When creating goals in Workleap Performance, you can choose between sub-goals or metric measurements to gauge progress. Both options serve different purposes. This article shows how to decide which structure is right for your goal.
What are sub-goals?
Sub-goals are child goals that roll up into a parent goal. Use them when your overall goal depends on completing distinct deliverables, workstreams, or contributions.
When to use sub-goals
Choose sub-goals when:
The parent goal won’t have its own measurements.
Progress should come from the combined progress of its sub-goals.
The work naturally breaks down into multiple steps, phases, or deliverables.
Different teams or people own different parts of the work.
Examples
Sub-goals for launching a new website:
Content creation
Design system updates
QA
Deployment
Sub-goals for improving onboarding experience:
Rewrite onboarding flow
Update documentation
Conduct user testing
In sum
Use sub-goals when the parent goal’s progress comes from completing distinct pieces of work—not from tracking measurements directly.
What are measurements?
Measurements are quantitative measures you track directly under a parent goal. Use measurements when you want to measure the goal using numeric outcomes such as percentages, rates, counts, or KPI values.
When to use measurements
Choose measurements when:
You want to track the parent goal directly (not through sub-goals).
Success is defined by measurable results.
You have multiple measurements contributing to the same overall objective.
Examples
Measurements for increasing customer retention:
Retention rate %
Churn %
Renewal volume
Measurements for improving product adoption:
Activation rate
Weekly active users
NPS
In sum
Use measurements when the parent goal’s results can be tracked through quantitative measures.
Choose between sub-goals and measurements
Ask yourself these questions:
Does this goal break down into clear deliverables or workstreams?
If yes → sub-goalsDo I want to measure this goal with numbers or KPIs?
If yes → measurementsDo multiple teams contribute distinct pieces of work?
If yes → sub-goalsDoes success depend on hitting measurable outcomes?
If yes → measurements
Can I use sub-goals and measurements?
You choose either sub-goals or measurements for a parent goal—
not both at the same level.
But teams can still use a mix across the hierarchy:
Org goal → sub-goals for team workstreams
Team goals → measurements to track results
Individual goals → either, depending on the work
This flexibility helps teams stay aligned while choosing the right structure for their context.
Best practices for goal structure
Use sub-goals for work
Use measurements for results
Keep parent goals focused on outcomes
Let team and individual goals roll up naturally
Keep the structure consistent across the organization