Articles
How to write an Objective people care about
By Mohammad Raafat, Founder, Merkhet Advisory ·
“Increase revenue by 15%.”
I see this Objective on many OKR sheets. It is clear. It is measurable. Leaders like it because it is easy to check. And nobody on the team gets out of bed for it.
The problem is not the ambition. The problem is that it is not an Objective. It is a key result with no reason behind it. It tells people how much, but not where to go, or why it matters.
When the Objective is weak, everything below it gets weak too. Teams don’t know which work counts. Key results turn into task lists. And by week three, nobody remembers what the Objective was.
This article shows what a good Objective looks like, the three mistakes I see most often, and a simple way to rewrite yours. At the end, you can test one of your own.
What an Objective is for
An OKR has three layers. The Objective says where you want to go, and why it matters. The key results say how you will know you got there. The initiatives are the work you try in order to move the key results.
Objective
Where we are going, and why it matters
- Make ordering effortless for our customers
Key results
How we will know we got there
- Orders placed without calling us: from 40% to 75%
- Orders with an error: from 1 in 10 to 1 in 50
- Average time to place an order: from 3 days to 1
Initiatives
What we will try to move the key results
- Launch the customer portal
- Simplify the order form
- Train sales on the new process
Each layer has one job. When the Objective tries to do the job of a key result (a number) or an initiative (a project), the OKR stops giving direction. People can measure it, or tick it off, but they cannot steer by it.
Four tests for a good Objective
A good Objective is not clever. It is clear. It passes four simple tests.
- 1
Short
Twelve words or fewer. People can say it from memory.
- 2
No numbers
It gives a direction. The numbers go in the key results.
- 3
A destination
It says where you want to be, not which project you will run.
- 4
Someone benefits
A customer, a colleague or the business will notice the change.
The fourth test is the one that makes people care. A goal feels important when people can see who it helps. “Make ordering effortless for our customers” names the person who benefits. “Increase revenue by 15%” names only a number on a report.
The three most common mistakes
Almost every weak Objective I see falls into one of three groups.
Mistake 1
A number
Increase revenue by 15%
This is a key result with no reason behind it. It tells people how much, not where to go.
Rewrite: Become the supplier our best customers never want to leave
Mistake 2
A project
Launch the customer portal
This is a task. When the portal is live, the Objective is “done”, even if nothing got better for customers.
Rewrite: Make ordering effortless for our customers
Mistake 3
A slogan
Be world class in customer service
It sounds good on a slide. Nobody knows what to do differently on Monday.
Rewrite: Solve customer problems on the first call
Look at the second mistake again. “Launch the customer portal” can succeed while the business fails. The portal goes live on time. Customers still call to place orders, because the portal is hard to use. The Objective is “done”, and nothing got better.
Now look at the rewrite: “Make ordering effortless for our customers.” The portal may still be the plan. But now the team can ask if the portal is the best way. If it is not working by week six, they can change the tactic and keep the goal.
How to rewrite one: ask “why?”
Most weak Objectives start life as a project. That is normal. Leaders think in projects. The fix is a simple question, asked a few times: “Why are we doing this?”
Too high
Grow the business
True for every team, every quarter. It gives no direction.
Your Objective
Make ordering effortless for our customers
A destination. People can see who benefits, and what to change.
The problem
Orders take 3 days, and 1 in 10 has an error
Useful facts. They become your key results.
Too low
Launch the customer portal
A project. It is one way to get there, not the goal.
Climb the ladder one step at a time. Why launch the portal? Because orders take three days and one in ten has an error. Why does that matter? Because ordering from us is painful, and customers notice. That is your Objective: make ordering effortless for our customers.
Know when to stop. If you keep asking “why?”, you always end at “grow the business” or “make money”. Those are true, but they are true for every team in every quarter. They give no direction. Stop at the step where a customer or a colleague would notice the change, and where your team can make real progress in one quarter.
The facts you found on the way up are not wasted. “Three days” and “one in ten” are your baselines. They become your key results.
Test your own Objective
Type one of your team’s Objectives, exactly as it is written today. The first checks are automatic. The last two only you can answer.
Test your Objective
Type one of your team’s Objectives as it is written today.
- Would a customer, a colleague or the business notice the change?
- Could someone on the team say what they would do differently tomorrow?
Type an Objective, or tap an example, to see the checks.
Who should write the Objective
An Objective people care about is rarely written alone by one leader. Leaders set the direction: the few things that must change this quarter. The team helps choose the words. When people help write a goal, they remember it, and they own it.
Then test it on the front line. Read the Objective to someone who does the work every day, and ask: “What would you do differently tomorrow?” If they have an answer, the Objective works. If they shrug, rewrite it.
Finally, repeat it. Say the Objective at the start of every check-in, until people can say it without looking. A goal nobody remembers cannot guide anyone’s work.
Before you write any Objective
Good wording cannot save a goal that should not be there. Keep it to 3 to 5 Objectives a quarter, and make sure each one comes from a real change the business needs. If you are not sure OKRs are the right tool for your company at all, start with When to use OKRs, and when not to.
If people cannot say it from memory, it cannot guide their work.
Want to learn how Objectives, key results and initiatives fit together, step by step? The free OKR Foundation course takes about 75 minutes, in 9 short lessons. And if you want to see where your goal system stands today, take the free 10-minute assessment. No sign-up needed.