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The Visible Gaps
Question 1
Can an IC on your team explain — without prompting — how their current work connects to this quarter's OKRs?
If the people doing the work don't see the connection, you've created homework, not alignment.
Question 2
Does every Key Result have a single human owner — not a team name, not "shared"?
"The team owns it" means no one owns it. When it slips, everyone points at everyone else.
Question 3
Do you have a check-in rhythm that catches problems while you can still fix them?
"We'll know at the end" isn't a plan. It's an excuse you're rehearsing for the post-mortem.
Question 4
If leadership's priorities shift tomorrow, do your OKRs still have a clear sponsor who'll fight for your resources?
Orphan OKRs are first to get cannibalized. If you can't name your air cover, you don't have any.
Question 5
Have you had an explicit conversation with every team you depend on — and documented what they committed to?
Assumptions about other teams kill OKRs. "I thought they knew" isn't a strategy.
Question 6
When you last flagged an OKR at risk, did leadership adjust expectations — or just tell you to "find a way"?
If raising risks gets pressure instead of support, your team learns to hide problems.
The Hidden Gaps
Question 7
Are your OKRs achievable with current headcount — without counting that backfill that's "in process"?
Leadership sets OKRs before approving resources. If your plan requires hires that don't exist, it's fiction.
Question 8
Have you explicitly killed or deprioritized at least one thing this quarter to make room?
If everything is a priority, nothing is. OKRs without "stop doing" decisions are wish lists.
Question 9
Do your OKRs reflect what your team actually spends their time on — including the "keep the lights on" work?
Teams spend 40-60% on maintenance, incidents, and requests. OKRs that ignore this plan with imaginary capacity.
Question 10
Have you identified which stakeholders will be disappointed by your priorities — and told them first?
Someone's pet project didn't make your list. They will find out. The question is whether you control that conversation.
Question 11
Do you have a written record of why you chose these OKRs and what tradeoffs you made?
In six months, someone will ask "why didn't we do X?" Your future self will thank you for the receipts.
Question 12
Can you clearly articulate what you're explicitly NOT doing this quarter — and defend it?
The power of OKRs is focus. If you can't name what you're sacrificing, you haven't actually prioritized.
Answer all 12 questions to see your results