The OKR Pipeline

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Still in Draft

This document is not ready for the reader. I probably reference it in another article though and so... here you are! Read on if you'd like, but it may be best to wait until I complete it.

The "bottom-up" pyramid looks top-down because it's actually upside-down. I know. It's like, the most confusing thing ever for me to diagram it this way. Sorry. :(

Purpose > measures > method

There is an ideology known as Systems thinking (or the Vanguard method) that I'm going to attempt to summarize without butchering it. In essence, people tend to start with methods, which then define their data (and therefore their measurements), which shape their outcomes, which–in turn–shape their purpose. This is backward. If you let methodology shape your business then you aren't solving true customer needs. It's tradition for tradition's sake. It's best to start with what your purpose is, what your mission is, and the value is that you bring to your customers. Let that define what you should measure and shape your outcomes. Then build methods around it to support the purpose and measures. (sourced from my closing thoughts on Agile development).This is why I introduce "initiatives" into OKRs. Objective = purpose. Key results = measures. Initiatives = method.​We've adding this third notion of an "initiative" to the OKR process as a way to break down the proper at the level of actual action, somewhat mixing OKRs and the Vanguard Method. Everything above an initiative is not about action, or steps, but about purpose (objectives) and measurement towards purpose (key results).We've done this because OKRs are inevitably top-down in nature and being top down, it's important to first start with the purpose, then how we can measure success or failure towards that purpose, then the methods used to reach those measurements. So we didn't want to mix key results with method; otherwise, our key results (methods + measurements) will drive our objectives (purpose) rather than the other way around.