The Three Types of Commitments

Making regular commitments towards the key results is where the real execution takes place. Let’s discuss how to tailor commitment making for your team.

Types of Commitments

There are three types of commitments to consider:

  • Leveraged behaviors track the specific behaviors you want the team to perform throughout the week. It holds the team accountable for performing the behavior rather than producing the result. You can track leveraged behaviors on an individual or team basis.
  • Small outcomes focus the team on achieving a weekly result but give each member of the team latitude to choose their own method for achieving it.
  • Projects allow a team to execute on their assigned tasks depending on the project plan or methodology.

1. Leveraged Behaviors

Leveraged behaviors are the easiest commitments to achieve though have less impact towards key results than small outcomes and projects. A leveraged behavior defines the specific behavior and creates a consistent focus for all team members. There are two dimensions for a leveraged behavior.

Individual or Team

You may track a leveraged behavior for each team member or for the entire team over a given time period. For example, if a sales team had a leveraged behavior to track advancing prospects in the sales cycle, an individual focus could be:

Advance one qualified prospect at least one step in the sales cycle each day.

For a team focus the leveraged behavior could be:

Advance five qualified prospects as a team at least one step in the sales cycle each day.

Individual behaviors are best for situations when personal accountability is high. They require each team member to perform to achieve a key result. On the other hand, team behaviors will allow individual team members to under-perform or focus on clearing the path for others.

Daily or Weekly

You may also track leveraged behaviors either daily or over a longer time such as a week or every two weeks. However, make sure the time aligns with the cycle for the team objective (e.g. quarterly). The examples above used a daily timeframe. For an individual focus and weekly timeframe, the leveraged behavior could be:

Advance five qualified prospects at least one step in the sales cycle each week.

For a team focus and weekly timeframe, the leveraged behavior could be:

Advance twenty qualified prospects at least one step in the sales cycle each week.

Tracking leveraged behaviors on a daily basis encourages consistent habits though is best used for roles that have consistency day over day. Weekly behaviors allow teams to miss a daily goal and schedule the activity when time allows.

2. Small Outcomes

Small outcome commitments are more difficult to achieve though have a higher impact on the key results. A small outcome will allow each individual to choose his or her own focus for the given time period.

High-Quality Small Outcome Commitments

It should not be surprising that a high-quality small outcome commitment follows S.M.A.R.T:

  • Smart – targets a specific outcome or result
  • Meaningful – a personal commitment, not a commitment for another person
  • Attainable –you can complete in a reasonable amount of time
  • Relevant – relates to moving a key result
  • Time-bound – specifies the day and time the commitment will be done

Common Mistakes

Watch for the following common mistakes when making small outcome commitments:

  • Completing “day job” responsibilities not related to a key result
  • Repeating the same commitmentsent over two consecutive weeks
  • Forgetting to schedule time to complete the commitment  

Leaders Make Commitments Too!

If you are leading a team, you will also make commitments. Mostly you will make small outcome commitments. Making commitments as a leader can become difficult as time passes. Consider the following areas for small outcome commitments:

  • Clear the path and remove an impediment for a team or individual
  • Set teamhe standard for the team during the cycle by taking part as a team member
  • Recognize a team or individual for high performance
  • Provide training to increase team performance
  • Optimize an objective, key result, or commitment type
  • Audit quality and adherence to the process

3. Projects

For some key results, the key activity to achieve a key result will be the completion of a project. We recommend your team uses your organization’s standard project and process development methodology and tools to complete the project. Regardless of the process your team uses, there will be specific tasks that the team needs to complete before the next meeting. For commitment tracking purposes, you will track if the individual and/or team completed the assigned tasks.

OKRs for Product Teams

If your team is a product team that uses an agile methodology, there are special considerations to make OKRs work for you. Since agile focuses on “working software” aka “features” and OKRs focus on delivering value, your process might be at odds with OKRs. In addition, your deployments might lag too far behind when you need to measure an outcome for a given period. See the article, OKCs for Product Teams, to adopt your practices and culture to fit within the OKR framework.

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