8 Best OKR software in 2023 | Quantive

While the features we’ve discussed are essential to any OKR tool, you’ll need to consider your business’s unique needs, capabilities, and resources when considering a specific OKR tool. This requires asking a few key questions to ensure you make the best decision for your organization. So before taking the plunge, consider reflecting on the following questions: 

• What is our business looking to achieve with OKR software?

   

• What issues are you looking to solve with OKR tools?

   

• How user-friendly do we need our OKR platform to be?

   

• What should OKR software fulfill for a company of our size?

   

• What is our budget?

   

• How scalable do we need our OKR software to be?

   

• How easy is it to integrate this OKR software into our existing systems?

   

• What kind of support and maintenance are we looking to receive?

   

What is our business looking to achieve with OKR software?

Depending on your organization’s specific needs, you may prioritize different OKR software functionalities. For instance, if you’re looking to set simple, independent goals, a more affordable solution with fewer features might do the trick. Conversely, suppose you’re looking to roll out cascading, cross-functional goals that are meant to be visible throughout your business. In that case, you may need a more sophisticated and customizable solution. Figuring out what you need can help you identify the essential OKR platform features to look for. 

What issues are you looking to solve with an OKR tool?

Your organization’s issues can further help you identify what features to look out for when choosing an OKR management tool. For example, if you’re struggling with overall business alignment, you may want to prioritize an OKR tool that enables cascading OKRs. Alternatively, say your company’s goal communication is the issue. In this case, OKR software that facilitates goal transparency and real-time progress (using dashboards, reports, and alerts) can create opportunities for employees to discuss goal updates and ask questions.  

How user-friendly do we need our OKR platform to be? 

Choosing the ideal OKR tool for your business requires evaluating both its capabilities and your organization’s abilities. Considering an OKR tool’s user-friendliness — and matching it to your workforce’s know-how — is essential. It can significantly impact the extent to which the software is embraced and utilized within your company. If your staff isn’t tech-savvy, using non-intuitive OKR management software may result in a steep learning curve, leading to reduced productivity, frustration, and usability issues. In such cases, opting for a more user-friendly OKR tool that doesn’t require extensive training and resources is best.  

What should OKR software fulfill for a company of our size?

Company size matters when it comes to the perfect OKR platform for your business. If you’re operating in a big company, you’ll likely need a robust solution equipped to handle complex needs. On the other hand, a simpler solution should do the trick for a smaller company. Beyond this, the size of your company also plays a role in determining how many users will need access to the OKR software — directly affecting the price tag. So, as you decide on the right OKR management platform, consider your company’s size to ensure it fits your needs. 

What is our budget?

When sifting through your OKR tool options, a key factor is your budget — including the costs and resources you’ll need to deploy and maintain the software effectively. This initial cost of acquiring the OKR platform is just the tip of the iceberg. The actual cost of implementing the software is reflected in the ongoing expenses that come with it, including the time and cost of customer support and employee training initiatives. By accounting for these costs, you can better decide which OKR tool provides the most bang for its buck.  

How scalable do we need our OKR software to be? 

It’s not wise to solely think of your current business needs when choosing an OKR management tool. Long-term considerations are also important. As your company grows and evolves, so may the complexity and scale of your goals. This means you’ll need a tool that can keep up. Perhaps you’ll have a larger number of team goals, or they’ll grow to be more nested and interconnected. As such, you want to make sure your OKR software can adapt and grow with your company, so you won’t have to switch to a different tool later on (entailing additional time spent on evaluating new options, training teams, and migrating data).  

How easy is it to integrate this OKR software into our existing systems? 

Understanding an OKR tool’s integrative capabilities is crucial, as this can affect its usability within your organization. How well your OKR tool integrates with your existing tech stack can affect its ease of use and ability to leverage data from multiple sources. Employees will be more likely to use and adopt OKR software that doesn’t create additional work for them (i.e., manual data entry, switching between multiple systems). They’ll likely stay consistent with the OKR tool if it can fit seamlessly into their daily workflows. 

What kind of support and maintenance are we looking to receive?

It’s also important to consider the kind of services and support you’ll receive from the OKR software provider. This can give you a good idea of how much time and effort you’ll need to invest in getting the OKR tool up and running smoothly. When considering an OKR management tool, you’ll want to ask the provider about their support and maintenance options. This may include onboarding support, training support, troubleshooting, bug fixing, upgrades, and maintenance.