Deliverable Prioritization Strategies

Everything is urgent! Until it cost $100K in missed deliverables That's what my customer kept saying. Every email marked "ASAP" Every request needed "immediate attention" My team was drowning in priorities. Sound familiar? Here's how we turned chaos into clarity: First, we used the Eisenhower Matrix: → True urgency: System outages → Important but planned: Feature releases → Delegate: Minor updates → Eliminate: Nice-to-haves The key? We did this WITH the customer. They helped categorize each request. Their buy-in made all the difference. Without it, this would have been just another failed process. The result? ✔️ Less team overwhelm ✔️ Clearer project milestones ✔️ Happy customer (they got what mattered) But here's the full toolkit smart leaders use to prioritize: 1. Eisenhower Matrix → Urgent vs important. Know where to focus → Spend less on fires, more on impact 2. Pareto Principle (80/20) → The vital few drive most results → Focus on the 20% that matters 3. Warren Buffett's 5/25 → Choose 5 goals, ignore the other 20 → Cut distractions to stay locked on priorities 4. RICE Method → Score by reach, impact, confidence, effort → Rank smart to get maximum return 5. MoSCoW Method → Must, Should, Could, Won't → Define essentials, defer the rest 6. ABCDE Method → Label tasks A–E, focus on A’s. → Do must-do’s first, delete E’s. But what about daily operations? Here's how I use these methods to spend more time with clients: 7. Time Blocking: 2 hours of deep client work daily → No meetings, no interruptions → Pure focus on their needs 8. Eat That Frog: Tackle client deliverables first → Before inbox & admin work → Fresh mind = best solutions 9. Batching: Group operational tasks → One focused admin block daily → Everything else? Delegated or automated Result? ✔️ 3x more client face time ✔️ Operations run smoothly in background ✔️ Finally got that work-life blend right 💡 Which method resonates most with you? Share below - let's learn from each other's experiences. ✨ Want more leadership tools like these? Subscribe to my Career Freedom Weekly Newsletter: https://lnkd.in/eciagfQn ♻️ Repost to help another leader find clarity 👋 Follow Stephanie Hills, Ph.D. for leadership insights that bridge life and work

As Business Analysts, we often face a mountain of stakeholder requirements—but not all can be delivered at once due to time, budget, or resource constraints. That’s where requirement prioritization techniques come in—to help teams focus on what delivers maximum value first. 👇 Here are 7 practical techniques I use (with real-world examples): 1️⃣ MoSCoW Technique (Must, Should, Could, Won’t) ✅ Used in: Agile projects with tight sprints. Example: In a mobile banking app, Must: User login and money transfer Should: View recent transactions Could: Set custom notifications Won’t: Currency conversion (for this release) 👉 Helps align delivery with MVP scope. 2️⃣ Kano Model ✅ Used in: Product feature analysis based on user satisfaction. Example: For a food delivery app: Basic Needs: Track order, payment integration Performance Needs: Fast delivery, real-time tracking Delighters: AI-based food recommendations 👉 Helps differentiate must-haves from innovation drivers. 3️⃣ Value vs. Complexity Matrix ✅ Used in: Sprint planning or roadmap decisions. Example: In a healthcare dashboard: High Value, Low Effort: Show patient vitals summary High Value, High Effort: Integration with wearable devices Low Value, High Effort: Dark mode for admin panel 👉 Focus first on quick wins and high-impact items. 4️⃣ WSJF (Weighted Shortest Job First) ✅ Used in: SAFe (Scaled Agile) environments. Formula: WSJF = (User/Business Value + Time Criticality + Risk Reduction) / Job Size Example: In a regulatory compliance portal, WSJF helps prioritize GDPR compliance (high risk reduction, medium effort) over UI enhancement (low risk, high effort) 👉 Promotes economic decision-making in large programs. 