The Gospel of 10X

“Measure What Matters” by John Doerr is an indispensable book for achieving exponential increase in productivity and innovation. The book is about a concept called OKRs (Objectives and key results) – a simple idea that drives 10X growth. The idea is actually quite simple, you define your objectives and decide the key results for those objectives and drive it diligently, check regularly and keep learning. If done with rigor and imagination it can make the 10X possible. The book combines many fascinating case studies with insightful personal stories to show how OKRs ?add magic. The concept of OKR was adopted by google in the year 1999 when they were just 40 employees with amazing technology, entrepreneurial energy, and sky-high ambitions, but no real business plan. With OKR at the foundation of their management they grew from 40 employees to 156 k plus employee and market cap exceeding 1.7 trillion!!

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OKRs are like Swiss army knives, suited to any environment. The broadest adoption is tech but it is not limited only to tech, and has been adopted by all types of organizations, to name a few- Disney, BMW, Samsung, Bill & Melinda Gate foundation, Zume? & One.

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In today’s economy, change is a fact of life and needs a trusted tool to carve the path ahead and OKR provides that. At smaller startups where people absolutely need to be pulling in the same direction, OKRs is a survival tool. It provides that yardstick for success: “We are going to build this product, and we’ve proven the market by talking to 25 customers, and here is how much they are willing to pay.”

At medium size, rapidly scaling organizations, OKRs are a shared language for execution. They clarify expectations” “What do we need to get done (and fast), and who’s working on it”. They keep employees aligned vertically & horizontally.

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At large enterprises, OKRs are neon-lit road signs. They demolish silos and cultivate connections among far-flung contributors. By enabling frontline autonomy, they give rise to fresh solutions. And they keep even the most successful organizations stretching for more.

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While conceptually very simple, this regimen demands rigor, commitment, clear thinking, and intentional communication. As google leadership would say “we are not just making some list and checking it twice. We’re building our capacity, our goal muscle and there is always some pain for meaningful gain”. And yet Google’s leaders have never faltered. Their hunger for learning and improving remains insatiable.

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The four cardinal superpowers of the concept are:

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1.???? Superpower#1 -Focus and commit to priorities.

It is our Choices …. That show what we truly are, far more than our abilities.”- J. K Rowling

It’s critical to focus on work that’s important and be clear on what doesn’t matter. It mandates making hard choices. It’s a perfect tool for communication, by dispelling confusion it provides the focus needed to win.

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2.???? Superpower#2 -Align & connect for teamwork.

“We don’t hire smart people to tell them what to do. We hire smart people so that they can tell us what to do”- Steve Jobs

With OKRs transparency everyone’s goals are openly shared. It provides how an individual’s goal is linked to company’s game plan and provides the required motivation and meaning to the work. It fosters engagement & innovation.

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3.???? Superpower#3 -Track for accountability

“In God we trust; all others must bring data “- W. Edwards Deming

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OKRs are driven by data. The golden phrase “As measured by” is the key to success, periodic check-ins, objective grading, and continuous reassessment -all in spirit of no-judgement accountability. An endangered key result triggers action to get it back on track, or to revise or replace it if wanted.

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4.???? Superpower#4 -Stretch for amazing

“The biggest risk of all is not taking one”- Mellody Hobson

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It motivates to excel by doing more than what we’d thought was possible. By testing the limits and affording the freedom to fail, they release the most creative and ambitious outcomes.

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In technology Google stands for Boundless innovation and relentless growth. In the world of OKR it is synonyms with exponentially aggressive growth or as author Steven Levy calls “The Gospel of 10X”

“The big Hairy Audacious Goal of Gmail didn’t merely improve on existing systems. It reinvented the category and forced competitors to raise their game by orders of magnitude. Such 10x thinking is rare in any sector, on any stage. Most people, Larry page observes, “tends to assume that things are impossible, rather than starting from real-world physics and figuring out what’s actually possible. “

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In addition to these Superpowers OKRs application & implication for success are:

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Continuous Performance Management: OKRs & CFRs (Conversation, Feedback and Recognition.) Along with OKR, CFR helps in taking the organizations to a whole new level.

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“Talking can transform minds, which can transform behaviors, which can transform institutions”- Sheryl sandberg

The simple act of forcing people to think about the business- thoughtfully , transparently, independently – was a huge accelerant to their performance.

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Andy Grove was the father of OKR and made Intel a superpower by using it. He started this journey with two riddles” How can we define and measure output/ by Knowledge workers (a worker who is paid to think)? And what can be done to increase it?”

And that lead to the discovery of OKR by him. The first success was created in operation Crush- The fight for survival by a young Intel. The OKRs of this operation were time bound and unambiguous, with every What & How in place.

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A must read.