Does each business function work on a different OKR from the ELT?

In This Answer

Should Each Business Function Have Its Own OKRs — Separate from the ELT?

As organizations grow, alignment becomes both more critical and more complex.
A common question that arises is whether individual business functions (like Marketing, Sales, or Product) should work on separate OKRs from those defined by the Executive Leadership Team (ELT).

The short answer?
They should build on them, not work in isolation.

Let’s explore how to create functional OKRs that are both strategically aligned and functionally relevant — and why this matters for organizational success.

The Purpose of Executive-Level OKRs

Executive Leadership Team (ELT) OKRs serve as the strategic north star for the organization.

They define:

The top 3–5 business priorities for the quarter or year
Where the organization must focus to grow, improve, or transform
A shared language for success across all teams

These OKRs are intentionally high-level and cross-functional — they don’t drill down into operational details.

Functional OKRs Translate Strategy into Execution

Each business function — Marketing, Sales, Product, Finance, etc. — plays a unique role in achieving those company-level priorities.

Rather than working on completely separate OKRs, functions should derive their own goals from the ELT’s OKRs, translating broad outcomes into specific contributions.

Example

If the company-wide objective is “Improve customer retention by 20%,”
then functional OKRs might look like:

Product: Launch 3 new features based on churn feedback
Customer Success: Increase proactive support touches by 30%
Marketing: Launch retention-focused email campaigns with 50% open rate
Sales: Reduce churn risk among top 10 accounts by 50%

Each function owns a piece of the broader mission — with measurable Key Results.

Why Alignment Beats Separation

When teams create OKRs in a vacuum, several risks emerge:

Duplicate efforts or conflicting priorities
Misalignment on what success looks like
Poor cross-functional collaboration
Wasted resources on work that doesn’t drive outcomes

On the other hand, alignment creates:

Clear strategic focus
Better accountability
Stronger cross-functional dependencies
Improved visibility for leadership

It’s not about control — it’s about coherence.

How to Align Functional OKRs to ELT OKRs

Here’s a simple 3-step process to ensure your functional OKRs serve the company’s top goals:

Review ELT OKRs
Understand the big picture — what are we solving for this quarter or year?
Define Your Function’s Role
Ask: “What are the 1–2 most valuable things our team can do to move this forward?”
Set Functional OKRs That Support the Top-Level OKRs
Your objectives should be bold but focused, and your Key Results should be measurable, outcome-oriented, and tied back to company priorities.

Pro tip: Use OKR alignment tools or visual maps to show how departmental OKRs support company goals.

Avoiding Over-Cascading

Alignment doesn’t mean every Key Result from the ELT needs to become a full OKR at the functional level.

Instead of rigid top-down cascading, think of OKRs as strategically linked — each team chooses the OKRs most relevant to their unique value and role, while staying in sync with company priorities.

Final Thoughts

Yes, each business function should define its own OKRs — but not in isolation from the ELT.

The most effective teams create a shared strategy, where every department contributes meaningfully toward the same north star.
This is what turns OKRs from a planning tool into a culture of performance and alignment.