5️⃣ 100-Dollar Test ✅ Used in: Stakeholder workshops How it works: Stakeholders are given “$100” to allocate across features based on value. Example: In a CRM tool upgrade: Lead Scoring: $40 Email Automation: $30 Social Media Integration: $20 Custom Dashboard: $10 👉 Useful for collaborative and quantifiable feedback. 6️⃣ RICE Scoring (Reach, Impact, Confidence, Effort) ✅ Used in: Product-led companies and SaaS prioritization. Example: For a subscription service platform: Reach: Will it affect many users? Impact: How much will it improve their experience? Confidence: How sure are we of success? Effort: How many hours/weeks of work? 👉 Ideal for objective scoring and backlog management. 7️⃣ Eisenhower Matrix (Urgent vs. Important) ✅ Used in: Time-sensitive, operational projects. Example: In IT Service Management tool enhancement: Urgent & Important: Fix for ticket assignment bug Not Urgent but Important: Knowledge base restructuring Urgent but Not Important: Color change in UI Neither: Feature used by very few users 👉 Great for visual prioritization and firefighting tasks. 🎯 Key Takeaway Prioritization isn't just about ranking features. It’s about strategic decision-making that balances value, effort, risk, and urgency—all while keeping stakeholders aligned. BA Helpline

Stop Trying to Rank Stories by Business Value Ranking user stories is fundamentally more challenging than ranking features or epics due to the granular and context-specific nature of stories. Features and epics are larger, cohesive units of value that can be evaluated against strategic priorities like business value, customer impact, and urgency. These higher-level items lend themselves well to frameworks like WSJF (Weighted Shortest Job First), which leverage quantifiable attributes such as Cost of Delay and Job Size to provide clear prioritization. At the story level, though, these attributes become difficult to define and apply. Stories are small, incremental pieces of work, often so narrow in scope that evaluating their individual "business value" becomes impractical. This mirrors the challenges of "hedonic pricing models," where assigning value to small components of a product (like a gasket in a washing machine) is nearly impossible without context. A single story may not deliver direct, visible value on its own but instead contributes to the larger functionality of a parent feature or epic. Its importance lies in its sequence, dependencies, or role in enabling other stories rather than its standalone value. Prioritization at the story level requires a nuanced approach that accounts for their role in enabling larger outcomes. Instead of relying solely on "business value" assessments, story ranking must consider factors such as: 1) Feature-Driven Prioritization: Align story prioritization to the WSJF-ranked features or epics they belong to, focusing first on stories that unblock or complete critical functionality. 2) Dependencies: It's not always possible to eliminate dependencies between stories. In such cases, rank stories based on their ability to unlock downstream value or de-risk related work. 3) Risk Reduction and Learning: Prioritize stories that reduce technical uncertainty or compliance risks, or which provide critical feedback. 4) Flow Efficiency: Focus on minimizing WIP and maximizing delivery flow by prioritizing smaller stories or those that clear bottlenecks. 5) Complexity vs. Urgency (Mini-WSJF): Adapt WSJF principles at the story level using proxies for Cost of Delay (e.g., urgency or risk impact) and Job Size (e.g., story points). 6) Customer-Centric Focus: Prioritize customer-visible stories unless technical stories block essential functionality. 7) Hedonic or Functional Contribution: Evaluate stories based on their contribution to the overall functionality of the parent feature or epic (similar to assigning functional value in hedonic pricing). Whereas features and epics can often be ranked based on clear, high-level business priorities, prioritizing user stories demands a deeper understanding of context, dependencies, and workflows. Teams need dynamic and situational prioritization techniques to maintain alignment with their overarching goals.

