Prioritization Calculator

Origin: Developed by Intercom in 2016.

1. Estimate reach: How many people does this feature affect per quarter? Use specific numbers from analytics.
2. Score impact: Rate impact on a scale: 3 = massive, 2 = high, 1 = medium, 0.5 = low, 0.25 = minimal.
3. Assign confidence: As a percentage: 100% = high confidence with data, 80% = medium, 50% = low (gut feel).
4. Estimate effort: In person-months. Include design + engineering + QA. Be honest about scope creep.
5. Calculate and rank: Score = (Reach × Impact × Confidence%) ÷ Effort. Sort descending. The top item ships first.

Origin: Part of SAFe (Scaled Agile Framework).

1. Score business value (1-10): How much revenue or user value does this create?
2. Score time criticality (1-10): Does value decay over time? Is there a deadline or competitive pressure?
3. Score risk reduction (1-10): Does this de-risk something? Unblock a dependency? Enable future work?
4. Score job size (1-10): Inverse of effort. 10 = tiny, 1 = huge.
5. Calculate WSJF: WSJF = (Business Value + Time Criticality + Risk Reduction) ÷ Job Size. Highest WSJF ships first.

Origin: DSDM framework, 1994.

1. Classify each item: Drop each requirement into exactly one bucket: Must, Should, Could, or Won't.
2. Validate balance: Aim for 60% Must-haves, 20% Should-haves, 20% Could-haves. If 90% are "Must" you're not being honest.
3. Confirm "Won't": Explicit exclusions kill scope creep. Always have "Won't" items.
4. Ship Musts first, Shoulds next: Musts are non-negotiable. Shoulds get into this release if time permits. Coulds are stretch.

Origin: Popularized by Sean Ellis and growth hackers.

1. Score impact (1-10): If this works, how big is the win?
2. Score confidence (1-10): How sure are you it will work? Do you have data?
3. Score ease (1-10): How fast and cheap is it? 10 = trivial, 1 = massive undertaking.
4. Calculate ICE: ICE = Impact × Confidence × Ease. Rank descending. Top-scoring items ship this week.