Test Pilot Q3 OKR Review

For the third quarter of 2016 the Test Pilot team decided to try using the OKR method (an OKR overview) for our goal setting.

We all sat down in London and hashed out what direction we wanted to move in for Q3, what we thought we could do in that timeframe, prioritized the results and then I published the results on the wiki. If you’re interested in what Test Pilot did in Q3 you should read that link because it has a bunch of comments in it.

I knew we deprioritized some of our goals mid-quarter, but I was surprised to see us come up with a pretty modest .61. My takeaways from my first time using the OKR method is:

Wording is really important. Even if you all agree on some words while sitting around a table, look them over again the next day because they might not make as much sense as you think.

Getting the goals for your quarter planned before the quarter starts is tops.

Having a public list of goals you can point people to is great for your team, other teams you work with, and anyone in the community interested in your project.

Estimates for how long things will take you is still a Really Hard Problem.

The feedback I’ve received about the OKR process we followed has been really positive and I expect to continue it in the future.