Leaders: Not Everything Is an Emergency One of the biggest pitfalls in leadership that I see are VPs and directors treating every task like it’s urgent.  When everything becomes urgent ASAP today, teams experience burnout, confusion and end up spinning their wheels because this constant scrambling drives poor decision making (done being better than perfect) as well as an inability to plan because the team is always reacting. The reality is that not everything can be, or should be, urgent. Labeling every task as “urgent” doesn’t just lead to stress.... it also causes people (leaders included) to lose sight of what really drives results.  Here’s a better approach to ensuring team alignment and prioritization on what matters most: Distinguish Between Urgent and Important: Urgent tasks often have a clear, immediate deadline tied to an external factor....a client deliverable is due tomorrow OR a last-minute market shift requires immediate action. Important tasks, on the other hand, are those that advance long-term goals and priorities, like improving a sales process or strategizing for entering a new market.  Before marking something as “urgent” ask yourself: Does this task align with a short-term deadline or is it more valuable to allow time for depth and quality? Empower Prioritization: Leaders who communicate true priorities create a culture of clarity and purpose.  For example, if the primary goal for Q4 is closing deals, a leader should direct the team to prioritize sales outreach over lower-impact tasks like preparing detailed internal reports.  This teaches the team to recognize what’s core to success, what drives the mission forward and how to distinguish valuable tasks from those that are less critical. Give your Team Realistic Deadlines: A team that feels constantly rushed won’t feel supported; they’ll feel pressured. Give people room to do their best work and they will bring you better solutions, fresh perspectives and lasting results.   When teams feel trusted to meet realistic goals, they deliver work that is not only on time but also impactful.  Encourage an open dialogue around deadlines so the team members feel comfortable seeking clarification or asking for additional time, when needed. A true leader knows urgency has its place, but so does strategic patience. When you create a culture where priorities are clear and urgency is meaningful, you encourage your team to stay focused, motivated and committed to high-impact work. Next time you feel the need to sound the “urgency” bells..... ask if Is it time-sensitive or do I need my team to be focused on their top tasks with no interruption for the best results?  That will let you know if immediate action is needed or if the team can create more impact with thoughtful planning and execution. PS -> What tips do you have to prioritize a team's task list and ensure the right things get done to move the business forward? Drop your recs in the comments below

S𝘁𝗿𝘂𝗴𝗴𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗼 𝗣𝗿𝗶𝗼𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗶𝘇𝗲 𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗸 𝗶𝗻 𝗔𝗴𝗶𝗹𝗲? 𝗧𝗿𝘆 𝗧𝗵𝗲𝘀𝗲 7 𝗧𝗲𝗰𝗵𝗻𝗶𝗾𝘂𝗲𝘀! In Agile, everything feels important, but not everything should be prioritized equally. Without a structured approach, teams can get stuck in endless debates or focus on the wrong tasks. Here are 7 proven Agile prioritization techniques to help you decide what truly matters: 1️⃣ 𝗠𝗼𝗦𝗖𝗼𝗪 𝗠𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗼𝗱 A simple way to categorize tasks based on necessity: ✅ Must-Have – Critical for project success. No compromise. 🔹 Should-Have – Important but not mandatory. Can wait if needed. 🔹 Could-Have – Nice to have, but won’t impact the project much. ❌ Won’t-Have – Out of scope for now. ➡ 𝗕𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗳𝗼𝗿: Quick and easy prioritization of backlog items. 2️⃣ 𝗞𝗮𝗻𝗼 𝗠𝗼𝗱𝗲𝗹 Classifies features based on how users perceive value: 🌟 Delighters – Unexpected features that wow users. ✅ Performance Needs – The better they are, the happier users are. 🔹 Basic Needs – Expected and essential. Missing them = unhappy users. ➡ 𝗕𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗳𝗼𝗿: Understanding customer satisfaction drivers. 3️⃣ 𝗥𝗜𝗖𝗘 𝗦𝗰𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 A data-driven framework that scores tasks based on four factors: 📈 Reach – How many users will this impact? 🎯 Impact – How much will it benefit them? ⚡ Confidence – How sure are we about the impact? ⏳ Effort – How much time/resources are needed? 𝗙𝗼𝗿𝗺𝘂𝗹𝗮: (𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵 × 𝗜𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗰𝘁 × 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗳𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲) / 𝗘𝗳𝗳𝗼𝗿𝘁 ➡ 𝗕𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗳𝗼𝗿: Prioritizing features based on measurable impact. 4️⃣ 𝗘𝗶𝘀𝗲𝗻𝗵𝗼𝘄𝗲𝗿 𝗠𝗮𝘁𝗿𝗶𝘅 A productivity framework that separates tasks by urgency and importance: ✅ Urgent & Important – Do it now. 🔹 Important but Not Urgent – Plan for it. 🔥 Urgent but Not Important – Delegate it. ❌ Neither Urgent nor Important – Drop it. ➡ 𝗕𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗳𝗼𝗿: Managing daily work and preventing burnout. 5️⃣ 𝗪𝗦𝗝𝗙 (𝗪𝗲𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗦𝗵𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗝𝗼𝗯 𝗙𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁) A formula-based method used in SAFe Agile: (Business Value + Time Criticality + Risk Reduction) / Job Duration ⏩ A high WSJF score means the work should be done sooner rather than later. ➡ 𝗕𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗳𝗼𝗿: Maximizing economic impact in scaled Agile frameworks. 6️⃣ 𝗖𝗼𝘀𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝗗𝗲𝗹𝗮𝘆 (𝗖𝗼𝗗) ⏳ Prioritize based on the financial impact of delaying a feature. 💸 Helps answer: “How much money are we losing every day we don’t release this?” 🔥 Particularly useful for revenue-generating or compliance-driven features. ➡ 𝗕𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗳𝗼𝗿: Ensuring the highest ROI on time-sensitive projects. 💡 Which of these techniques do you use the most? Drop a comment below!

