Clubcloud’s “Road Trip” to Success

27 min

While the conventional approach suggests identifying areas for improvement through KPIs and then designing OKRs to address them, clubcloud adopts a more cyclical approach. I’ll warn you in advance that this process, which I acquired during my education at a technology accelerator, may differ significantly from your approach, but it has proven effective.

Our process, whether for a specific project, initiative, or the overall development of our business, involves the following steps: We begin with very clear user stories from every perspective. These user stories are used to develop Objectives and Key Results (OKRs). Subsequently, we refine the OKRs into a set of Key Performance Indicators (KPIs). If we find that we are not meeting those KPIs, we redefine the OKRs until we are confident in and meet our KPIs. This approach ensures that everyone on the team is aligned strategically by providing clear contexts for all the work we undertake. Confused? Don’t worry; as you read this blog post, you will gain a clearer understanding of our process.

User Stories

User stories serve as a comprehensive guide, detailing the “what,” “how,” and “why” behind a feature, function, or business operation. However, we approach user stories slightly differently compared to most companies. While most organizations primarily focus on the end user’s perspective, we take a more inclusive approach by considering multiple viewpoints.

As a Business-to-Business-to-Consumer (B2B2C) business, our user stories can become quite intricate. For instance, if we’re developing the ability for a member to book a court online, a simple and straightforward representation of our user stories might look like this:

Member’s Perspective: As a club member, I desire the convenience of booking a court on my phone, enabling me to secure a court no matter where I am or what I am doing.

Club Owner’s Perspective: As a club owner, I would like my members to book a court on their phones, eliminating the need for my club personnel to manage a paper list at the front desk or answer phone calls to book court reservations for members.

Clubcloud Developer’s Perspective: As a clubcloud developer, I aim to create functionality that allows members to book a court on their phones, ensuring that I can continually or continuously enhance this functionality without the need for extensive redevelopment of the existing work.

Additional User Story: This project should have an additional user story. For instance, as a clubcloud leader, I’d like to develop a feature that allows members to book a court on their phones. This functionality should be understandable to my employees, clearly establishing the project’s concept and the best way to implement and improve it.

By including this user story, we ensure that we understand our employees, they understand us, and everyone feels empowered, understood, and accountable for the success of the work performed.

Objective and Key Results (OKRs)

User stories serve as a valuable resource in helping us set our Objectives and Key Results (OKRs). At clubcloud, OKRs act as a comprehensive framework for goal setting, seamlessly combining ambitious, time-bound objectives with strategic improvements that can be measured through key results. In essence, OKRs empower us to focus on achieving specific, impactful changes within our business. Since OKRs are designed to be challenging and drive significant improvements, we rely on them to catalyze transformative change within our organization. Each OKR is accompanied by a defined timeframe, which ultimately leads us to our Key Performance Indicators (KPIs). For instance, in the context of our court booking example, a simple OKR might look like this: Our objective is to establish the most efficient and user-friendly online reservation portal in the industry. The key results we aim to achieve within the next three months include: ensuring a seamless experience for 100% of members who book, achieving one-second response time, maintaining a 0% error rate, and achieving 100% uptime *.

Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)

KPIs are realistic, broad, stable, and focused on maintaining and tracking the performance of the current state of a project, business area, or business as a whole. We regularly monitor our KPIs to identify trends and areas that need attention. In short, they help us focus on hitting the bullseye, not just the target. They track the ongoing business performance and monitor the health of the business.

As a quantifiable measure, KPIs provide a snapshot of how well we are performing against our established benchmarks. Some examples of areas in which we have set KPIs include revenue, customer service and satisfaction, website traffic, and how employees’ full-time equivalents contribution to productivity.

Let’s consider, again, our court booking example. After evaluating the OKRs for three months, we discovered that achieving a 0% error rate and a 100% uptime rate was unrealistic. Our data indicated that operating at a 1% error rate and a 99% uptime rate would be more realistic, attainable, sustainable, and sufficient to consider our functionality the best in the industry. Consequently, we can set these new numbers, 1% and 99%, as our Key Performance Indicators*. This means that if we consistently maintain an error rate of 1% or less and an uptime rate of 99% or higher, we will be performing as the best in the industry.

If we’re not meeting those benchmarks, it might be time to set new OKRs, perhaps even new user stories, and restart the entire process until we establish and hit the right KPIs. If we’re convinced that our KPIs of 1% and 99% are the correct indicators, we might have to start an entirely new project or initiative, following the above procedure, to support and facilitate the achievement of those KPIs.

Imagine the process as a journey. If you’re planning a cross-country road trip and need to buy a car, the user stories are like a brochure that outlines the car’s features and specifications. You identify the color, upgrades, and standard features you want, ensuring you choose the right car for your budget, needs, and preferences, such as an economical, comfortable, and safe ride. Once you purchase the car and embark on your trip, you need a navigation system to guide you to your destination (the objective). OKRs serve as your GPS, providing trip options based on your ideal preferences, such as speed, distance, or scenic routes. KPIs act as the dashboard of your car, monitoring its performance during the trip. For instance, if the gas light comes on, you need to fill up the tank. Similarly, if the oil light illuminates, you should get an oil change. If you notice excessive gas or oil consumption, you may need to reprogram your GPS to find a more realistic trip option, from the perspective of cost-effectiveness and resource-efficiency, that will get you to your destination (the objective). In extreme situations, you might even consider trading in the car mid-trip and opting for a vehicle that better suits your needs.

At clubcloud, our approach differs from the conventional norms, but that’s precisely what sets us apart. By embracing the unconventional aspects of our platform’s development, functionality, and business model, we’ve created a system that ensures the reliable and dependable dissemination of data. This data provides us with a comprehensive and realistic perspective on our company’s performance, encompassing development operations, business operations, and customer experience. Just as in our cross-country trip example, we have a clear understanding of our starting point, current location, and destination. Moreover, we are confident that we will have sufficient fuel and oil to complete the journey successfully. Is your company as confident in its journey?