6 OKR examples for Solution Architect
What are Solution Architect 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.
Creating impactful OKRs can be a daunting task, especially for newcomers. Shifting your focus from projects to outcomes is key to successful planning.
We have curated a selection of OKR examples specifically for Solution Architect to assist you. Feel free to explore the templates below for inspiration in setting 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 Solution Architect 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.
Tip #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.
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 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 Solution Architect 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 Solution Architect OKRs
Your quarterly OKRs should be tracked weekly in order to get all the benefits of the OKRs 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
Spreadsheets are enough to get started. Then, once you need to scale you can use a proper OKR platform to make things easier.
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.
Solution Architect 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 will find in the next section many different Solution Architect Objectives and Key Results. We've included strategic initiatives in our templates to give you a better idea of the different between the key results (how we measure progress), and the initiatives (what we do to achieve the results).
Hope you'll find this helpful!
OKRs to design a comprehensive solution architecture for in-house projects
- Design a comprehensive solution architecture for in-house projects
- Present and gain approval for solution architecture from key stakeholders, including management and IT teams
- Prepare comprehensive presentation detailing solution architecture
- Schedule meeting with stakeholders and IT team
- Present solution architecture, seeking approval
- Develop detailed solution architecture that aligns with business objectives and enables scalability
- Design a detailed solution architecture blueprint
- Ensure alignment between architecture and business goals
- Identify business objectives and scalability requirements
- Conduct thorough analysis of current systems and requirements to identify gaps and needs
- Review current systems and requirements for accuracy and efficiency
- Identify gaps within existing systems and requirements
- Determine future needs based on identified gaps
OKRs to define S4 HANA's Transportation Management Solution Architecture
- Define S4 HANA's Transportation Management Solution Architecture
- Identify and document all functional requirements for the solution by end of week 6
- List all anticipated functional requirements for the solution
- Create a detailed document outlining these requirements
- Complete documentation process by end of week 6
- Complete architectural design to meet identified requirements by week 8
- Draft initial architectural design based on requirements
- Complete and review final architectural design by week 8
- Finalize identified requirements for architectural design
- Validate design through a prototype achieving 95% requirement coverage by week 12
- Create a detailed design prototype based on project requirements
- Adjust design and prototype as needed by week 12
- Conduct prototype testing ensuring 95% requirement coverage
OKRs to enhance application design by solution architect review
- Enhance application design by solution architect review
- Conduct in-depth analysis of current application design flaws
- Analyze identified flaws and their impacts on user experience
- Identify potential areas of improvement in the application design
- Develop a plan to address and fix noted design flaws
- Collaborate with development team to propose and implement design improvements
- Draft proposed design improvements for team review
- Oversee implementation of agreed-upon design changes
- Organize meeting with development team to discuss design enhancements
- Track and evaluate impact of design changes on overall system performance
- Analyze and document performance variations tied to design changes
- Monitor system performance before and after design changes implementation
- Run system testing for evaluating design modifications' effectiveness
OKRs to successfully migrate on-prem applications to cloud setup
- Successfully migrate on-prem applications to cloud setup
- Perform successful trial migration for at least 2 applications without compromising functionality
- Identify two applications suitable for migration testing
- Perform incremental migration while ensuring functionality
- Verify the successful migration and performance
- Identify and prioritize 70% of on-prem applications for migration by comparing impact and feasibility
- Evaluate each application's migration impact and feasibility
- List existing on-prem applications for review
- Prioritize 70% of applications based on evaluation results
- Achieve full migration with zero downtime for the prioritized list of applications
- Test and implement the migration plan effectively
- Ensure proper setup for seamless transition without downtime
- Create a detailed migration plan for priority applications
OKRs to efficiently migrate services and databases to Google Cloud
- Efficiently migrate services and databases to Google Cloud
- Achieve minimal downtime during the migration process
- Conduct regular communication regarding the migration process with all relevant stakeholders
- Perform a thorough assessment of the existing infrastructure and identify potential issues
- Develop a detailed migration plan with clear timelines and allocated resources
- Implement redundancy measures and backup systems to minimize the impact of any disruptions
- Optimize costs by analyzing and implementing cost-effective solutions in Google Cloud
- Identify and eliminate any unnecessary services or resources to reduce expenses
- Regularly monitor and review cost reports and adjust strategies accordingly
- Research and implement more cost-effective alternatives or optimized configurations for existing services
- Conduct a thorough analysis of current Google Cloud services and associated costs
- Ensure seamless data migration from existing databases to Google Cloud
- Perform necessary data cleansing and transformation to ensure compatibility with Google Cloud
- Assess current database structure and data volume for smooth migration planning
- Create a detailed data migration strategy outlining steps, tools, and timelines
- Execute step-by-step migration process, verifying data integrity and minimizing downtime
- Successfully migrate all services from current platform to Google Cloud
OKRs to enhance cloud architecture expertise and expand project portfolio
- Enhance cloud architecture expertise and expand project portfolio
- Obtain advanced certification in cloud architecture
- Schedule and take the cloud architecture certification exam
- Enroll in study courses or training programs for the certification
- Research potential certifications in cloud architecture and their requirements
- Lead training sessions on cloud architecture best practices for team members
- Schedule regular training sessions for team members
- Identify topics and develop training curriculum on cloud architecture
- Evaluate team members' understanding post-training
- Successfully implement five cloud solutions for clients
- Monitor and adjust strategies for optimal performance
- Identify suitable cloud solutions for client's specific needs
- Develop custom implementation strategies for each client
More Solution Architect OKR templates
We have more templates to help you draft your team goals and OKRs.
OKRs to enhance engagement and commitment via effective communication OKRs to enhance efficacy of fraud detection/rules mechanism to minimize customer impact OKRs to implement an Automated Patching Process OKRs to enhance app experience through the implementation of product design best practices OKRs to drive a significant increase in sales performance OKRs to enhance Direct-to-Consumer (DTC) conversion rates
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