Prioritization is a core skill for product managers. But most do it wrong. - They start with the backlog first. - Apply math. - Rank score the results. - Have it all blown up in their face by stakeholders. Stephen Covey famously said, "Begin with the end in mind." And that's exactly how we need to approach prioritization. Start with the outcomes we want and work our way backwards. Here's what you really need to do: 1. (Re-)Learn Your Product ↳ Not the tech stack. ↳ Not the bits and bytes ↳ Not the features and functions. ↳ Your product's business model - how it creates, delivers, and captures value. 2. Gather Key Business Information ↳ Your company's business objectives. ↳ Your product strategy and goals. ↳ Key customer insights. 3. Organize ↳ Group into themes. ↳ Flush out old items. ↳ Question anything not obviously strategically aligned. 4. Prioritize Strategically ↳ Use any scheme ↳ They are CONVERSATION STARTERS. ↳ All should be about economic value and customer benefit. 5. Visualize Your Roadmap. ↳ Represent themes. ↳ Phased themes are ok. ↳ Align with objectives and outcomes from above. ↳ Call out key projects and customer commitments. 6. Socialize ↳ Know your TRUE stakeholders. ↳ Identify power players and influencers. ↳ Know your org's decision-making culture. ↳ Use shuttle diplomacy. ↳ Iterate and update. 7. Establish a Roadmap Routine ↳ Roadmap reviews ↳ Intake process ↳ Roadmap planning cycle It's not about just plug & play of some math formula. Prioritization ALWAYS starts with strategy. And ends with outcomes. Want to learn exactly how to implement this for your product? Enroll in One Week Product Roadmap - My cohort-based course that will teach you how to Master Delivering Value Instead of managing a backlog swamp. Join the next cohort at: https://lnkd.in/eYEN7zmh ~~~ 👍 Like this post. ♻️ Repost to your network. ➕ Follow Shardul Mehta to become a better PM. ✅ Subscribe to https://lnkd.in/eTMfsf-F

Harvard Business Review found that employees spend 41% of their time on tasks that add little or no value to their organization. So, how do you cut through the noise and focus on what matters most? Follow these 7 steps to master prioritization and take control of your workload: 1. Trying to keep track of tasks in your head is a recipe for stress and forgetfulness. Studies show that writing down tasks increases goal achievement by 42%. 2. Not all tasks carry the same weight. Use the Eisenhower Matrix to help sort tasks into four categories: ✅ Urgent & Important: Do these first. 📅 Important but Not Urgent: Schedule them. ➡️ Urgent but Not Important: Delegate if possible. ❌ Neither Urgent nor Important: Eliminate or postpone. When you assess importance, you shift from reactive work to strategic action that aligns with your long-term goals. 3. Once you’ve identified what matters, ranking tasks helps ensure you tackle the most impactful work first. A study in the Journal of Applied Psychology found that employees who prioritize based on long-term impact (rather than immediate urgency) boost their productivity by 25%. 4. Beware: Parkinson’s Law states that work expands to fill the time available for its completion. If you give yourself too much time, you’ll take it. The key? Set deadlines based on urgency and complexity. Research from Harvard Business School found that professionals who set clear deadlines and stick to them are 46% more likely to meet their goals. 5. Many people fall into the trap of handling easy, low-impact tasks first, but this creates the illusion of productivity without real progress. Instead, try this: Identify your top 3 priorities each day and commit to finishing them before moving on to less critical tasks. This shift can dramatically improve efficiency and effectiveness. 6. Priorities shift. If you don’t review and adjust, you’ll end up stuck in yesterday’s plan instead of adapting to today’s needs. A weekly review can increase productivity by 46%, according to Harvard Business School. 