Effort/Value Matrix (2*2) Prioritisation

What is it

• It is used to help quickly prioritize a backlog of work associated to a service or product based on relative prioritisation. Each of the items are assessed against two criteria: the value that is realised from delivering it, and the effort required to complete it.

• It is the recommended prioritisation approach for backlogs with a large number of items(>20) for teams with little previous experience or competency in this activity.

• The key benefits for this technique are: Quick to understand and use for team members new to the service/initiative/product; strong visualisation to engender further discussion; highly productive in processing large backlog volumes in a short space of time; inherently enables high granularity of ordering; clear recommended next actions for each quadrant

Who

• Lead by the product manager, this technique only works well with a cross functional team and service SMEs working in a collaborative environment, with presence of at least one architect or developer

Running the technique

• Find a backlog item that to use as the anchor: find a previously delivered item on the backlog with a clear purpose, and effort taken and value expected would roughly enable it to sit in the middle of the matrix.

• Agree as a team to how value is defined to ensure consistency throughout the exercise

• Assess one item at a time, one person facilitates selecting and sharing details. Discuss and agree where to place it relative to the anchor item.

• Start with two or three more straightforward items (helps build confidence and understanding)

• Once completed, next recommend actions are Big bets ( top right) should be further broken down to identify and derisk the large effort estimate. Quick wins (top left) should be grouped against top level objectives and requalified.

• Agree sequencing of the items in the top left and top right segments.