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tability.ioWhat are Startups OKRs?
The Objective and Key Results (OKR) framework is a simple goal-setting methodology that was introduced at Intel by Andy Grove in the 70s. It became popular after John Doerr introduced it to Google in the 90s, and it's now used by teams of all sizes to set and track ambitious goals at scale.
Crafting effective OKRs can be challenging, particularly for beginners. Emphasizing outcomes rather than projects should be the core of your planning.
We have a collection of OKRs examples for Startups to give you some inspiration. You can use any of the templates below as a starting point for your OKRs.
If you want to learn more about the framework, you can read our OKR guide online.
Startups OKRs examples
We've added many examples of Startups Objectives and Key Results, but we did not stop there. Understanding the difference between OKRs and projects is important, so we also added examples of strategic initiatives that relate to the OKRs.
Hope you'll find this helpful!
OKRs to increase online community subscriptions for startups
ObjectiveIncrease online community subscriptions for startups
KRAchieve a 20% increase in the overall number of startups subscribed
Offer incentives or discounts to existing customers for referring new startups to subscribe- Improve and optimize the onboarding process to increase conversion rates for new subscriptions
- Develop and implement targeted marketing campaigns to attract new startup subscribers
- Conduct market research to identify potential target audience for startup subscriptions
- KRIncrease user engagement by 15% to encourage startups to stay subscribed
- Improve onboarding experience with a guided tutorial showcasing key features
- Provide regular surveys or feedback forms to gather insights on user needs and preferences
- Send personalized emails with helpful tips and success stories to inspire startups
- Create an online community for startups to share experiences and network with peers
- KRGenerate 50% more leads through targeted marketing campaigns
- Implement lead nurturing campaigns using email marketing automation to engage and convert leads
- Optimize landing pages with clear call-to-actions and forms to capture leads effectively
- Identify target audience demographics and develop personalized marketing messages for each segment
- Analyze campaign performance data regularly to identify areas of improvement and adjust strategies
- KRImprove website conversion rate by 10% to attract more startups
- Utilize remarketing strategies to re-engage with potential startup customers and drive conversions
- Implement A/B testing for different call-to-action buttons and optimize based on performance
- Optimize landing page design and content to increase user engagement and conversion
- Enhance website loading speed to reduce bounce rate and improve user experience
OKRs to improve customer satisfaction
- ObjectiveAchieve next level customer love ❤️
- KRGet 15 new 5-star ratings on G2 Crowd
- Reach out to users high NPS feedback asking for review
- KRReduce the number of weekly support tickets by 50%
- Create a self serve documentation portal
- KRImprove the NPS score from 12 to 20
- Create a list of 15 highly requested features to implement
OKRs to secure Seed funding
- ObjectiveBe on track for Seed funding
- KRReach $200k ARR
- KRShow a 3x year-on-year revenue growth
OKRs to drastically improve onboarding and activation
- ObjectiveGet amazing improvements in our onboarding process
- KRIncrease the number of trials/week from 20 to 35
- Display clear CTAs to help non-admins request upgrades
- Add 5 clear upgrade paths for users
- KRIncrease week-1 activation rate from 55% to 65%
- Identify drop-offs
- Instrument activation funnel in Amplitude
- Tackle top 5 low-hanging fruits to improve onboarding
- KRReduce trials churn from 46% to 30%
- Implement fixes following feedback
- Talk to 20 churned customers to understand what went wrong
OKRs to get a solid growth engine
- ObjectiveCreate a solid growth engine
- KRIncrease weekly leads by 30%
- KRWe're getting 0.1 leads/active customer/week
- KR30% of new leads start a trial
OKRs to build an amazing user experience
- ObjectiveBuild an amazing user experience
- KRIncrease the number of weekly active users from 8k to 10k
- KRImplement the equivalent of 100 votes in features
- Identify top voted feature requests
- KRImprove our NPS from 50 to 75
- Reach out to 10 low NPS scores to understand their frustrations
OKRs to identify high-potential startups for potential investment
- ObjectiveIdentify high-potential startups for potential investment
- KRAttend or participate in a minimum of 3 startup pitch events to expand network and discover new opportunities
- Register and RSVP for the chosen startup pitch events
- Engage with fellow entrepreneurs and exchange contact information for future collaboration
- Prepare a concise pitch to present at the startup pitch events
- Research upcoming startup pitch events in the local area
- KRResearch and evaluate a minimum of 20 startups with innovative and scalable business models
- Conduct thorough research on each startup's business model and scalability
- Create a report summarizing the findings and key insights from the research
- Compile a list of 20 startups with innovative business models
- Evaluate the potential of each startup based on identified criteria
- KRConduct thorough due diligence on at least 10 startups, assessing financials, market potential, and team
- Investigate the background and expertise of the team members in 10 startups
- Summarize the findings of due diligence in concise reports for each startup assessed
- Research and analyze the financial statements of 10 startups for detailed assessment
- Evaluate the market potential of 10 startups through market analysis and potential growth opportunities
- KREstablish partnerships with at least 2 trusted venture capitalists or angel investors for knowledge-sharing and potential co-investment opportunities
- Reach out to the selected venture capitalists or angel investors to express interest in collaboration
- Research and identify potential venture capitalists or angel investors with established credibility
- Set up meetings or calls with the identified partners to discuss knowledge-sharing and co-investment opportunities
- Establish formal agreements and partnerships with the selected venture capitalists or angel investors
OKRs to develop a new in-product referrals program
- ObjectiveDevelop a new in-product referrals program
- KRImprove onboarding of referred users to keep conversion above 40%
- KRGet 3 referrals per customers on average across all accounts
- Identify opportunities for network effects
- KRGet 60% of new customer accounts to refer at least one other customer
- Add referral step in the onboarding drip feed
- Create incentive to reward customers for referring users
OKRs to improve consulting services
- ObjectiveDeliver an amazing experience to customers
- KRReduce time-to-completion of documentation projects by 30%
- KRReduce the number of documentation defects by 25%
- KRIncrease NPS from 0 to 30
- ObjectiveCreate an incredible growth funnel
- KRBuild a pipeline of $200K
- KRIncrease average contract value by 20%
- KRIncrease win/rate percentage by 30%
OKRs to help customers expand usage faster
- ObjectiveHelp customers expand faster
- KR25% of new customers expand to 5+ users in their first week.
