Introducing OKRs that survive a busy quarter
Writing OKRs is the easy part, executing them is the hard part. An OKR implementation with your leadership team and your teams, so that a few big topics actually move — and everything else waits.
Free and without obligation. I come with questions, not slides.
THIS CYCLE — MAXIMUM FIVE
NOT FOR NOW
Everything else that comes up goes here — visibly parked, not lost, reconsidered at the next planning.
THE PROCESS
One quarter from first training to first results
A proposal, not a fixed programme — we adapt it in the call, and agree there what success should look like after the first cycle.
Same reference examplesEveryone leaves the training with one understanding of OKRs, which saves hours of debate later.
The real choicesWhat the company will move this year — and what deliberately waits.
Ownership, not complianceCoaching a team’s own draft builds ownership faster than writing it for them.
The routine sticksConfidence, blockers, lessons learned — then straight into the next set of OKRs.
Five objectives per team, per cycle. No exceptions.
Ten objectives is a to-do list with a new name. The hard part of OKRs is never the wording — it is the discipline to hold back every attractive new opportunity until the few big topics have actually moved. Everything else goes on a visible “not for now” list.
EXPERIENCE
OKR implementation since 2018
From single-team pilots to company-wide rollouts across several countries and brands. Product, software and R&D organisations are a natural fit: the work is already outcome-oriented, and the difficulty is prioritisation rather than measurement.
Zertus Group
Company-wide OKR rollout across Europe, covering Dextro Energy, Galea and 19 further brands — one shared rhythm across separate entities and countries.
Herosoftware & Doktor.de
OKR implementation in a software company and in a fast-moving digital health business — both cases where the “not for now” list mattered more than the framework.
Further implementations personally led include Harvey Norman in Ireland and Domino’s Pizza in Germany. A selection of organisations I have supported:
Happy to arrange a direct conversation with an OKR sponsor from a comparable organisation — I ask my clients first, so we set that up after the call.
WHAT I WATCH FOR
Where OKR introductions lose momentum
Saying yes to everything
Good OKRs quietly compete with everything else that came up during the quarter.
The “not for now” list becomes a visible artefact, reviewed at every check-in.No capacity left for them
Where most of the year is committed to customer and project work, OKRs added on top are the first thing to slip.
Annual OKRs sized against capacity that is genuinely free — and I say so if the ambition does not fit.Key results that measure activity
First drafts describe what a team will do, not what will change. Normal — but costly if it is not corrected early.
Coaching on the first two cycles of drafts, which is where the shift actually happens.OKRs read as performance appraisal
As soon as OKRs feel like individual measurement, teams set targets they know they can hit.
Agreed explicitly with the leadership team before the first team session.INVESTMENT
A transparent day rate, and a scope we size together
| Example scope for cycle 1 — assuming five participating teams | Investment |
|---|---|
| OKR foundation training, half a day, online | 800 € |
| Annual OKRs with the leadership team, one day, on-site | 1,800 € |
| Team OKR workshop or coaching, half a day per team, online | 4,000 € |
| Mid-cycle check-in, half a day, online | 800 € |
| Cycle 1 total | 7,400 € |
An example to show how the figures build up, not a fixed package. The number of teams and the online / on-site split are exactly what we define in the call.
Joern Steinz (MBA)
OKR Coach & Consultant
I have been helping organisations implement OKRs since 2018, with a focus on practical application and measurable outcomes. Before that, consultant at Accenture and Corporate Development Manager at XING; MBA from EADA Business School, Barcelona. I teach at the International School of Management and the Duale Hochschule Baden-Württemberg in Heilbronn. You work with me throughout — the same person in the leadership session and in the team coaching.
Let’s have a short call
Thirty minutes to hear how you plan today and where the friction sits — then I will tell you honestly whether OKRs are the right answer and what the scope would look like.
Book a 30-minute callJoern Steinz · hello@okr-consultants.com · 0049 175 566 4329
I look forward to hearing from you.