Who is responsible for setting and updating OKRs?

‍Who is responsible for setting and updating OKRs?

In a successful OKR implementation, responsibility isn't just a top-down directive; it's a shared commitment that flows through the entire organization. This creates a powerful sense of collective ownership and ensures everyone is pulling in the same direction.

Here’s a clear breakdown of how roles and responsibilities typically work:

• Executive Leadership Sets the "North Star" (Company OKRs): The process starts at the top. The leadership team is responsible for defining 3-5 high-level, strategic Company Objectives. These are the big, ambitious goals that set the direction for everyone else for the upcoming cycle (e.g., "Achieve record-breaking growth in the European market").

• Teams Define Their Contribution (Team OKRs): This is where the magic happens. Instead of being assigned tasks, individual teams (e.g., Marketing, Product, Sales) are responsible for creating their own OKRs that directly contribute to the company's goals. This bottom-up and top-down alignment is crucial for building buy-in and empowering teams to own their work.

• Individuals Champion Progress (The "Owner"): To ensure nothing falls through the cracks, every Objective and Key Result is assigned a specific owner. This person is not necessarily the one doing all the work. Instead, they are the champion responsible for tracking progress, facilitating regular check-ins, and communicating updates to the team.

• Cross-Functional Teams Break Down Silos (Shared OKRs): One of the most powerful practices is creating Shared OKRs that are co-owned by multiple teams. For example, Marketing and Sales might share a Key Result for "Increase marketing-qualified leads to sales-accepted opportunity conversion rate from 25% to 40%." This forces collaboration and eliminates departmental friction.

Establish a Culture of Accountability

Defining these roles clearly is one of the most critical steps for a successful OKR launch. When ownership is ambiguous, accountability falters, and the entire framework can fail.

If you're struggling to create this structure or want to ensure your teams are set up for success from day one, we can help.

Book a Free Consultation to Build Your OKR Ownership Model