A thermostat that checks temperature once a season cannot…

April 2, 2026

A thermostat that checks temperature once a season cannot maintain a stable room.

Backlinks

From a control theory perspective, OKR is a feedback loop with a 90-day cycle. →

Feedback Loops

OKR — quarterly goal-setting framework: objective + measurable key results (bib)

2039590834027508118 — management has been shortening the feedback cycle for decades

2039585611682918581 — OKR: 90-day feedback loop

2039585794495803405 — OKR from control theory: a thermostat that checks once a season

Scrum — three nested feedback loops: daily, sprint review, retrospective (bib)

2039587182000959844 — Scrum: three nested inspect-and-adapt loops

2039588170195710144 — Scrum implements empirical process control

Kanban Method — continuous flow, WIP limits, pull system, no fixed iterations (bib)

2039590758597251341 — Kanban: continuous flow, no fixed iterations

2039596911204966407 — Kanban is the most radical step: cycle time = single work item

2039597131431047679 — AI-native companies: management feedback in seconds

2039597531123032444 — companies running 90-day loops cannot compete with 90-second ones

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OKRs: The Ultimate Guide (Atlassian) The user's xettel frames OKR as a 90-day feedback loop and a thermostat that checks once a season. The Atlassian guide confirms this: quarterly review is the recommended cadence. From a feedback control perspective, OKR is a closed loop with a very low sampling rate — the comparator fires once per quarter. →

OKR (Objectives and Key Results) The user's xettel frames this as a thermostat that checks once a season — functional, but slow. Compared to Scrum (sprint-length loops) or Kanban (continuous flow), OKR operates at the lowest frequency in the management feedback spectrum. →

OKR (Objectives and Key Results)

Atlassian OKR Guide — source summary

2039585611682918581 — OKR: 90-day feedback loop

2039585794495803405 — OKR as a thermostat that checks once a season

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Stability in Feedback Systems

A team that over-corrects after a bad sprint (hiring spree, process overhaul) may oscillate between extremes

Quarterly OKR reviews (xettel) have high latency — by the time the error is detected, the correction may already be stale, producing overshoot

Shortening the feedback cycle (xettel) reduces lag, which improves stability — but only if the measurement is reliable

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