Three Goals Steered Facebook for Five Years

The Power of Simplicity: Facebook's Three-Goal Strategy

During Molly Graham's five-year tenure at Facebook (2008-2013), the company experienced explosive growth, scaling from 500 employees to 5,500, from 80 million users to over 1 billion, and from $270 million to $5 billion in revenue
The company faced the challenge of maintaining strategic focus while undergoing rapid expansion
Many companies struggle with overly complex goal frameworks, creating "100-line spreadsheets" that fail to provide clear direction

Facebook implemented an elegantly simple goal framework consisting of just three company-wide goals:
- Growth: Measured by Monthly Active Users (MAUs)
- Engagement: How often people returned to use the site
- Revenue: Financial performance
These three goals remained consistent for the entire five-year period
Facebook established a clear hierarchy among these goals, with engagement designated as the "winner in a fight" when priorities needed to be determined
The company maintained this framework through multiple strategic shifts, including the transition to mobile and the IPO process

Facebook successfully navigated rapid growth while maintaining strategic focus
The company achieved market dominance, surpassing competitors like MySpace
The simple goal framework provided clarity throughout the organization, enabling employees to make aligned decisions
The consistent focus on engagement as the primary driver ensured quality growth rather than just quantity

Simplicity creates clarity: No company needs more than three company-wide goals to drive success
Consistency matters: Maintaining the same core goals over years provides stability amid rapid change
Establish a hierarchy: One goal must "win in a fight" to enable clear decision-making when priorities conflict
Goals are communication tools: The primary purpose of goals is to help people understand what matters most
Quality over quantity: Facebook prioritized engagement over raw user numbers, recognizing that active users drive long-term value
Accessibility is crucial: Goals should be simple enough that "an intern who started on Monday" can understand them
Even complex businesses can be governed simply: If Facebook could operate with just three goals during its hypergrowth phase, any business can benefit from similar focus