11 OKR examples for Research And Development
What are Research And Development OKRs?
The Objective and Key Results (OKR) framework is a simple goal-setting methodology that was introduced at Intel by Andy Grove in the 70s. It became popular after John Doerr introduced it to Google in the 90s, and it's now used by teams of all sizes to set and track ambitious goals at scale.
Formulating strong OKRs can be a complex endeavor, particularly for first-timers. Prioritizing outcomes over projects is crucial when developing your plans.
We've tailored a list of OKRs examples for Research And Development to help you. You can look at any of the templates below to get some inspiration for your own goals.
If you want to learn more about the framework, you can read more about the OKR meaning online.
Best practices for managing your Research And Development OKRs
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.
Tability's audit dashboard will highlight opportunities to improve OKRsTip #2: Commit to the weekly 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.
Tability's check-ins will save you hours and increase transparencyTip #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 below). 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.
Building your own Research And Development OKRs with AI
While we have some examples below, it's likely that you'll have specific scenarios that aren't covered here. There are 2 options available to you.
- Use our free OKRs generator
- Use Tability, a complete platform to set and track OKRs and initiatives
- including a GPT-4 powered goal generator
Best way to track your Research And Development OKRs
Quarterly OKRs should have weekly updates to get all the 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.
Tability's Strategy Map makes it easy to see all your org's OKRsIf 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.
Research And Development OKRs templates
We've covered most of the things that you need to know about setting good OKRs and tracking them effectively. It's now time to give you a series of templates that you can use for inspiration!
You'll find below a list of Objectives and Key Results templates for Research And Development. 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 drive business expansion through innovative strategies
Drive business expansion through innovative strategies
Secure two strategic partnerships for innovation collaboration
Reach out initiating discussions for collaboration- Negotiate and finalize partnership agreements
- Identify potential partners aligned with our innovation goals
- Increase innovation portfolio returns by at least 20%
- Expand business partnerships for diverse insights
- Invest in research and employee training programs
- Implement new technologies to optimize processes
- Develop and initiate 3 new high-impact innovative projects
- Formulate project plans detailing the execution strategy
- Initiate the projects by gathering necessary resources
- Identify potential areas for high-impact innovative projects
OKRs to improve understanding of OKRs
- Improve understanding of OKRs
- Read at least two books or articles about OKRs to deepen understanding
- Research top books on OKRs and make a list of two to read
- Set aside dedicated time every week to read and focus on OKR materials
- Discuss key takeaways with colleagues or mentors to enhance comprehension
- Take notes while reading to summarize main concepts and ideas
- Attend a training session on OKRs to gain foundational knowledge
- Attend and actively participate in the OKR training session
- Prepare a notebook or document to take notes during the training session
- Research online for a reputable training session on OKRs
- Register for the chosen training session on OKRs
- Create and successfully implement a personal OKR to apply knowledge gained
- Discuss OKRs with at least three colleagues to gather different perspectives
- Engage actively in conversations with colleagues to understand their perspectives
- Take notes during discussions to capture different insights on OKRs
- Schedule a meeting with colleagues to discuss OKRs
- Prepare a list of questions to prompt discussion on OKRs
OKRs to enhance product-market fit by conducting customer research and implementing user feedback
- Improve product-market fit by leveraging customer research and user feedback
- Measure the impact of the improvements on product-market fit by tracking user metrics
- Conduct in-depth interviews with 50 potential and existing customers
- Implement the top 3 product improvements within 3 weeks
- Analyze user feedback and identify the top 3 product improvements
OKRs to elevate understanding in Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E)
- Elevate understanding in Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E)
- Complete an advanced M&E online certification course with a final score of 85+%
- Dedicate time daily for course content and study
- Enroll in an advanced M&E online certification course
- Score 85%+ on all assessments and the final exam
- Organize and lead a knowledge-sharing session in M&E for colleagues
- Identify relevant M&E topics to cover in the session
- Schedule a meeting date, time, and location
- Prepare and distribute informative materials for the session
- Conduct two insightful case studies related to M&E methods by end of quarter
- Conduct research and data collection for both case studies
- Analyze data and write up both case studies
- Identify relevant research topics for M&E methods case studies
OKRs to become an expert in large language models
- Become an expert in large language models
- Demonstrate proficiency in implementing and fine-tuning large language models through practical projects
- Continuously update and optimize large language models based on feedback and results obtained
- Complete practical projects that showcase your proficiency in working with large language models
- Create a large language model implementation plan and execute it efficiently
- Identify areas of improvement in large language models and implement necessary fine-tuning
- Complete online courses on large language models with a score of 90% or above
- Engage in weekly discussions or collaborations with experts in the field of large language models
- Schedule a weekly video conference with language model experts
- Document key insights and lessons learned from each discussion or collaboration
- Share the findings and new knowledge with the team after each engagement
- Prepare a list of discussion topics to cover during the collaborations
