An overview of how OKR check-ins work and some suggested questions to ask during the check-in.
What is a weekly or bi-weekly Check-in?
A weekly or bi-weekly check-in is part of the OKR process and is for teams to share how everyone is doing with their Key Results.
Why do we need to run a Check-in?
- Check-ins help identify if any changes need to be made sooner rather than later and provide greater transparency about OKR progress.
- Check-ins give the team lead overall awareness of the progress and confidence for the team OKRs. It is the place for the team leader to discuss and be able to understand any challenges that are occurring and offer additional help and resources if necessary.
- Check-ins are the easiest way for the Key Result owner to highlight if there are any hiccups in confidence or progress, or what help is required with a Key Result.
- Check-ins help the Objective owner to understand the progress and confidence of the Key Results that contribute to their Objective (as other people may own these Key Results).
What needs to happen before the check-in?
Firstly, it is important to say that the Check-in will ideally form part of your current meeting cycle rather than being an additional meeting!
Key Result progress and confidence should be updated in the TG App, bi-weekly and before each Check-in - see also How to update a Key Result in TG.
You update two components of the Key Result:
Progress - the change in the current value that moves you towards the achievement of the Key Result
Confidence - your level of confidence in being able to achieve the Key Result
The confidence level is one way of indicating that you are on track - especially if there is a lag with the metrics.
Confidence level is also one way of indicating that help is required.
Remember - it is often useful to add a comment in the Key Result activity box. This comment can identify any challenges or use it to tag colleagues asking for additional help or resources.
How should we run a Check-in?
Check-ins should be between 15-30 minutes and be part of the current meeting cycle.
Check-ins are to discuss progress and any help required – they are not meant to be used to discuss in intricate detail why or why not success has occurred.
This means just acknowledge the OKRs that are on track and all green and move on!
For the Key Results that have 🤞hiccups or 👋require help, ensure the team focuses the KR owner on the next steps by asking:
- What has the progress been since the last check-in?
- What is your confidence level in achieving your OKR? Do you need help? If so, who from?
- Are there any obstacles or challenges which may prevent you from achieving your OKR?
If the conversation needs longer, or there is need to refocus - book a session offline to resolve it.
Discuss priorities for the coming week which will best benefit the objectives – flag up if there are conflicting priorities or challenges.