🤖 #23: Vivian's Deeptech Insider: Tracking Progress Like a Pro

Hello and welcome to #23 edition of the fortnightly Vivian’s Deeptech Insider.

So—you’ve mapped the journey. Your team knows where you’re headed, the milestones are clear, and there's a plan. That’s your internal roadmap (from Newsletter 22: Lean Canvas? ✅ Traction? ✅ Now Comes the Real Work). But now comes the real test:

How do you know if it’s working?

That’s where OKRs and KPIs come in. They’re not just buzzwords—they’re essential tools to keep your team aligned, your investors confident, and your product moving forward in the right direction. This is part of our Champions to Communication series in our 4Cs framework:

1. Complexity → Clarity
   Founders need to translate complex technical problems into business challenges that resonate with non-technical stakeholders. I’ll help you clearly communicate the significance of your solution, making sure everyone understands the problem you’re solving and why it matters.

2. Clarity → Champions
   It’s about more than identifying a problem—it’s about pinpointing your early adopters, refining market positioning, and clearly articulating the problem and customer definition to showcase potential to investors.

3. Champions → Communication
   Deeptech products can be hard to explain. I’ll help translate technical milestones into core features, benefits, and customer impact, ensuring they’re clear and compelling to investors and customers alike.

4. Communication → Clients
   I’ll provide guidance on tracking progress, communicating growth metrics, and updating stakeholders on the product's evolution to demonstrate how scientific advancements translate into tangible value.

Unlike SaaS or consumer startups, Deeptech & Healthech timelines can be long and unpredictable. You're often dealing with physical systems, regulations, scientific uncertainty, or complex B2B sales. That means:

• Progress isn’t always obvious

• Feedback loops are slower

• Investors want clear proof you're learning and moving

You need a framework that can handle both vision and precision—OKRs and KPIs give you both.

OKRs vs KPIs — Know the Difference

Here's a quick refresher (see visual chart below if you’re more visual 👇):

Both matter—but they play different roles.

• OKRs focus your team on what matters this quarter.

• KPIs keep an eye on your core metrics across product, team, and commercial traction.

Setting Good OKRs: A Mini Framework

Let’s break this down with a real-world Deeptech example.

🔍 Step 1: Define Your Objective

Make it inspiring, specific, and time-bound.

Example:
“Validate MVP with 3 pilot customers by end of Q3.”

🎯 Step 2: Add Key Results

These are measurable outcomes that show you’re making real progress.

Key Results:

• Secure 3 signed LOIs (Letter of Intents) from pilot customers

• Achieve >70% performance accuracy in field tests

• Run 4 feedback interviews with pilot users

They should be ambitious, but achievable. If you hit 70–80% of them, you're doing well. If you’re hitting 100%, then they’re not ambitious enough!

Now Layer in KPIs

Where OKRs are goal-focused, KPIs are more like dashboards—they track critical signals continuously.

For your Deeptech / Healthtech MVP, useful KPIs might include:

• Customer onboarding time

• Number of product bugs reported + resolved

• Hardware production lead time

• Weekly engagement with prototype

• Burn rate per milestone

• Team delivery velocity (tasks per sprint)

• Supplier reliability (on-time delivery %)

You don’t need dozens—just 5–7 that actually help you make decisions each week or month.

What This Looks Like in Practice

Here’s a simple structure your team could use:

Here, the OKRs and KPIs are owned by different teams across the company, which gives a comprehensive overview of the whole health of the company. However, it is very common to have separate OKRs and KPIs owned by the same team as well.

For example, the Product Team could own both the OKRs and KPIs for the MVP delivery, ensuring they are accountable for both progress and operational performance.

Why This Matters for More Than Just You

This OKR/KPI framework becomes a superpower when shared:

• Internally: Your team knows what to prioritise and why

• For new hires: They see how they plug into the mission

• For investors: You can clearly show progress, learnings, and momentum

• For partners/suppliers: You can align on outcomes, not just outputs

Don’t wait to roll this out. Even at pre-seed or pre-revenue, it’s about discipline and clarity.

TL;DR

Your roadmap sets the course.
OKRs and KPIs keep the engine running—and show everyone you're not just building, you're learning and improving.

Next up in Newsletter 24: Speeding Up Customer Discovery!

Keep going,
Vivian

P.S. Want the OKR/KPI tracker template I use with Deeptech & Healthtech teams? Reply, and I’ll send it your way 👇

Jobs with Deeptech investors:

• Investment Associate - Singtel Innov8 Ventures (VC), San Francisco, USA

• Investor - Founders Factory (VC), London, UK

• Director of Network & Engagement - Slauson & Co. (VC), Los Angeles, USA

• Senior Associate, Fintech - Primary Ventures (VC), New York, USA

• Associate - Scale Venture Partners (VC), San Francisco, USA

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