- Publish two blog posts sharing insights and lessons learned about large language models
OKRs to enhance strategic decision-making skills
- Enhance strategic decision-making skills
- Gather and analyze feedback on decision efficiency from 5 colleagues
- Collect and analyze the returned surveys
- Identify five colleagues to provide feedback
- Develop and distribute an efficiency feedback survey
- Implement learned strategies in 3 real-life scenarios successfully
- Utilize learned strategy in first identified scenario
- Identify 3 real-life scenarios where strategies can be applied
- Document the success of each strategy implementation
- Complete a decision-making course with at least 85% score
- Consistently attend classes and complete all assignments
- Register for a reputable decision-making course
- Study regularly to achieve at least 85% score
OKRs to develop a compelling game that engages and captivates players
- Develop a compelling game that engages and captivates players
- Develop a functional prototype of the game with polished graphics and intuitive controls
- Implement and refine intuitive controls based on user experience and usability testing
- Iterate on the game design based on user feedback and playtesting results
- Conduct user testing to identify any issues with the game controls
- Collaborate with an artist to create high-quality graphics for the game prototype
- Conduct user research to identify target audience preferences and game themes
- Develop a survey to gather user feedback on preferred game themes
- Use findings to inform game theme selection and prioritize target audience preferences
- Conduct interviews with target audience members to understand their preferences
- Analyze user research data to identify common themes and preferences
- Conduct playtesting sessions to gather feedback and iterate on the game design
- Create a detailed game design document outlining gameplay mechanics, levels, and objectives
- Outline basic gameplay mechanics that will define the core experience of the game
- Create clear and specific objectives for each level, ensuring they align with gameplay mechanics
- Design a series of diverse levels that challenge and engage players
- Research popular gameplay mechanics, level design techniques, and objective structures
OKRs to identify and assess new growth opportunities
- Identify and assess new growth opportunities
- Conduct detailed feasibility studies for identified opportunities to determine viability
- Evaluate viability based on research outcomes
- Identify opportunities for feasibility study
- Perform detailed review of business prospects
- Research and pinpoint 10 potential new market areas for business expansion
- Analyse findings to determine viability for business expansion
- Identify sectors and industries where our business can potentially expand
- Conduct detailed market research on the 10 identified areas
- Develop and present 5 comprehensive business proposals for promising opportunities
- Develop comprehensive proposals for each opportunity
- Prepare presentations for each business proposal
- Identify 5 promising business opportunities for proposal
OKRs to file patent for medical device and enhance prototype functionality
- File patent for medical device and enhance prototype functionality
- Thoroughly research patents in the related field to ensure uniqueness by end of Week 4
- Identify relevant fields for patent search
- Analyze findings for potential uniqueness conflicts
- Conduct comprehensive patent search through online databases
- Implement three major improvements in the prototype based on testing feedback by Week 12
- Complete drafting a unique and detailed patent application by Week 8
- Finalize application, including all diagrams and claims
- Write a comprehensive description of the invention
- Research and analyze existing patents relevant to the invention
OKRs to successfully penetrate and gain market share in a new market
- Successfully penetrate and gain market share in a new market
- Acquire 100 new customers through effective lead generation strategies in the new market
- Develop compelling lead magnets tailored to the needs and preferences of potential customers
- Implement targeted online advertising campaigns to capture the attention of the new market
- Build strategic partnerships and collaborations to expand reach and attract new customers
- Conduct market research to identify target audience and demographics in the new market
- Generate $500,000 in revenue from sales of the new product in the new market
- Establish partnerships or distribution channels to reach a wider audience in the new market
- Develop a comprehensive marketing strategy to effectively promote the new product
- Conduct market research to identify potential customers and understand their needs
- Monitor sales data and adjust pricing or strategies accordingly to maximize revenue
- Increase brand awareness by achieving 50,000 impressions through targeted advertising campaigns
- Achieve a customer satisfaction rating of 90% or higher through post-purchase surveys
OKRs to develop a functional and user-friendly MVP
- Develop a functional and user-friendly MVP
- Release MVP to a test group and achieve more than 85% satisfaction rate
- Identify and organize a comprehensive, relevant test group
- Develop a fully functional MVP for the specified product
- Implement feedback collection and satisfaction measurement tools
- Identify and prioritize the top 3 key features by interviewing 20 potential users
- Conduct interviews with 20 potential users
- Prepare interview questions targeting potential key features
- Analyze responses to determine top 3 features
- Secure commitment from a technical developer or agency for MVP development
- Finalize and sign official commitment agreement
- Present project details and expectations to potential developer
- Identify potential technical developers or agencies
More Research And Development OKR templates
We have more templates to help you draft your team goals and OKRs.
- OKRs to expand BDR prospecting efforts into new target markets or industry segments
- OKRs to improve software engineering skills through effective time management
- OKRs to enhance the customer advocacy program
- OKRs to get better engagement and employee satisfaction
- OKRs to develop an engaging educational app for African women
- OKRs to seek and secure a leadership role within the company
OKRs resources
Here are a list of resources to help you adopt the Objectives and Key Results framework.
- To learn: Complete 2024 OKR cheat sheet
- Blog posts: ODT Blog
- Success metrics: KPIs examples