7. Multitasking might feel productive, but research from Stanford University shows it reduces efficiency by up to 40%. Instead, try: ✅ The Pomodoro Technique:work in focused 25-minute sprints ✅ Time Blocking: dedicate chunks of time to specific tasks ✅ The 2-Minute Rule: if a task takes less than two minutes, do it immediately Yes, we all want to get things done, but mastering prioritization is about getting the *right* things done. When you focus on high-impact tasks, set clear deadlines, and avoid distractions, you’ll reduce stress, increase efficiency, and make better decisions. #TimeManagement #Priorities #Productivity #Efficiency #Leadership LaTour Leadership Academy

𝗔𝘀 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀, 𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝗼𝗳𝘁𝗲𝗻 𝗱𝗼 𝘄𝗲 𝗳𝗲𝗲𝗹 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝘀 𝘂𝗿𝗴𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗮𝗻𝘁? 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝘁𝗿𝘂𝘁𝗵 𝗶𝘀, 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝘁𝗮𝘀𝗸𝘀 𝗰𝗮𝗿𝗿𝘆 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗮𝗺𝗲 𝘄𝗲𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝗶𝗻 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗯𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗼 𝗹𝗼𝗻𝗴-𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗺 𝘀𝘂𝗰𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀. To navigate these moments, I often rely on 𝗳𝗿𝗮𝗺𝗲𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸𝘀 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗘𝗶𝘀𝗲𝗻𝗵𝗼𝘄𝗲𝗿 𝗠𝗮𝘁𝗿𝗶𝘅: 𝗨𝗿𝗴𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗜𝗺𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗮𝗻𝘁: Do it now. 𝗜𝗺𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝗯𝘂𝘁 𝗡𝗼𝘁 𝗨𝗿𝗴𝗲𝗻𝘁: Schedule it. 𝗨𝗿𝗴𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗯𝘂𝘁 𝗡𝗼𝘁 𝗜𝗺𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗮𝗻𝘁: Delegate it. 𝗡𝗲𝗶𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗨𝗿𝗴𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗻𝗼𝗿 𝗜𝗺𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗮𝗻𝘁: Eliminate it. Another strategy I embrace is the 𝗣𝗮𝗿𝗲𝘁𝗼 𝗣𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗰𝗶𝗽𝗹𝗲 (𝟴𝟬/𝟮𝟬 𝗿𝘂𝗹𝗲): 𝗙𝗼𝗰𝘂𝘀 𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝟮𝟬% 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗮𝘀𝗸𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘆𝗶𝗲𝗹𝗱 𝟴𝟬% 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘂𝗹𝘁𝘀. But prioritization isn’t just about formulas; it’s about 𝗮𝗹𝗶𝗴𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗱𝗲𝗰𝗶𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗴𝗼𝗮𝗹𝘀, 𝘃𝗮𝗹𝘂𝗲𝘀, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗹𝗼𝗻𝗴-𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗺 𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗰𝘁. For instance, when deciding between launching a feature quickly or ensuring it’s polished, I ask myself: Which option better aligns with our mission and future growth? 𝗦𝗮𝘆𝗶𝗻𝗴 '𝗻𝗼’ 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗳𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗶𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗰𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝘀𝗸𝗶𝗹𝗹. 𝗘𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆 '𝗻𝗼’ 𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗲𝘀 𝘀𝗽𝗮𝗰𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗮 𝗺𝗲𝗮𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴𝗳𝘂𝗹 '𝘆𝗲𝘀'. How do you decide what matters most when everything feels important? Let’s exchange insights—your strategies might inspire someone else to make their next tough call a little easier. #Leadership #Prioritization #DecisionMaking #EisenhowerMatrix #ParetoPrinciple #TimeManagement #Productivity #LeadershipSkills #ProfessionalGrowth #Inspiration