Guiding Star OKRs

A New Approach to Setting and Achieving Goals

by Staffan Nöteberg

Tired of traditional OKRs that stifle innovation and demotivate teams? The Guiding Star OKR framework offers a refreshing new approach to goal setting, emphasizing purpose, unified direction, and adaptability. Bestselling author Staffan Nöteberg distills knowledge from diverse industries, teaching you to create a compelling “Guiding Star” vision that inspires, aligns, and empowers teams. Learn to foster intrinsic motivation, embrace continuous adaptation, and unlock strategic agility for sustainable success in today’s ever-changing business world.

Tired of goals that feel like a chore, only to be abandoned when things get tough? The Guiding Star OKR framework offers a refreshing new approach to goal setting, one that emphasizes purpose, unified direction, and the freedom to adapt when needed.

Unlike traditional OKRs that can stifle innovation and demotivate teams, this book teaches you to create a compelling “Guiding Star” vision that inspires everyone to pull in the same direction. Discover how to foster intrinsic motivation, giving your team the autonomy to pursue their goals with passion and creativity. Establish a clear and inspiring vision that illuminates a common way forward for the organization. Learn to embrace continuous adaptation, making sure your organization stays agile in a rapidly changing world.

Whether you’re a leader looking to transform your company culture, or a team member seeking greater purpose in your work, the Guiding Star OKR framework offers a proven path to sustainable success.

• Errata, typos, suggestions

Releases:

• B1.0 2024/09/16

Note: Contents and extracts of beta books will change as the book is developed.

Introduction

• Setting the Foundation
  • Guiding Star Objectives
    • Begin with the End in Mind
    • Objectives as Engaging Campfire Stories
    • Objectives as Overarching Principles
    • Objectives as a Direction, Not a Goal
    • Creating Guiding Star Objectives
    • Urgent ≠ Important
    • Guiding Stars at Different Levels
    • Key Takeaways
    • What’s Next?
  • Guiding Star Key Results excerpt
    • What Is a Key Result?
    • Purpose-Driven Development
    • Key Results Indicate, They Don’t Prove
    • The “Easy to Measure” Fallacy
    • Key Results Cannot Be Delegated
    • When Will We Celebrate?
    • Facilitating an OKR Draft Brainstorming Session
    • Key Takeaways
    • What’s Next?
• Guiding Stars in Action
  • Discovering Customer Opportunities
    • What Is the Opportunities and Outcomes Artifact?
    • Discovering the Customer’s Job Statements
    • Mapping Your Customer’s Value Chain
    • Tech Trends and Your Customer’s Market
    • Opportunities and Outcomes Inspire Your OKRs
    • Key Takeaways
    • What’s Next?
  • Catchball: Defining Guiding Stars Cross-Collaboratively excerpt
    • A Collaborative Exercise
    • Why Hierarchy Still Matters (Even If You Hate It)
    • Big OODA Is the Secret to Faster and Better Goals
    • The Role of the Guiding Star Sponsor
    • Different Levels May Have Different Cadences
    • Shared OKRs Drive Collaborative Work
    • Strategy Broadcast Provides Clarity and Participation
    • Key Takeaways
    • What’s Next?
  • Pupation: Integrating Guiding Stars with Agile Planning
    • The Essential Period between Caterpillar and Chrysalis
    • The Role of the Guiding Star Liaison
    • The Team of Teams
    • Always Maintain a Unified Task List
    • Key Takeaways
    • What’s Next?
  • Calibration: Fine-Tuning Guiding Stars
    • Calibration as an OODA Loop
    • Components of Calibration
    • Facilitating a Calibration Session
    • Strategy Drives Execution
    • Key Takeaways
    • What’s Next?
  • Cross-Pollination: Everyone’s Ears, Insights, and Ideas excerpt
    • Embrace Quenched Disorder
    • What Is Cross-Pollination?
    • Cross-Pollination Is as Necessary as Calibration
    • Scaffolding with Informal Networks
    • Autocatalysis—If We Have It In Us, It Will Emerge
    • Facilitating a Cross-Pollination Session
    • Key Takeaways
    • What’s Next?
• Succeeding with Guiding Stars
  • Seven Principles of Good Strategy
    • Principle 1: Craft a Common Direction
    • Principle 2: Discover Transformative Leaps
    • Principle 3: Influence Execution Substantially
    • Principle 4: Use and Enhance Collective Intelligence
    • Principle 5: Self-Organize for Scalability
    • Principle 6: Adapt Direction
    • Principle 7: Persist through Timeboxing
    • Applying the Principles to Guiding Star OKRs
    • Key Takeaways
    • What’s Next?
  • Implementing the Guiding Star OKR Framework
    • Preparing the Evolutionary Transformation
    • Iterate the Transformation
    • Why Not Linear Implementation?
    • More than Just Following the Stars
    • Key Takeaways
    • What’s Next?
  • Guiding Star Challenges
    • Story Map
    • What’s Next?