Objective

Practice setting OKRs for a growth team and forecasting whether those OKRs will achieve a desired revenue outcome.

Scenario

Imagine you lead a SaaS growth marketing team responsible for lead generation and conversion. It's the start of a new quarter, and the company has set a goal to increase quarterly revenue by 20% (for example, from $1M last quarter to $1.2M this quarter). Marketing is expected to drive a substantial portion of that growth through inbound leads and conversion improvements.

Part 1 – Draft OKRs

1. Set the Objective

Write a clear Objective for your growth marketing team that supports the 20% revenue increase goal. It should be outcome-focused. For instance, "Significantly boost qualified lead volume and conversion to support a 20% rise in revenue this quarter."

2. Define 3–5 Key Results

Under that Objective, draft a few Key Results that are specific and measurable. Ensure a mix that covers the funnel. Examples:

• KR1: Generate 300 Marketing Qualified Leads (MQLs) this quarter
• KR2: Improve MQL-to-SQL conversion rate from 10% to 15%
• KR3: Influence $400k of pipeline from marketing campaigns
• KR4 (optional): Launch new webinar series by end of Month 1

Each KR should have a number or concrete outcome. Make sure achieving all KRs would indeed contribute significantly to the Objective.

3. Check Ambition and Feasibility

Review your OKRs—are they ambitious enough to stretch the team, yet realistic? Google's philosophy suggests aiming for ~70% attainment on tough goals. If time allows, briefly discuss in your team: do these OKRs feel motivating?

Part 2 – Forecast and Validate

4. Gather Historical Data

Note last quarter's key stats (you can make reasonable assumptions): How many leads were generated? What was the lead-to-customer conversion rate? What was the average deal size? For example, perhaps last quarter marketing generated 200 MQLs, 50 became SQLs, and 20 new customers closed with an average deal of $10k (yielding $200k revenue).

5. Calculate Needed Metrics

Given the new revenue target ($1.2M, a 20% increase), determine how many customers or how much pipeline marketing needs to deliver. If marketing needs to generate ~$300k this quarter instead of $200k, using the average deal size ($10k), that's 30 customers from marketing. Now use your funnel conversion rates to estimate leads required.

Document these calculations. This is your forecast of what your OKRs will achieve.

6. Identify Gaps or Overages

Compare your forecast to the goal. Does your plan overshoot or undershoot the 20% revenue increase? If it undershoots, you might need to revise the OKRs or note that additional strategies are needed.

7. Document the OKRs and Assumptions

Write out your final Objective and Key Results, and below them, write a brief justification: "Based on historical 10% conversion of leads to deals, 300 MQLs should yield ~30 deals ≈ $300k. Along with sales' baseline contributions, this supports the $1.2M target."

Outcome

The deliverable is a set of OKRs for the growth marketing team, aligned to a top-level revenue goal and backed by a simple numeric forecast. This exercise trains you to always tie your goals to data—a critical skill in growth roles.

Note: Capstone Save Point

Save your OKRs + funnel forecast assumptions for Section 6 (Forecasting & Goal Setting) of your Module 22 plan.