Aligning L&D for Impact: Driving Corporate Goals with Strategic OKRs

In today's ever-changing business landscape, aligning learning and development with organizational goals is not just strategic, it’s essential. In fact, according to an ATD report, organizations that have strong alignment between L&D and business goals achieve 13% higher mean revenue per employee.

In this episode of 'Bring Out the Talent,' we welcome Dr. Jessica Brown, CEO & Founder of Cultivate2Generate. With a background spanning 15 years in consulting and coaching, Dr. Brown has dedicated her career to empowering organizations by enriching their people and enhancing their systems. We will dive into how strategic OKRs can effectively bridge the gap between L&D initiatives and broader corporate goals. We discuss strategies to foster an engaging workplace culture that aligns with long-term organizational success.

Tune in and gain valuable insights on this powerful business strategy tool that will keep your team focused on the most important areas to achieve company goals and success.

Transcript

Jocelyn Allen:
Hello, everybody. Good morning, good afternoon, good evening—whatever time it is where you are. Thank you so much for joining us. It's Jocelyn, and I’m flying solo once again. Maria, we miss you and hope you’re feeling better.
Today’s episode is on a powerful L&D topic: aligning learning and development to business impact using strategic OKRs. According to ATD, organizations with strong L&D alignment see 13% higher mean revenue per employee.
We’re joined by Dr. Jessica Brown, CEO and founder of Cultivate to Generate. With 15 years of consulting and coaching experience, she helps organizations empower people and systems. Welcome, Jessica!

Dr. Jessica Brown:
Thank you so much. Very glad to be here.

Jocelyn Allen:
We’re excited to have you. I was saying earlier that OKRs are something we use at TTA. We used to use KPIs, but OKRs feel more digestible—objectives and key results are clearer. Can you explain the difference for listeners still using KPIs?

Dr. Jessica Brown:
Absolutely. The “O” is your objective—it’s the what and the why. The key result is the measurable outcome. KPIs often measure performance expectations, while OKRs are more strategic. KPIs are minimums—what gets you fired if unmet. KRs are aspirational.
Google made OKRs famous by only hitting half their key results in year one—and then doubling their targets. It’s about aiming high, not just meeting the status quo.

Jocelyn Allen:
Right, that’s what I love—the “aha” moments from OKRs. They help promote growth. So why are OKRs so important in today’s business environment?

Dr. Jessica Brown:
Because engagement is critical. People want to feel connected to purpose. OKRs clarify how everyone contributes to strategy. When done well, they empower people. Teams write their own OKRs aligned to top-level goals, creating buy-in and accountability.

Jocelyn Allen:
Yes, that alignment is everything. Even in corporate goals centered on financials and customers—how do we integrate employee engagement and L&D into those OKRs?

Dr. Jessica Brown:
Great question. I often use the Balanced Scorecard approach: financials, customers, operations, and people. Many miss that last one—culture, retention, development. If you're not writing OKRs that reflect your employee experience, you’re missing a key driver of business success.

Jocelyn Allen:
And for L&D leaders, how do they align to these organizational OKRs while still tracking their own metrics?

Dr. Jessica Brown:
Each department writes OKRs that support the level above. If the top has a culture goal, L&D might own a result like “deliver four trainings with 95% attendance.” L&D also supports customer goals through training, or financial goals through skill development. The key is not to list tasks, but outcomes—what success looks like and why it matters.

Jocelyn Allen:
Exactly—it’s not about checking boxes. It’s about whether the blog was read, or if the training improved retention. What are some effective examples of L&D objectives?

Dr. Jessica Brown:
If the organization’s goal is to “retain top talent through an engaging culture,” L&D might own a key result like “95% training satisfaction” or “employee development survey with 50% participation.” It’s all about tying what you’re doing back to measurable outcomes.

Jocelyn Allen:
It helps teams understand their purpose. That leads to collaboration. Corporate goals may be financial, but if you need training to achieve them, you're in L&D. And it can evolve. My team’s OKRs shift week to week. What matters is we’ve agreed on the goal—and we can flex in how we get there.

Dr. Jessica Brown:
That’s the agility of OKRs. People often jump to the how, but it starts with what are we trying to achieve? Then you iterate. It’s strategy first—execution second.

Jocelyn Allen:
I’ve heard you mention the C-suite. What’s their role in making OKRs successful?

Dr. Jessica Brown:
The C-suite must be invested. OKRs give them a way to manage performance and alignment without micromanaging. When senior leaders are disengaged, it falls apart. With proper alignment, organizations can see 36–56% improvements in profitability and efficiency.

Jocelyn Allen:
Does OKR planning also teach soft skills, like collaboration?

Dr. Jessica Brown:
Absolutely. OKRs require alignment up, down, and across. A goal can’t be achieved by one team alone. Sales and marketing, for example, must talk to each other. So it promotes communication, cross-functional accountability, and shared ownership.

Jocelyn Allen:
We use tools that track OKRs, showing which departments contribute. It makes collaboration transparent. Any tools you recommend?

Dr. Jessica Brown:
Many are good. Some are just OKR trackers, others are “OKR Plus” tools that include LMS features, feedback tools, and career pathing. The key is: use a tool. Strategic planning without execution and tracking is just a New Year’s resolution that fizzles out.

Jocelyn Allen:
Couldn’t agree more. Now looking ahead, how do you see L&D’s role in strategic planning evolving?

Dr. Jessica Brown:
Workforce expectations are changing—engagement, remote learning, AI integration. L&D must be prepared to evolve how they deliver and support. OKRs help organizations stay agile and focused, which will only become more important.

Jocelyn Allen:
Change is constant. OKRs give you a framework to adapt. Whether or not the name changes, the value is in having clear objectives and tracking progress. Jessica, this was such an insightful episode. Before we close, it’s time for our TTA 10.

🎉 The TTA 10: Lightning Round with Jessica Brown

David:
It’s the TTA 10—10 final questions for our guest.

Jocelyn Allen:
You have 90 seconds to answer all 10. Let’s go!

David:
90 seconds on the TTA 10 clock… begins now.

Jocelyn Allen:
What’s your favorite color?
Jessica Brown: Green.

Where do you want to travel but haven’t?
 Jessica Brown: New Zealand.

What’s 5 plus 2?
 Jessica Brown: Seven.

Favorite Disney villain?
 Jessica Brown: Cruella de Vil.

Favorite TV show?
 Jessica Brown: Manifest.

How much is that doggy in the window?
 Jessica Brown: $2.

Who would play you in a movie?
 Jessica Brown: Alyssa Milano.

Only one food forever—what is it?
 Jessica Brown: Mac & cheese.

If not an L&D consultant, what would you be?
 Jessica Brown: Lawyer.

What animal best represents you?
 Jessica Brown: A cat.

David:
And the time... just 1 minute and 10 seconds! You did it!

🥳 Dr. Seuss-Style Salute

David:
In a land where workplaces gleam
Lives Jessica Brown with a dream so supreme.
With OKRs she says, “reach high, reach far,”
She’s smarter by far than a Hollywood star.
She brings alignment, vision, and class—
And helps every team get off their… well, you know.

Jocelyn Allen:
That’s your new website intro music. Thank you so much, Jessica. This was such an important conversation. And to our listeners—thank you for joining us! For more on implementing OKRs, visit thetrainingassociates.com.