Do you know that 93% of software businesses use SaaS in 2022? Well, that is not surprising. With SaaS, software companies could deliver their products over the internet, saving on shipping costs and allowing for more accessible updates.  

It was a game-changer. Of course, not everyone was thrilled with the idea 😱 

Times are changing and SaaS is here to stay🚀.  

Instead of going to the store to buy software, you could sign up for a subscription and access it from anywhere in the world. And with the rise of cloud computing, SaaS has only become more popular. 

Let’s now see what role OKR plays in SaaS companies

OKRs stands for Objectives and Key Result s. They are a goal-setting framework used by businesses and organizations to align individuals and teams toward a common goal. 

• The objective is the goal you want to achieve 
• Key results are the measurable outcomes that help you track your progress toward that goal. 
• OKRs are typically set for a specific period, such as a quarter or a year, and are reviewed and updated regularly to ensure progress is being made. 
• OKRs are ambitious but achievable 

Why are OKRs important for SaaS🤔?

OKRs (Objectives and Key Results) are essential for SaaS (Software-as-a-Service) companies for several reasons: 

Aligning teams 

✅SaaS companies typically have cross-functional teams working on different aspects of the product or service.  

✅OKRs help align these teams towards common goals, ensuring everyone is working towards the same objectives and key results. 

Focusing on outcomes 

✅OKRs help define and measure those outcomes, ensuring the team provides value to the customers. 

Iterative development 

✅ SaaS products are typically developed iteratively, with continuous feedback from customers.  

✅OKRs help define specific goals for each iteration, and measure progress towards those goals, ensuring the team is building the right features at the right time. 

Driving growth 

✅ SaaS companies typically focus on growing their user base, revenue, and market share.  

✅ OKRs help defines specific growth objectives, and measure progress towards those objectives, ensuring the team is making data-driven decisions to drive growth. 

Accountability 

✅ OKRs help define clear ownership of specific goals and outcomes, ensuring everyone on the team is accountable for their part in achieving those goals. 

SaaS companies are focused on delivering outcomes that meet the needs of their customers. OKRs help defines and measure those outcomes, ensuring the team provides value to the customers.

Steps to implement OKR in SaaS companies

🎯 Introduce them to your team 

Before we roll out any new kind of framework, communication is the key. We should always communicate about the framework and how to do that and whether it is feasible or not. Explain the concept of OKRs to your team, and what you hope to achieve by implementing them. Outline the timelines you plan to use to measure their success (monthly, quarterly), and most importantly discuss the procedures around deliverables, progress checks, and what to do if any problems arise. 

🎯 Define OKRs 

To define OKRs, you can ask yourself three simple questions:
* Where am I now?
* Where do I want to go?
* How do I get there?
These answers will form the outline of the OKRs for every team member within the given timeframe. 

For example, your objective might be to reach out to 30 potential new clients over the next month and seal the deal with 10 over the next quarter. Once the rest of your team is aware of your objectives, they can break them down into bite-sized tasks or relevant metrics to help the company achieve that goal. This might include adding features to entice a certain type of client or resolving customer issues for better feedback. 

🎯 Regular check-ins 

Discussing OKRs at the start and the end of each cycle isn’t enough. 

Regular check-ins to see how objectives are progressing and whether individuals are on track to meet their targets are vital to everyone achieving their goals.
Schedule weekly or bi-weekly one-on-ones with team leads to see if you can provide guidance or assistance to help them reach their target. Keeping on track ensures you have enough time to achieve your goals without scrambling for a time as the quarter ends. 

🎯 Measure your OKRs 

You can measure OKRs by implementing a scoring system. The terms scoring OKRs or grading OKRs refer to setting criteria for evaluating success — critical to the OKR process. When scoring or grading an OKR, you declare the level of completion for each key result. 

You can use several methods to grade OKRs. Regardless of your chosen method, you’ll need to determine at the outset what scale to use, what each increment represents, and how to define progress. Each key result needs scoring criteria. The whole team must clearly understand the ranking for each key result they will work on. 

10 Best SAAS OKR examples: – Here are some examples of OKRs SaaS 🎯 

Objective 1: Increase Monthly Recurring Revenue (MRR) by 20% 

KR 1: Increase free trial sign-ups by 30%
KR 2: Increase conversion rate from free trial to paid subscription by 10%
KR 3: Achieve a 90% customer retention rate 

Objective 2: Improve User Engagement by 25% 

KR 1: Increase daily active users (DAU) by 15%
KR 2: Increase user session duration by 20%
KR 3:Achieve a Net Promoter Score (NPS) of 9 or higher 

Objective 3: Launch a New Product Feature by the End of the Quarter 

KR 1: Complete product development by the end of the month
KR 2: Conduct user testing and receive at least a 4.5/5 user satisfaction rating
KR 3: Achieve a 50% adoption rate within two weeks of release 

Objective 4: Improve Customer Satisfaction Rating by 10% 

KR 1: Respond to all customer inquiries within 24 hours
KR 2:Resolve 90% of customer complaints within 48 hours
KR 3:Achieve an average customer satisfaction rating of 4.5/5 

Objective 5: Increase Organic Search Traffic by 15% 

KR 1: Increase website domain authority by 10%
KR 2: Publish at least 3 high-quality blog posts per week
KR 3: Achieve a 20% increase in organic search traffic from target keywords 

Objective 6: Expand into a New Market 

KR 1: Conduct market research and identify potential target markets by the end of the month
KR 2: Establish a local presence in the new market within two months
KR 3: Achieve at least 100 new paying customers within the first quarter 

Objective 7: Improve the Customer Onboarding Process 

KR 1: Reduce customer onboarding time by 50%
KR 2: Increase user activation rate by 20%
KR 3: Achieve a 90% customer satisfaction rating for the onboarding process 

Objective 8: Increase Sales by 15% 

KR 1: Increase lead generation by 20%
KR 2: Reduce sales cycle length by 30%
KR 3: Achieve a 20% increase in the average deal size 

Objective 9: Reduce Customer Churn Rate by 20% 

KR 1: Conduct customer exit surveys and identify reasons for churn
KR 2: Implement targeted campaigns to address common reasons for churn
KR 3: Achieve a customer churn rate of 5% or lower 

Objective 10: Improve Product Usability by 20% 

KR 1: Conduct user testing and identify at least 10 usability issues
KR 2: Address all identified usability issues within two months
KR 3: Achieve a user satisfaction rating of 4.5/5 for product usability 

Conclusion 

OKR software drives growth and who would not love their SaaS companies to grow? 

The OKR framework is like a chronic transformation for any organization, no matter how many employees work in your company-OKR can be created with two people, if your vision is strong your goals-setting approach should be more robust. 

OKR for SaaS is now more important than ever, technology innovation is increasing at a high pace and if you are still figuring out how to do it, you are already 100 steps behind. OKR in SaaS helps the entire team to grow in the desired direction, if your team task and critical results are aligned with your top management goal– there is no way back your team will keep on achieving milestones. Talk to our experts and coaches and gain more insights or try Datalligence for free.