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tability.ioWhat are Engineers OKRs?
The OKR acronym stands for Objectives and Key Results. It's a goal-setting framework that was introduced at Intel by Andy Grove in the 70s, and it became popular after John Doerr introduced it to Google in the 90s. OKRs helps teams has a shared language to set ambitious goals and track progress towards them.
OKRs are quickly gaining popularity as a goal-setting framework. But, it's not always easy to know how to write your goals, especially if it's your first time using OKRs.
To aid you in setting your goals, we have compiled a collection of OKR examples customized for Engineers. Take a look at the templates below for inspiration and guidance.
If you want to learn more about the framework, you can read our OKR guide online.
Engineers OKRs examples
You'll find below a list of Objectives and Key Results templates for Engineers. We also included strategic projects for each template to make it easier to understand the difference between key results and projects.
Hope you'll find this helpful!
OKRs to improve engineering performance and reliability
ObjectiveBuild a world-class infrastructure
KRIncrease Apdex above 0.95
Cache requests wherever possible- Identify and resolve to 5 application bottlenecks
- KRReduce build time to be under 5 minutes
- Audit test suite to reduce duplicates
- Switch to a more performing build infrastructure
- KROur stress tests show that we can support 10,000 concurrent users
OKRs to achieve promotion to software engineer 3
- ObjectiveAchieve promotion to software engineer 3
- KRComplete advanced software development certification
- KRMentor and provide guidance to junior software engineers
- Schedule regular one-on-one meetings to discuss progress, challenges, and career goals
- Offer constructive feedback and actionable suggestions for improvement on their code
- Actively involve them in meaningful projects to gain real-world experience and build confidence
- Provide resources and recommend learning opportunities to enhance their technical skills
- KRReceive positive performance reviews from team members and supervisors
- Regularly check in with team members and supervisors to receive feedback and updates
- Actively listen to team members and supervisors, and address any concerns or suggestions
- Set clear and measurable goals with team members and supervisors
- Continuously improve skills and knowledge through training and professional development opportunities
- KRDeliver three high-impact software projects successfully
- Implement effective project management methodologies to ensure efficient coordination and communication
- Define clear project goals, timelines, and deliverables for each software project
- Assemble a skilled and dedicated team with the necessary expertise for each project
- Regularly monitor and evaluate progress, making adjustments as needed to meet project objectives
OKRs to improve the quality of the data
- ObjectiveSignificantly improve the quality of the data
- KRReduce the number of data capture errors by 30%
- KRReduce delay for data availability from 24h to 4h
- KRClose top 10 issues relating to data accuracy
OKRs to establish a proficient AI team with skilled ML engineers and product manager
- ObjectiveEstablish a proficient AI team with skilled ML engineers and product manager
- KRRecruit an experienced AI product manager with a proven track record
- Reach out to AI professionals on LinkedIn
- Post the job ad on AI and tech-focused job boards
- Draft a compelling job description for the AI product manager role
- KRConduct an effective onboarding program to integrate new hires into the team
- Arrange team building activities to promote camaraderie
- Develop a comprehensive orientation package for new hires
- Assign mentors to guide newcomers in their roles
- KRInterview and hire 5 qualified Machine Learning engineers
- Conduct interviews and evaluate candidates based on benchmarks
- Promote job vacancies on recruitment platforms and LinkedIn
- Develop detailed job descriptions for Machine Learning engineer positions
OKRs to improve interoperability between data engineering teams
- ObjectiveImprove interoperability between data engineering teams
- KROffer biweekly data interoperability training to 90% of data engineering teams
- Identify 90% of data engineering teams for training
- Develop a biweekly interoperability training schedule
- Implement and monitor the data interoperability training
- KRReduce cross-team data discrepancies by 50%, ensuring increased data consistency
- Regularly audit and correct data discrepancies across all teams
- Implement a standardized data entry and management process for all teams
- Utilize data synchronization tools for seamless data integration
- KRImplement standardized data protocols across all teams increasing cross-collaboration by 30%
- Train teams on new standardized protocols
- Identify current data protocols in each team
- Draft and propose unified data protocols
OKRs to reduce the cost of integrating data sources
- ObjectiveReduce the cost of data integration
- KRDecrease the time to integrate new data sources from 2 days to 4h
- Migrate data sources to Segment
- Create a shared library to streamline integrations
- KRReduce the time to create new dashboards from 4 days to <1h
- Adopt BI tool to allow users to create their own dashboards
- KR10 teams have used successfully a self-serve dashboard creation system
OKRs to mitigate the risk associated with software maintenance
- ObjectiveMitigate the risk associated with software maintenance
- KRImplement efficient risk management model for 90% of maintenance projects
- Develop a comprehensive risk management model for maintenance projects
- Apply the model to current maintenance projects for evaluation
- Train project managers in risk management implementation
- KRAchieve zero unresolved critical issues for all maintained software
- Train staff in proactive problem identification and resolution
- Implement regular system checks for software performance
- Establish efficient issue reporting and resolution procedures
- KRProvide tailored training for all software engineers on identified critical areas
- Schedule and conduct tailored training sessions for engineers
- Develop customized training programs focusing on these critical areas
- Identify critical areas needing tailored training for software engineers
OKRs to tackle technical debt
- ObjectiveTackle technical debt generated by feature rush
- KRMigrate 80% of projects to new UI library to reduce UI debt
- KRReduce percentage of issues tagged as debt by 30%
- KRReduce debt-related contact rate by 50%
OKRs to accelerate development via automation
- ObjectiveAccelerate development through automation
- KR100% of repos have a Continuous Delivery pipeline
- Use Github Actions/Bitbucket Pipelines to automate deployments on every commit
- Create automated deployment scripts for all repos
- KRIncrease code coverage from 30% to 60%
- KRReduce cycle time from 8 days to 8h
- KRReduce build time from 20min to 5min
- Audit tests to find areas of improvements
- Split tests to run in parallel when possible
OKRs to improve engineering release cycles
- ObjectiveSignificantly increase the speed of our development cycle
- KRImprove developer NPS from 20 to 60
- KRReduce build times from 25 to under 5 mins
- KRReduce cycle time from 28 days to 6 days
- Implement CD pipeline for the staging environment
- Automate all deployment steps
How to write your own Engineers OKRs
1. Get tailored OKRs with an AI
You'll find some examples below, but it's likely that you have very specific needs that won't be covered.
