weekly at the executive level to make sure we are focused on what matters most.”
    • “The connecting nature of OKRs, linking company goals to the work of each team, was one of the most compelling parts of the framework.”
    • “We now have a level of operating rigor that we never had before.”
    • “Clarity of our most important work, more focused execution, transparency around what we are doing, and improved culture.”

    GoNoodle reinforced OKRs through:

    • Weekly executive OKR reviews
    • Mid-quarter team check-ins
    • Quarterly company OKR reviews
    • Shared visibility of all OKRs
    • OKR onboarding for new employees

    “OKRs became part of our operating DNA.”

    What GoNoodle Achieved

    Following the OKRs.com structured approach, GoNoodle experienced:

    • Clearer definition of their most important work
    • Stronger alignment across teams
    • Improved focus and execution
    • Greater transparency and accountability
    • A disciplined operating rhythm
    • Cultural adoption of OKRs
    Implications for Small/Growing Organizations

    If you are launching OKRs in a smaller or growth-stage company:

    • Move fast, but take a structured approach leveraging the 3 phases over 2 cycles.
    • Define commit/target/stretch levels of each KR upfront to ensure alignment.
    • Make OKRs visible to all!
    • Build cadence early.
    • Expect improvement with each cycle.; commit to 2 cycles from the start.
    • Launch Your OKR Program the Right Way!
    How to Launch Your OKR Program

    If you’d like to learn how to launch OKRs using our 3-Phase approach over 2 cycles, contact:

    Ben@OKRs.com

    Thanks for listening!
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    11 min
  • Is Your OKRs Cycle 4 Months? (4/10)

    Is Your OKRs Cycle 4 Months? (4/10)
    Feb 19 2026

    Are you suffering from OKR planning fatigue? Are you feeling like you're always behind?

    Before 2019, most teams set OKRs each quarter by default. That's just how it's done. But is that what's best for you?

    One of the most practical decisions in any OKR implementation is determining the length of the OKR cycle.

    Should it be quarterly, four months or longer?

    Ben explains why cycle timing matters and how the right cadence can strengthen focus alignment and execution across your organization.

    You learn why most organizations begin with a common cycle length typically quarterly and why very short cycles often fail to provide enough time for meaningful progress.

    Ben also explores when a four month cycle can be more effective how cycle timing may vary across different levels of the organization and why strategic OKRs often remain stable throughout the year while operational OKRs evolve more frequently.

    Drawing on real world examples including multi tier OKR structures used in large organizations this episode provides practical guidance for choosing a cycle length that balances learning execution and adaptability helping teams build a sustainable rhythm for long term OKR success

    Request a free 1:1 OKR consult via Ben@OKRs.com
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    7 min
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