Template · for small teams (under 10)

OKRs Template
for small teams (under 10).

A simple OKR template with company-level objectives and team-level key results. One company-level objective, 3 KRs. No team-level OKRs.

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FormatNotion
Forsmall teams (under 10)
Sections6
CostFree

What's included

  • Company objective
  • Quarter
  • Team key results
  • Owners
  • Confidence rating
  • Review cadence

Why this version

One company-level objective, 3 KRs. No team-level OKRs.

OKRs work when owned by a person and reviewed weekly. They die in spreadsheets.

The small teams (under 10) angle

How small teams (under 10) use this template.

For small teams under 10 people, OKRs should be lightweight — one company-level objective, 3 KRs, no team-level OKRs. The discipline is keeping it small enough that everyone knows the OKRs without consulting a doc. OKRs scale poorly to under-10-person teams that try to mimic Google's model. Most small teams over-engineer OKRs and abandon them within a quarter.

small teams (under 10)-specific gotchas

  • One objective per quarter — anything more dilutes focus
  • Three KRs is the sweet spot — not five
  • No team-level OKRs at small scale
  • Owners are mandatory — Os without owners aren't Os
  • Confidence ratings (1-10) every two weeks
Real scenario

A 6-person startup runs lightweight OKRs. One quarterly objective, 3 KRs. Team confidence ratings every 2 weeks. Q-on-Q completion rate: 70-80%.

Common small teams (under 10) questions

When should we add team-level OKRs?

Past 15-20 engineers, when company-level OKRs cascade naturally.

What about personal OKRs?

Skip them at small scale. Personal goals belong in 1:1s.

Need help applying it?

Templates are starts.

If you want senior practitioners filling in this template for a specific small teams (under 10) engagement, brief us.

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