How do initiatives differ from Key Results?

In This Answer

When teams begin working with OKRs (Objectives and Key Results), one of the most common early pitfalls is confusing initiatives with results.

This confusion can lead to OKRs that track activity rather than impact — making it difficult to measure success or drive meaningful progress.

This answer explains the difference, shows exactly where to draw the line, and why it matters.

Initiatives vs. Results: What’s the Difference?

Initiatives

Initiatives are actions or projects you plan to do. They describe what you will work on to achieve your goals.

Examples:

Launch a new email campaign
Host 3 customer interviews
Redesign the homepage
Build a new reporting feature

Initiatives are inputs — they represent effort and execution.

Results

Results are outcomes — what happens as a consequence of your initiatives. They tell you whether your actions actually made a difference.

Examples:

Increase email open rate from 22% to 30%
Improve NPS from 40 to 60
Grow signups by 20%
Reduce customer churn by 10%

Results are measurable, time-bound, and outcome-focused.

Why This Distinction Matters

Without a clear line between the two, your team may:

Celebrate activity instead of impact: Completing projects feels productive, but doesn’t guarantee results.
Struggle to prioritize: When everything is an initiative, it’s hard to focus on what will drive outcomes.
Lose sight of the bigger picture: Teams get stuck in delivery mode without knowing if they’re moving the needle.

The goal of OKRs is not to reward effort — it’s to drive meaningful, measurable outcomes that align with your company’s strategy.

How to Spot the Difference

Here’s a simple test to separate initiatives from results:

Ask yourself: If we complete this, does it guarantee success?

If the answer is no, then you’re likely describing an initiative — not a result.

Let’s say your Objective is:
"Improve customer engagement on our mobile app."

Here’s how that breaks down:

Initiative: Launch weekly in-app tips and tutorials
Result: Increase average weekly active users from 15,000 to 20,000

The initiative supports the result, but it doesn’t guarantee it. That’s why only the second example qualifies as a Key Result.

Where Exactly Is the Line?

Use these four tests. If an item fails any of them, it is an initiative and belongs in your actions, not in your Key Results.

Control: Could the team finish it entirely on its own, without anyone else changing their behavior? Then it is an initiative. Results depend on customers, users or the market responding.
Done or moved: Can it be checked off as done? Initiatives get done. Results move from a baseline to a target.
Completion without success: Could you complete it and still miss the Objective? Then it is an initiative.
Value or effort: Does it describe the value created, such as retained customers or faster onboarding, or the effort spent, such as a campaign or a feature? Only value counts as a result.

Turning an initiative into a result usually takes one question: "What do we expect to change if we do this?" "Launch a new email campaign" becomes "Increase email open rate from 22% to 30%".

How to Structure Your OKRs

To get the most out of OKRs:

Start with the Objective – A qualitative goal that answers: What do we want to achieve?
Define 2–4 Key Results – Quantitative outcomes that answer: How will we measure success?
List Initiatives separately – These are your strategies and projects — they support the Key Results but should not replace them.