STELLAFAI EXPERT SERIES
As Scrum is to Agile, OKRs are to an outcome mindset. But can the two (Agile and OKRs) work together? For our final expert series article, we’ve asked our Experts for their thoughts on whether there is any synergy between OKRs and Agile Methodology. Our experts explore how the fusion of OKRs and Agile can not only shape strategic visions, but also empower teams to navigate complexities, foster creativity, and achieve remarkable outcomes.
A huge thank you to all twelve of our experts for providing their wisdom and insights across all of our articles in our first-ever Experts series. 🚀 🌟
🤫 Psst — If you’re in a rush and want a speedy summary of our expert’s wisdom, skip to the end to read our summary.
OKRs and Agile are indeed complementary and create a powerful synergy when used together. OKRs promote strategic clarity by compelling discussions about a clear and impactful vision, essentially answering the question: “What are we aiming to change and for whom?” I am particularly fond of using impact mapping to facilitate this process, as it visualizes the linkage between our strategic objectives and the tasks needed to achieve them.
Agile, on the other hand, provides an operational framework for executing on this vision. Agile’s strength lies in its flexibility and emphasis on iterative, hypothesis-driven development. While we may not be able to iteratively transform a candle into a lightbulb, Agile allows us to test a series of hypotheses through successive iterations that can ultimately lead us to a functional lightbulb. In other words, Agile provides the ‘how’ to the ‘what’ posed by OKRs.
By aligning OKRs with Agile principles, organizations can ensure that their strategic goals are not only clear and measurable, but also flexible and responsive to change. This combination empowers teams to remain focused on the big picture while effectively managing the details of implementation.
OKRs can provide a useful aiming point for your strategy to ensure teams working in an agile way are working towards the right outcomes.
Agile teams are used to setting short term goals, and in testing and measuring the impact of the work they are doing. The methodology of OKRs fits perfectly with this, and when done well can create even more space for problem/solution discovery in teams. When we focus on measuring an outcome, rather than output, we bring our teams closer to strategy and empower them to solve real problems for customers.
If OKRs are connected to a business outcome that benefits the customer (e.g. agile principle 2), then Agile provides mechanisms for the team to flex and build the right things for that customer outcome. If OKRs are connected to specific deliverables, then the team will subconsciously get attached to those deliverables, regardless of whether they achieve the business outcomes.
I think it’s a great combination as long as it stays super simple and you don’t create duplications. So focus on the connection points to OKRs, e.g. Scrum techniques to execute team OKRs, meeting routines and meeting culture, retros, ideation…
OKRs help create a business environment of stable goals and clarity that enables truly agile work.
OKRs help Agile teams track progress and make necessary changes to ensure the team is focused towards a common objective and deliver measurable outcomes.
Very well as OKRs is a part of Agile. Max. 6 Sprints make an OKR Quarter and the weekly or bi-weekly meetings can be used for OKRs.
🚀 Armstrong (AI) Summary:
- OKRs and Agile are complementary, creating synergy in strategic planning and execution.
- OKRs provide strategic clarity, answering what needs to change and for whom. Agile offers flexibility and iterative development, providing the ‘how’ to achieve OKRs.
- Alignment of OKRs and Agile ensures clear, measurable, and flexible strategic goals.
- Integration should be simple, avoiding duplications, and utilising Agile techniques like Scrum, retrospectives, and ideation.
- OKRs create stable goals and enable agile teams to track progress, stay focused, and deliver measurable outcomes.