You can use Tability's AI generator to create tailored OKRs based on your specific context. Tability can turn your objective description into a fully editable OKR template -- including tips to help you refine your goals.
- 1. Go to Tability's plan editor
- 2. Click on the "Generate goals using AI" button
- 3. Use natural language to describe your goals
Tability will then use your prompt to generate a fully editable OKR template.
Watch the video below to see it in action 👇
Option 2. Optimise existing OKRs with Tability Feedback tool
If you already have existing goals, and you want to improve them. You can use Tability's AI feedback to help you.
- 1. Go to Tability's plan editor
- 2. Add your existing OKRs (you can import them from a spreadsheet)
- 3. Click on "Generate analysis"
Tability's Strategy Map makes it easy to see all your org's OKRsTability will scan your OKRs and offer different suggestions to improve them. This can range from a small rewrite of a statement to make it clearer to a complete rewrite of the entire OKR.
You can then decide to accept the suggestions or dismiss them if you don't agree.
Option 3. Use the free OKR generator
If you're just looking for some quick inspiration, you can also use our free OKR generator to get a template.
Unlike with Tability, you won't be able to iterate on the templates, but this is still a great way to get started.
Engineers OKR best practices
Generally speaking, your objectives should be ambitious yet achievable, and your key results should be measurable and time-bound (using the SMART framework can be helpful). It is also recommended to list strategic initiatives under your key results, as it'll help you avoid the common mistake of listing projects in your KRs.
Here are a couple of best practices extracted from our OKR implementation guide 👇
Tip #1: Limit the number of key results
The #1 role of OKRs is to help you and your team focus on what really matters. Business-as-usual activities will still be happening, but you do not need to track your entire roadmap in the OKRs.
We recommend having 3-4 objectives, and 3-4 key results per objective. A platform like Tability can run audits on your data to help you identify the plans that have too many goals.
Tip #2: Commit to weekly OKR check-ins
Don't fall into the set-and-forget trap. It is important to adopt a weekly check-in process to get the full value of your OKRs and make your strategy agile – otherwise this is nothing more than a reporting exercise.
Being able to see trends for your key results will also keep yourself honest.
Tip #3: No more than 2 yellow statuses in a row
Yes, this is another tip for goal-tracking instead of goal-setting (but you'll get plenty of OKR examples above). But, once you have your goals defined, it will be your ability to keep the right sense of urgency that will make the difference.
As a rule of thumb, it's best to avoid having more than 2 yellow/at risk statuses in a row.
Make a call on the 3rd update. You should be either back on track, or off track. This sounds harsh but it's the best way to signal risks early enough to fix things.
How to track your Engineers OKRs
OKRs without regular progress updates are just KPIs. You'll need to update progress on your OKRs every week to get the full benefits from the framework. Reviewing progress periodically has several advantages:
- It brings the goals back to the top of the mind
- It will highlight poorly set OKRs
- It will surface execution risks
- It improves transparency and accountability
We recommend using a spreadsheet for your first OKRs cycle. You'll need to get familiar with the scoring and tracking first. Then, you can scale your OKRs process by using a proper OKR-tracking tool for it.
If you're not yet set on a tool, you can check out the 5 best OKR tracking templates guide to find the best way to monitor progress during the quarter.
More Engineers OKR templates
We have more templates to help you draft your team goals and OKRs.
- OKRs to improve system efficiency and dependability
- OKRs to improve fitness and health through better nutrition and regular exercise
- OKRs to enhance productivity of IT Service Desk Analysts and maintain SLAs
- OKRs to successfully launch a new product
- OKRs to enhance release quality and punctuality
- OKRs to drive stakeholder UX comprehension and increase customer engagement in decision-making