Updating progress records a goal's latest value, either for the whole goal or for one of its periods, and lets you add a comment that explains the change. Some teams call this a check-in or "updating a key result". Every update appears in the goal's history so everyone who can see the goal knows what changed and why.

Before you start

• Cascading goals (parent goals, sub-goals and the Based on sub-goals type of metric) are available on the Enterprise plan.
• You need one of these:
  • You created the goal (you are its author).
  • The Update key results' progress permission in Settings > Permissions > Goals, with a scope that covers every person assigned to the goal. For example, to update a team goal, your scope must include every member of that team.
• A goal measured Based on sub-goals has no progress of its own. You update its sub-goals instead, and the parent goal recalculates.
• If you do not see Update progress on a goal, you do not have the right to update it. See Get started with goals.

Step by step

Update progress from the goal detail page

1. Go to Performance > Goals and click the goal.
2. In the goal header, click Update progress.
3. If the goal is split into periods, choose the period in Period. The period that contains today is selected by default. If the goal is not split into periods, the dialog updates the Whole goal.
4. Enter the new value:
   • For a Numeric, Currency or Percentage goal, type the value in Current value.
   • For an Achieved / not achieved goal, choose Achieved or Not achieved in New value.
5. Optional: in Comment, explain the update. The placeholder reads "What has changed? Add context to your update."
6. Click Save. The message Progress updated confirms the change.

Update progress from the goals list

1. Go to Performance > Goals.
2. Find the goal row and open its row menu (…).
3. Click Update progress.
4. Follow steps 3 to 6 of "Update progress from the goal detail page".

The same Update progress row action is available in the employee side panel. See Review and weight an employee's goals.

Edit a period's attainment directly in the target allocation table

Use this when a goal is split into two or more periods and you want to correct several periods quickly.

1. Go to Performance > Goals and click the goal.
2. In Target allocation, switch the view toggle from the chart icon to the table icon.
3. Click the Attainment cell of the period you want to change and type the new value.
4. The value saves on its own. Status and Progress for that period, and the goal's Overall progress, recalculate.

See the history of updates

1. Go to Performance > Goals and click the goal.
2. On a computer, the Previous updates column on the right lists every change, newest first, grouped by month.
3. Each entry shows who made it and what happened: "created this goal", "updated the progress", "updated Q2 2026 progress" (for a period update) or "added a comment". Value changes show the old and the new value.

Rules and behavior

• If a goal is split into periods, then each update applies to the period you pick, and the goal's overall progress is recalculated from all its periods.
• If a goal is not split into periods, then the update applies to the whole goal.
• If a goal is measured Based on sub-goals, then Update progress is not offered and its values cannot be changed by hand. Its progress always comes from its sub-goals.
• If a goal is Achieved / not achieved, then choosing Achieved sets the period (or goal) to 100% progress and Not achieved sets it to 0%.
• If you save an update with only a comment and the same value, then the history shows "added a comment".
• If the new value reaches or passes the target, then the period's status becomes Achieved. Progress above 100% is kept and shown (overachievement).
• If you update a sub-goal, then every parent goal measured Based on sub-goals above it recalculates.
• Inline editing in the Target allocation table follows the same permission as Update progress.
• Inline editing is available only for Numeric, Currency and Percentage goals split into two or more periods.

Troubleshooting

• Symptom: "I don't see Update progress on my goal." → Cause: You are not the goal's author and your Update key results' progress scope does not cover every person assigned to the goal, or the goal is measured Based on sub-goals. → Fix: Ask an admin to widen your scope in Settings > Permissions > Goals, or update the goal's sub-goals instead.
• Symptom: "I can update my own goal but not my team's goal." → Cause: A team goal is assigned to every member of the team. Your scope must cover all of them. → Fix: Ask an admin for a scope that covers the whole team, or ask the goal's author to update it.
• Symptom: "The Attainment cells in Target allocation are read-only." → Cause: The goal is Achieved / not achieved or Based on sub-goals, or you lack the permission to update progress. → Fix: Use Update progress, or update the sub-goals.
• Symptom: "I saved a value but the status still says Not started." → Cause: The value equals the start value, so progress is 0%. → Fix: Check the start value of the goal or period. See How goal progress and status are calculated.

FAQ

1. How often should I update my goals?
Factorial does not enforce a cadence. Many teams update goals weekly or at the end of each period.

2. Can I update last quarter's progress?
Yes. Choose that quarter in Period in the Update progress dialog, or edit its Attainment cell in Target allocation.

3. Can my manager update my goals?
Yes, if your manager has Update key results' progress with a scope that covers you (for example, direct reports), or if your manager created the goal.

4. Who sees my comments?
Everyone who can see the goal can read its Previous updates, including comments.

5. I made a mistake in an update. Can I undo it?
You can't delete an update. Save a new update with the right value and explain the correction in Comment.