10 Reasons Why Your OKRs Aren't Working

OKRs (Objectives and Key Results) have become the gold standard for tactical goal setting, promising alignment, focus, and growth. But for many teams, the initial implementation feels more like a frustrating slog than a productivity revolution. Why? Because OKRs, like any powerful tool, need to be understood, practiced, and refined. If you’re finding your OKRs falling flat, you’re not alone.

Let’s explore the common pitfalls and why your OKRs might not be delivering the results you expected.

1. Poorly Written Objectives and Key Results

The language used in OKRs matters. Poorly written OKRs lead to misinterpretations, wasted effort, and a lack of clarity about what success actually looks like. “Improve customer satisfaction,” “Boost team productivity,” or “Increase revenue” are well-intentioned, but they’re too broad. Without clear definitions and measurable outcomes, these become meaningless.

🛟 How to fix it

  • Use clear and concise language.
  • Ensure objectives and key results are easy to understand and relate to.
  • Avoid jargon and technical terms that might not be understood.
  • Have someone outside the team review the OKRs for clarity.

2. Activity-Based Key Results

Key results should measure outcomes and not activities. “Launch a new marketing campaign” is an activity, not an outcome. “Increase website traffic by 20% from the new campaign” is an outcome.

🛟 How to fix it

  • Ensure your key results measure the impact of your efforts.
  • Focus on quantifiable metrics that demonstrate progress toward your objective.

3. Poor Alignment

OKRs are designed to align individual and team goals with the overall organizational strategy. If your OKRs are disconnected, they won’t drive meaningful change even if they as successful.

🛟 How to fix it

  • Cascade OKRs from top-level objectives to team and individual levels.
  • Ensure your teams understand the rationale behind each top-level objective.
  • Promote collaboration across teams and departments to prevent redundant work.

4. Unrealistic OKRs

While OKRs should be ambitious, they also need to be achievable. Setting unrealistic targets can lead to demotivation and burnout.

🛟 How to fix it

  • Aim for a “stretch goal” that is challenging but attainable.
  • Avoid key results that are influenced by external factors outside of the team’s control.

5. Unambitious OKRs

Setting unambitious OKRs creates a false sense of accomplishment and prevents teams from stretching their capabilities. Sandbagging occurs when teams deliberately set easily achievable OKRs, underestimating their potential to ensure they “succeed.” While it might seem like a safe strategy, it stifles growth, limits innovation, and prevents teams from reaching their full potential.

🛟 How to fix it

  • Encourage a culture of setting ambitious goals—from the top.
  • Emphasize that OKRs are about learning and growth, not just hitting targets.
  • Foster transparency so that teams feel comfortable setting challenging goals.
  • Reward progress and effort, not success alone.

6. Setting Too Many OKRs

A common mistake is trying to tackle too many objectives at once. Spreading resources too thin leads to diluted focus, inefficiency and burnout. Teams struggle to prioritize resulting in a lack of significant progress in any single area.

🛟 How to fix it

  • Limit the number of OKRs per cycle.
  • Aim for 2-3 ambitious objectives per team, with a clear focus on the most impactful areas.
  • Prioritize ruthlessly.

7. Treating OKRs as a One-Time Events

OKRs are not a set-and-forget process. Leveraging continuous feedbak techniques like peer feedback and check-in meetings are essential for identifying roadblocks and making necessary adjustments. Lack of feedback can lead to blind spots and missed opportunities for improvement. Peers have unique insights into an individual’s or team’s progress and challenges, providing valuable perspectives that managers might miss. And managers can provide the guidance, support, and accountability needed to turn ambitious goals into tangible results.

🛟 How to fix it

  • Integrate peer feedback into the OKR process.
  • Encourage regular peer reviews and manager check-ins, focusing on constructive feedback related to key result progress and collaborative efforts.
  • Foster a culture of shared accountability and continuous improvement.

8. Lack of Training

OKRs are a new methodology for many teams and hence initial attempts may be imperfect. It takes time to learn the basics of OKR setting and execution, adapt them to their unique needs, and find what works best for the organization as a whole.

🛟 How to fix it

  • Embrace the learning process.
  • Provide training and handhold your teams as they experiment and iterate.  

9. Lack of Transparency

OKRs thrive in an environment of open communication and transparency. When information is siloed, progress is hidden, collaboration becomes difficult, and execution, misaligned.

🛟 How to fix it

  • Make OKR progress visible to everyone across the organization.
  • Foster a culture of transparency where teams feel comfortable sharing information and asking questions.
  • Establish clear communication channels for OKR updates and discussions.

10. Lack of Accountability

When no one feels personally responsible for an OKR, it’s easy for it to get lost in the shuffle. Without clear accountability, progress can stall, and teams may not feel motivated to achieve their goals.

🛟 How to fix it

  • Assign clear ownership for each OKR.
  • Establish regular check-ins to track progress and hold individuals accountable.
  • Foster a culture of responsibility where everyone understands their role in achieving the OKRs.
  • Recognize and celebrate progress and achievements to reinforce accountability.

The initial challenges with OKRs are often temporary. Start by focusing on small, iterative improvements, and gradually refine your OKR process. As your teams gain experience, you’ll witness how OKRs transform into a powerful engine for long-term growth, tactical alignment, and tangible achievements.

Peptrics offers an intuitive platform for organizations to manage OKRs, visualize alignment, and track progress. Sign up for an account to see how Peptrics can enhance your OKR journey.