Mobile Strip
  1. HR Toolkit
  2. OKRs
  3. Sales OKR Examples

Sales OKR Examples

A company’s sales force is supposed to be one of its most formidable forces. The team is always under pressure to meet targets. For a sales team, performance is all about beating previous targets. Their success or failure is always pinned against achieving targets.

So, the question is how to set the Objectives and Key Results (OKRs) for the sales team so that they remain motivated.

Shift the focus from numbers to performance. The idea is simple yet effective. This also tallies with the philosophy around OKRs. According to experts, The Objectives and Key Results framework should be so designed that it helps in improving the performance of the employees. The OKR framework should not be tied to the appraisals, which in turn are associated with numbers. Hence, an ideal OKR framework is the one that helps all the employees align their objectives with those defined by the company itself, for that quarter (or a longer period if required).

These objectives and key results are then written in a top to bottom flow so that all the employees have a fair understanding of what they are supposed to do in the coming days. The objectives define what is expected to be done, while the key results state how it is to be achieved. While objectives should be inspirational, key results should be very quantitative and metrics-driven.

Another important thing to remember while writing OKRs is that key results are not tasks, but results achieved after doing certain tasks. What tasks are required to obtain the said results is to be discussed separately. Learn in detail about OKRs here.

How can Sales OKRs increase the sales team performance? 

Sales teams are constantly under pressure to reach their sales targets. Instead of just being goal-driven, they need to take a strategic approach to selling. When a sales team starts using OKRs, it will be able to set sales goals that can be executed efficiently. The team will be able to focus on areas that require attention and prioritize them to achieve outcomes. By focusing on these outcomes, sales leaders can facilitate growth and guide people in the right direction. 

Setting Sales team OKRs 

The sales team regularly seeks to achieve its sales targets, make cold calls, write emails, increase closure, and generate revenue. However, are they tied to the business strategy? It is the competence of organization that defines the sales OKRs, not the other way around. When the needs of the organization are understood, the sales team will be able to break down the quarterly goals into actionable sales OKRs. 

A sales objective could be to increase retention rates or drive revenue. OKRs can be created at a business level or individual level. Any established metrics can be used to achieve great outcomes by tying them to OKRs. After the objective has been set, the team must select its focus area to create impact by tying them to Key Results. 

So, how should the OKRs of the sales team look like Let us see some examples of OKRs with respect to the roles in the sales department.

Sales VP OKR:

Objective – Surge Sales In South East Asia Market

Key Result 1: Find 40 new customers in South East Asia
Key Result 2: Implement a new sales training program for our SEA team
Key Result 3: Recruit 10 A-Players for our SEA team

Objective – Grow Our Upsell And Cross-Sell

Key Result 1: Increase our revenue through upsell and cross-sell by 30%
Key Result 2: Increase customer retention to 90%
Key Result 3: Have regular weekly meetings with Customer Success team

Objective – Achieve Sales Growth Targets

Key Result 1: Generate New MRR of $100K
Key Result 2: Grow Average Revenue Per Account (ARPA) to $1000
Key Result 3: Increase Months Up Front Payments (MUFP) to 9.5

Sales Manager OKR

Objective – Recruit A-Players For Our SEA Sales Team

Key Result 1: Hire 1 new Inside Sales Manager by the end of January
Key Result 2: Hire 4 new Inside Sales Executives by the end of February
Key Result 3: Maintain a 4:1 onsite “Interview Offer” ratio

Objective – Hit The Team Sales Quota Targets

Key Result 1: Close $1M in sales per rep
Key Result 2: Close $1M in sales upsells
Key Result 3: Increase our win rate with enterprise clients to 20%

Sales Training Manager OKR

Objective – Build Top Sales Department.

Key Result 1: Get 85% of sales reps certified on our methodology
Key Result 2: Develop personalized coaching profiles
Key Result 3: Conduct 5 hours of 1-on-1 coaching per sales rep
Key Result 4: Help increase the average conversion rate by 20%

Inside Sales Executive OKR

Objective – Improve Sales Skills

Key Result 1: Increase win rate by 5%
Key Result 2: Attend 20 hours of training
Key Result 3: Attain/maintain/enhance sales certification

Inside Sales Manager OKR

Objective – Improve Sales Funnel

Key Result 1: Monthly 12000 active prospects in sales funnel
Key Result 2: Daily 30 at bottom of the funnel
Key Result 3: Reduce the number of leads lost by 15%

Channel Partner Sales Goals — OKR Examples

Objective – Grow Sales Through Our Channel Partner

Key Result 1: Increase referral fees for Employee referral programme by 10%.
Key Result 2: Recruit 30 new channel partners in Eastern, Central and Western geographies
Key Result 3: Implement the new channel partner website section
Key Result 4: Improve the channel partner onboarding process and documents

Presales/Sales Enablement Manager OKR

Objective – Improve Our Sales Analytics Process

Key Result 1: Implement a sales analytics and Business Intelligence platform
Key Result 2: Set up sales cycle and average deal size triggers to email our VP of Sales
Key Result 3: Review Sales Activity metrics and send a weekly summary to the team
Key Result 4: Review Sales Pipeline metrics and send a weekly summary to the team
Key Result 5: Review retrospective Sales Results metrics and send a weekly summary to the team

Customer Success Manager

Objective – Increase Customer Retention By 50% Q4 2017-18

Key Result 1: Address all grievances within 24 hours and redress them within 48 hours
Key Result 2: Seek regular feedback after product sale to understand whether it is satisfying needs
Key Result 3: Delight customers with extension of license period or additional feature

Conclusion: 

Using OKRs facilitates smarter selling. They not only help with reaching sales targets, but also encourage everyone to challenge themselves and think innovatively. Even though OKRs bring lots of benefits upon adoption, they are not easy to set. Most growing companies switch from using Excel sheets to software that lets them set OKRs, track, and measure them.  

Related OKRs

Download HR Template

cookie image

By clicking “Accept", you consent to our website's use of cookies to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. You may visit "cookie policy” to know more about cookies we use.