# Brainstorm Okrs > - Skill: `frank-luongt/brainstorm-okrs-2` (Agent Skill) - Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add frank-luongt/brainstorm-okrs-2` - Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/frank-luongt/brainstorm-okrs-2/raw - Safety review: pending - Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex - Category: Coding & Dev Tools - Author: frank-luongt (https://skillmd.com/u/frank-luongt) - Updated: 2026-09-17 - Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/frank-luongt/brainstorm-okrs-2 --- --- name: brainstorm-okrs description: Generate team-level OKRs aligned with company strategy. Use when planning quarterly objectives, setting team goals, or translating strategy into measurable key results. tags: [okrs, planning, strategy, goal-setting] --- # Brainstorm OKRs Generate well-structured, outcome-focused OKRs (Objectives and Key Results) for product teams — aligned with company strategy and grounded in what the team can actually influence. --- ## Purpose Most OKRs fail because they're either disguised task lists ("launch feature X") or unmeasurable aspirations ("delight customers"). This skill produces OKRs that are **outcome-focused, measurable, and achievable** — following Christina Wodtke's *Radical Focus* framework. --- ## When to Use - Quarterly or annual planning - When a team needs to translate company strategy into team-level goals - When existing OKRs are output-focused and need reframing - When aligning multiple teams around shared outcomes ## When NOT to Use - Sprint planning (too granular — use sprint goals instead) - Individual performance goals (OKRs are for teams, not individuals) - When the company strategy itself is unclear (clarify strategy first) --- ## Required Context (Ask If Missing) - **Company-level objectives or strategy** — what is the company trying to achieve? - **Team scope** — what does this team own? What can they influence? - **Current metrics** — baselines for any metrics the team tracks - **Time horizon** — quarterly (most common) or annual? - **Constraints** — any known limitations (headcount, dependencies, tech debt)? --- ## OKR Fundamentals ### What Makes a Good Objective - **Qualitative**: Describes a desired future state, not a number - **Inspirational**: Makes the team want to pursue it - **Time-bound**: Achievable within the quarter - **Actionable**: The team can directly influence the outcome - **Aligned**: Connects to company-level strategy **Good:** "Make onboarding so smooth that new users reach value in their first session" **Bad:** "Increase retention" (too vague), "Launch onboarding v2" (output, not outcome) ### What Makes a Good Key Result - **Quantitative**: A specific number with a baseline and target - **Outcome-focused**: Measures the result, not the activity - **Ambitious but achievable**: 60–70% confidence of hitting (stretch, not sandbagged) - **3 per Objective**: Fewer is fine; more than 5 is too many - **Independently measurable**: Can be tracked without subjective judgment **Good:** "Reduce time-to-first-value from 14 days to 3 days" **Bad:** "Ship 5 features" (output), "Improve NPS" (no target), "Increase everything" (unfocused) ### OKRs vs. KPIs vs. North Star These are **complementary, not competing**: | Concept | Scope | Purpose | | --- | --- | --- | | **North Star Metric** | Company | Single metric that captures core value delivery | | **OKRs** | Team / Quarter | Focus areas and measurable targets for the period | | **KPIs** | Ongoing | Health metrics monitored continuously | OKRs tell you **what to improve this quarter**. KPIs tell you **what to monitor always**. --- ## The Process ### Step 1: Understand Strategic Context Review the company's strategy, annual goals, or North Star Metric. Identify: - What is the company's top priority this quarter? - Which part of the funnel or value chain needs the most attention? - What are the biggest risks or opportunities? ### Step 2: Identify 3–5 Impact Areas For the team's scope, brainstorm areas where improvement would most impact the company goal. **Example impact areas for a product team:** - New user activation - Feature adoption - Retention / engagement - Monetization / expansion - Operational efficiency ### Step 3: Generate 3 Alternative OKR Sets Produce **3 distinct OKR sets**, each taking a different strategic angle. This prevents anchoring on the first idea. **For each set, provide:** - 1–2 Objectives - 2–3 Key Results per Objective - Rationale: Why this angle matters - Risk: What could prevent success ### Step 4: Present for Selection Show all 3 sets side by side with trade-offs: ```markdown ## OKR Option A: [Strategic Theme] **Objective 1:** [Qualitative, inspirational objective] - KR1: [Metric] from [baseline] to [target] - KR2: [Metric] from [baseline] to [target] - KR3: [Metric] from [baseline] to [target] **Rationale:** [Why this matters] **Risk:** [What could go wrong] **Confidence:** [60–70% recommended] --- ## OKR Option B: [Different Strategic Theme] ... ## OKR Option C: [Yet Another Angle] ... ``` ### Step 5: Refine Selected Set Once the team selects a direction: - Validate baselines are accurate - Ensure targets are ambitious but achievable (60–70% confidence) - Check that Key Results are independent (not measuring the same thing twice) - Identify leading indicators that can be tracked weekly --- ## Output Format ```markdown # Team OKRs — Q[N] [Year] **Team:** [team name] **Aligned to:** [company objective or strategy] **Quarter:** [Q1/Q2/Q3/Q4 Year] --- ## Objective 1: [Qualitative objective] | Key Result | Baseline | Target | Confidence | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | [KR1 description] | [current] | [target] | 65% | | [KR2 description] | [current] | [target] | 70% | | [KR3 description] | [current] | [target] | 60% | **Leading indicators (weekly check):** - [metric to watch] - [metric to watch] --- ## Objective 2: [Qualitative objective] | Key Result | Baseline | Target | Confidence | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | [KR1 description] | [current] | [target] | 65% | | [KR2 description] | [current] | [target] | 70% | --- ## Health Metrics (Monitor, Don't Optimize) | Metric | Current | Guardrail | | --- | --- | --- | | [metric you must not degrade] | [current] | [minimum acceptable] | ``` --- ## Anti-Patterns | Avoid | Why | Instead | | --- | --- | --- | | Output-based KRs ("launch X") | Measures activity, not impact | Reframe: "Users who [behavior] increases from X to Y" | | Too many OKRs (>3 objectives) | Diffuses focus | Pick 1–2 objectives, 2–3 KRs each | | 100% confidence targets | Sandbagging — no stretch | Aim for 60–70% confidence | | Individual OKRs | Creates perverse incentives | OKRs are for teams | | Binary KRs ("ship/don't ship") | No gradient of success | Use continuous metrics | | Changing OKRs mid-quarter | Destroys accountability | Lock OKRs, adjust tactics | --- ## References - Wodtke, Christina. *Radical Focus* (2016) - Doerr, John. *Measure What Matters* (2018) - [OKR Examples Database](https://www.whatmatters.com/get-examples)