- Include step to invite team in the onboarding process
- Add domain sharing marketing email to the drip feed
- KR60% of customers have turned on the team domain sharing
- Publish post explaining the benefits of using the platform with a team
- Run special marketing campaign to increase activation
How to write your own Startups OKRs
1. Get tailored OKRs with an AI
You'll find some examples below, but it's likely that you have very specific needs that won't be covered.
You can use Tability's AI generator to create tailored OKRs based on your specific context. Tability can turn your objective description into a fully editable OKR template -- including tips to help you refine your goals.
- 1. Go to Tability's plan editor
- 2. Click on the "Generate goals using AI" button
- 3. Use natural language to describe your goals
Tability will then use your prompt to generate a fully editable OKR template.
Watch the video below to see it in action 👇
Option 2. Optimise existing OKRs with Tability Feedback tool
If you already have existing goals, and you want to improve them. You can use Tability's AI feedback to help you.
- 1. Go to Tability's plan editor
- 2. Add your existing OKRs (you can import them from a spreadsheet)
- 3. Click on "Generate analysis"
Tability's Strategy Map makes it easy to see all your org's OKRsTability will scan your OKRs and offer different suggestions to improve them. This can range from a small rewrite of a statement to make it clearer to a complete rewrite of the entire OKR.
You can then decide to accept the suggestions or dismiss them if you don't agree.
Option 3. Use the free OKR generator
If you're just looking for some quick inspiration, you can also use our free OKR generator to get a template.
Unlike with Tability, you won't be able to iterate on the templates, but this is still a great way to get started.
Startups OKR best practices
Generally speaking, your objectives should be ambitious yet achievable, and your key results should be measurable and time-bound (using the SMART framework can be helpful). It is also recommended to list strategic initiatives under your key results, as it'll help you avoid the common mistake of listing projects in your KRs.
Here are a couple of best practices extracted from our OKR implementation guide 👇
Tip #1: Limit the number of key results
The #1 role of OKRs is to help you and your team focus on what really matters. Business-as-usual activities will still be happening, but you do not need to track your entire roadmap in the OKRs.
We recommend having 3-4 objectives, and 3-4 key results per objective. A platform like Tability can run audits on your data to help you identify the plans that have too many goals.
Tip #2: Commit to weekly OKR check-ins
Don't fall into the set-and-forget trap. It is important to adopt a weekly check-in process to get the full value of your OKRs and make your strategy agile – otherwise this is nothing more than a reporting exercise.
Being able to see trends for your key results will also keep yourself honest.
Tip #3: No more than 2 yellow statuses in a row
Yes, this is another tip for goal-tracking instead of goal-setting (but you'll get plenty of OKR examples above). But, once you have your goals defined, it will be your ability to keep the right sense of urgency that will make the difference.
As a rule of thumb, it's best to avoid having more than 2 yellow/at risk statuses in a row.
Make a call on the 3rd update. You should be either back on track, or off track. This sounds harsh but it's the best way to signal risks early enough to fix things.
How to track your Startups OKRs
OKRs without regular progress updates are just KPIs. You'll need to update progress on your OKRs every week to get the full benefits from the framework. Reviewing progress periodically has several advantages:
- It brings the goals back to the top of the mind
- It will highlight poorly set OKRs
- It will surface execution risks
- It improves transparency and accountability
Spreadsheets are enough to get started. Then, once you need to scale you can use a proper OKR platform to make things easier.
If you're not yet set on a tool, you can check out the 5 best OKR tracking templates guide to find the best way to monitor progress during the quarter.
More Startups OKR templates
We have more templates to help you draft your team goals and OKRs.
- OKRs to amplify enterprise producer engagement
- OKRs to strengthen weekly and monthly performance review efficiency and consistency
- OKRs to improve staff proficiency in sales and customer service via a training program
- OKRs to increase Maternity to Pediatrics patient transition rate
- OKRs to improve efficiency and effectiveness of our CRM system
- OKRs to increase Atlassian licensing sales by 50%