Awesome OKRs
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A curated list of the best resources about Objectives and Key Results (OKRs) for business leaders, CEOs, and founders.
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This is a curated set of business resources for setting and tracking goals with OKRs. It gathers the best articles, books, talks, tools, templates, and case studies in one place, so leaders can skip the noise and learn the framework from the people who built and scaled it. For related resource lists, see Awesome KPIs, Awesome Strategic Planning, and Awesome Performance Management.
OKRs started at Intel under Andy Grove, traveled to Google via John Doerr in 1999, and have since become the goal-setting standard for companies from three-person startups to Fortune 500s. But the framework is deceptively simple, and most teams get the mechanics wrong. These resources will help you get them right.
Contents
- Articles
- Books
- Videos & Talks
- Tools & Software
- Templates & Frameworks
- Case Studies & Real-World Examples
- Communities & Newsletters
- Rework Resources
Articles
This reading list follows the full OKR operating cycle from writing and alignment through grading, review cadence, and failure repair.
- Set Goals with OKRs by Google re:Work - The definitive guide to OKRs from Google's internal playbook.
- Avoid OKR-Writing Mistakes by Google re:Work - Common pitfalls teams fall into when writing their first OKRs.
- What My OKRs Video Got Wrong by Rick Klau - The author of the most-watched OKR talk revisits and corrects his earlier guidance.
- How Google Sets Goals: The OKR Approach by Bernard Marr - A clear breakdown of Google's OKR cadence and scoring system.
- OKR Goal-Setting Framework by Rework - A practical guide to implementing OKRs at any company stage, with examples from early-stage to enterprise.
Books
- Measure What Matters by John Doerr - The book that brought OKRs to the mainstream; essential reading for any OKR practitioner. (classic)
- Radical Focus by Christina Wodtke - A business fable that teaches OKR implementation through a startup story.
- High Output Management by Andy Grove - The original source of OKR thinking from the Intel CEO who invented them. (classic)
- The OKRs Field Book by Ben Lamorte - A step-by-step coaching guide with worksheets for OKR facilitators.
Videos & Talks
- Why the Secret to Success is Setting the Right Goals by John Doerr (TED, 2018) - The essential TED Talk where Doerr introduces OKRs to a global audience.
- How Google Sets Goals: OKRs by Rick Klau (Google Ventures) - The foundational OKR presentation that has over 1 million views; watch alongside Klau's 2022 correction. (classic)
- Measure What Matters, Google Talks by John Doerr - A deep-dive session where Doerr explains OKRs in the context of culture and leadership.
- OKRs: From Mission to Metrics by Christina Wodtke - A practical workshop on connecting company mission to quarterly OKRs.
- How Spotify Sets Goals with OKRs - A case study on adapting OKRs for an autonomous, squad-based org structure.
Tools & Software
- Lattice - HR and performance platform that ties OKRs to reviews, 1-on-1s, and engagement data.
- Betterworks - Enterprise OKR platform built for large organizations with complex alignment needs.
- Perdoo - Combines OKRs and KPIs in one interface with visual roadmaps for long-term planning.
- Weekdone - Pairs OKRs with weekly team reporting to build a cadence of regular check-ins.
- WorkBoard - Enterprise-grade OKR and strategy execution software favored by large corporations.
- Quantive - AI-powered strategy and OKR platform with strong analytics and reporting features.
- Mooncamp - Flexible OKR software with a clean interface suited for mid-sized teams.
- Google Sheets OKR Template by John Doerr - A free starter kit from the author of Measure What Matters.
Templates & Frameworks
The templates support objective writing, measurable results, grading, and the connection between quarterly OKRs and broader strategy.
- OKR Starter Kit by John Doerr - Free templates and examples directly from the author of Measure What Matters.
- OKR Grading Rubric by Google re:Work - Google's own scoring framework and the 0.0 to 1.0 methodology explained.
Case Studies & Real-World Examples
The cases show how different organizations use OKRs for focus, decentralized alignment, cross-functional delivery, and better outcome metrics.
- Intel - Andy Grove invented OKRs at Intel in the 1970s as a replacement for traditional Management by Objectives (MBO). The framework was central to Intel's "Operation Crush", an all-hands OKR campaign to defeat Motorola for design wins in the emerging PC market. Intel won, and the 8086 processor became the foundation of the IBM PC architecture that defined computing for decades. Source
- Zalando - Europe's largest online fashion platform, Zalando, deployed OKRs across 15,000 employees after scaling rapidly from a German startup. Their public OKR retrospectives documented how the framework exposed misalignment between technology and commercial teams that had been invisible under their previous planning process, leading to measurable improvements in cross-functional delivery speed. Source
- Duolingo - The language-learning app used OKRs to make a counter-intuitive pivot: deprioritizing raw download numbers in favor of Daily Active Users as their North Star metric. That shift, which felt like reporting worse results in the short term, restructured the entire product team's work and contributed to Duolingo's DAU growing from 12 million to over 37 million between 2020 and 2023. Source
Communities & Newsletters
- WhatMatters.com - The official OKR resource hub from John Doerr's team, with guides, case studies, and a community forum.
- OKR Mentors - A practitioner network where OKR coaches and leaders share experiences and answer questions.
Rework Resources
Explore more OKR and strategy content on the Rework blog:
- Strategic Planning Process - How to connect your OKRs to a broader annual strategic plan.
- Mission vs Vision Statement - Building the foundation that makes OKRs meaningful and aligned.
Frequently Asked Questions about Awesome OKRs
What are the best business resources for learning OKRs?
Start with "Measure What Matters" by John Doerr and the free Google re:Work guide to setting goals with OKRs. From there, the articles, talks, and case studies on this list cover writing, grading, and scaling OKRs across company stages.
What does OKR stand for?
OKR stands for Objectives and Key Results. The objective is a qualitative goal that states where you want to go, and the key results are 2 to 5 measurable outcomes that prove you got there. The framework keeps teams focused on a few priorities that actually matter.
Are these OKR resources free?
Many are. The Google re:Work guides, WhatMatters articles, Felipe Castro's beginner guide, and John Doerr's starter kit are all free. The books are paid, and most OKR software tools offer free trials or limited free tiers.
Who should use OKRs?
Any team that wants clearer focus and measurable progress, from three-person startups to Fortune 500 companies. Google, Intel, LinkedIn, Spotify, and Duolingo all use OKRs, and the case studies on this list show how each adapted the framework to its size and culture.
Contributing
Know a great OKR resource that should be on this list? Let us know.
