This book is a Product

Hey, happy Monday.

It is time to give you an update on the book.

This photo shows mine and Henry’s enthusiasm as we fix the index finger-which he taught me was one of the most important parts!

It is amazing the work we are doing, in this note I want to take you behind the scenes of the project that you can still support.

When will I receive it?

Full disclosure: I have been running a bit behind schedule. The main reason is due to the time needed to review the material-notes, hours of coaching sessions to review, feedbacks and improvements. Exciting but time-consuming work to complete compromises.

I have rescheduled the activities, and this will result in the first copies being delivered in February 2023.

This will be bad news for some people.
If you wish to ask for a refund of the presale, I understand. It is a choice I would make impulsively as well. At this link you will find the form to continue with the request. But I advise you first to continue with the reading of this note.

For others, however, it will be good news.
When the crowdfunding ended, the price went up. If you didn’t make it in time to preorder the book during that phase, you can catch up. Here’s a coupon so you too can take advantage of the 20 percent discount, your name among the acknowledgements, and free shipping.

Here’s how it went.

This book was born with a pretotype.

The ambitious idea to write the most pragmatic book for implementing OKRs came about after reading yet another collection of case studies.

In interviewing some of the companies mentioned, I noticed that the maturity in adopting the methodology was not what I expected it to be.

Those who know me and have studied in my programs appreciate my professional strain in co-constructing products with those who will use them.

When I launched the project, more than 400 professionals registered to the launch list, some of whom provided specific feedback on real problems they were facing. They were all surveyed, validated and matched with the various steps of the method I was formalizing by collecting notes from my previous experiences.

Forward-thinking teams have decided to start the program in beta, participate in the trainings and adopt the tools, thus contributing to their improvement.

Here is feedback that came in a few days ago from one of the participants.

This book is a product with a capital P.

With the success of the pretotype, I was able to validate two things: the existence of a problem and the quality of the solution.

A survey was launched in May to choose the cover. As the first draft took shape, the format and number of pages could be calculated. The prototype was presented at the WMF in June.

Only then was the crowdfunding campaign launched, the success of which validated the demand and pricing.

The work of writing has never stopped. During this time the tools were refined and codified into the form that will soon arrive on your desk.

Could I have gone faster? Probably could have. But I should have taken shortcuts. I don’t think there is room for another OKR-fiction book on any shelf.

I preferred to take the longer route, and I take responsibility for that. I would rather deliver a late product that works than an incomplete one.

All this leads to two important considerations:

1/ The separation of goal setting and project management.
The goal is not to finish the project on time, but to have an impact when the project is finished. This confusion often undermines the quality of OKR programs that I could see during this period. Many teams launch projects because they meet the deadline, not the expected quality. It is important to separate outcomes and outputs and be prepared to handle the unknowns.

2/ Choose the goals in the right sequence.
If I had not validated the solution I would not have proposed the book to the publisher. If crowdfunding had not been successful it would have been pointless to write it.

Patience is a virtue that always rewards.

You can access the program early.

If you want to join the teams that have decided to gain early access to the implementation program, this may be the last moment.

Places are very few and it always pays to be among the first.

You can apply here.

The action plan.

It is in doing the work that we discover the work we need to do. Doing lays bare the reality.
– Woody Zuill
_{Magnificent thread}

I could not foresee the amount of work that would take me this far. I also wrote it in the book that “as human beings we are unrealistically optimistic by nature” and, especially in creative work, planning is always difficult.

But it is also important to fulfill commitments. Over the next few weeks this will be the project on which I will invest most of my energy. I have decided to slow down the publication of newsletters to spend as much time as possible following up on current programs, finalizing the manuscript and possibly catching up.

Activities in the community, however, will remain active, especially the STRTGY Meetings that you won’t want to miss. The guests for the new season are incredible and I can’t wait to announce them.

Thank you in advance for your support.

It is beautiful what we are creating.

ALWAYS MAKE PROGRESS ⤴

Antonio