How to run a company on OKRs: the OKR Operating System (free book)
Five habits that turn OKRs into results, quarter after quarter
A free 85-page book on running a company or team with OKRs: how to write them, and the five habits that turn them into results every week. PDF, no email needed.
Created by
Richard Russell
The Fast Brain Coach
Last updated:
This is my book about OKRs. It’s 85 pages, it’s free, and you don’t need to give me your email to read it. I wrote it from the training I’ve given to hundreds of leaders, after using OKRs for six years at Google.
Most OKR advice stops once the OKRs are written. But OKRs don’t do anything on their own. You could write the best OKRs in the world, and if that’s all you do, nothing happens. This book is about what comes next: the habits that turn OKRs into results, every week, all quarter.
Who it’s for
Leaders who run a company, a business unit or a team. That includes founders and CEOs of startups and scaleups, leaders in big companies going through a big change, and the managers and product managers who work with them. You might be new to OKRs, or you might have used them for years.
The five habits
The heart of the book is what I call the OKR Operating System. It has five parts, and each one builds on the one before:
The Planning Habit. A goal without a plan is just a dream. Each owner writes a one-page plan, reviews it with the people involved, and changes it as they learn.
The Operational Link. A weekly look at the numbers and feedback that show how the business is running. Some companies call it a Weekly Business Review.
The Execution Cadence. A leadership meeting every Monday that sets the week, using the numbers and the plans.
The Strategic Link. At least once a quarter, step back and ask: are we still doing the right things?
The Transparency Habit. At the end of the quarter, share the results with everyone, with what you learned, and celebrate the wins.
Here’s how the five habits fit into a quarter:
What else is inside
How to write OKRs. Objectives, Key Results, choosing metrics or milestones, owners, and how to set targets.
The mistakes to avoid. Too many OKRs, tying OKRs to bonuses and performance reviews, and letting OKR software do your managing.
Your quarter, ready to use. A quarterly calendar, meeting agendas, a One Page Plan template and a worked example.
The book shows you how to set up a Weekly Business Review, with an example spreadsheet:
Four ideas from the book
Fewer OKRs work better. Before you write new ones, look at the OKRs your company already has. If they’re enough to guide your team’s work, sign up to those instead.
Plan all quarter, not just at the start. Trying to agree everything in the week before the quarter starts never works well. Write a plan that’s easy to read, then keep reviewing and changing it. The One Page Plan helps.
Keep OKRs out of bonuses. When pay depends on hitting OKRs, people push back against ambitious ones.
You probably don’t need OKR software. If you have so many OKRs that you need software to keep track of them, that’s the problem to solve.
Download the book
The OKR Operating System
85 pages: how to write OKRs, the five habits that make them work, and the templates and agendas to run your quarter. Free PDF, no email needed.
It’s free to share, so please pass it on to anyone who’d find it useful.
If you want the short version first, start with the OKR Cheat Sheet, then set OKRs with your team in a week.
Want help with this?
The book gives you the system. I help leadership teams put it to work, and coach the leaders who run it. Pick the one that sounds most like you.
The startup I run. You want a weekly rhythm that keeps the team on the few things that matter.
The transformation I’m leading. You need OKRs your sponsors back and your teams use every week.
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