Prioritizing Projects Within Innovation Strategy

Friday thought: Roadmap prioritization is both art and science. After building products for more than a decade, for all kinds of companies, the priority order for roadmap initiatives ends up roughly as: 1. Projects that have a clear path to increased ARR: If you have a (fast) path to building something that people find dollar value, these always win out. 2. Projects that retain existing customers, in ARR order: Next, you are reducing anticipated churn based on a large common ask from companies by some average of ARR. People typically run into a trap of constantly responding to support requests, which is not the same. Here, we identify strategic projects that would average out in a better experience for a wide variety of customers, not the loudest one. If you build for the loudest one, even if they have a lot of money, they probably are going to leave you anyway (and often times, it isn't your fault). After these, you have a tie between: -- Projects that lead to greater efficiencies or saving money: To protect the bottom line, you have to use your resources wisely. Whatever you can do to help save a few bucks on the AWS bill or get work done twice as fast can help pay dividends that can support 1 & 2. Sometimes people lump "tech debt" projects in here, but you'll want to be judicious about time boxing these projects so teams don't over-rotate here. -- "Spike" initiatives that may lead to future business directions or open up new channels: Whereas with the above efforts the vision and end state is clear, there are often large areas of opportunity that are worth the risk to investigate. A lot of "AI" based ideas can fall in this bucket - there are other ways to solve problems that are more obvious, but perhaps a new technology can unlock new ways of working that were previously impossible. Deciding between the above depends on the lifecycle of the project or business. If the company is more mature, they may do more things to reduce cost. If you are just getting started, exploratory intiatives take more priority.

In one of the more challenging strategic planning sessions I facilitated for a tech company, we encountered a big roadblock: an overwhelming number of great ideas but no clear direction on where to focus our efforts. Sound familiar? The stakes were high, and we needed a structured approach to move forward effectively. We turned to a prioritization matrix to turn chaos into clarity and ensure our efforts aligned with the company's goals and values: 🌟 Impact vs. Feasibility: We categorized each idea based on its potential impact on the company's growth and the feasibility of implementation. This helped us quickly identify high-impact, high-feasibility initiatives that would provide immediate value. 🌟 Aligning with Core Objectives: Next, we introduced an additional parameter: alignment with the company's core objectives of innovation, customer satisfaction, and operational efficiency. Each idea was assessed on how well it supported these objectives, ensuring that our efforts remained true to our strategic direction. 🌟 People & Resource Allocation: We estimated the requirements for each idea, considering budget, people, and time. By mapping these requirements against our available people and resources, we prioritized projects that were not only impactful but also realistically achievable. 🌟 Stakeholder Support: Recognizing the importance of stakeholder buy-in, we ranked ideas based on the level of support from key stakeholders, including senior leadership and key department heads. This ensured that our chosen initiatives had the necessary backing to succeed. 🌟 Urgency and Timing: Finally, we assessed the urgency and timing of each initiative. Some ideas, while valuable, could be postponed without significant impact, allowing us to focus on more immediate needs. By the end of the session, we had a clear, prioritized action plan that everyone was excited to implement. Using a structured approach to prioritize the work not only provided clarity but also built consensus and commitment across the team. Remember, the right tools can transform your planning sessions into productive and actionable steps. How do you prioritize initiatives in your organization? Share your strategies and experiences below! 👇 --------- Ready to elevate your next strategic meeting? Let’s talk! #StrategicPlanning #Facilitation #Leadership #Prioritization

"We have 47 initiatives in development, but I'm not confident any will be a hit." Sound familiar? The problem isn't lack of innovation, it's a lack of prioritization based on customer outcomes. The typical pipeline chaos: - 20-200 projects in various stages - Poor filtering processes that don't weed out weak concepts - Teams covering all bases to avoid being caught off guard - Difficulty killing projects once funded The root cause: Companies place many small bets because they don't know where the big opportunities lie. The solution: Outcome-driven pipeline prioritization Products addressing underserved customer outcomes get high priority and accelerated resources. Those that don't get reconsidered or abandoned. The results: ✓ More winning products customers actually want ✓ Faster time-to-market for high-value solutions ✓ Reduced unnecessary development expense ✓ Operational competitive advantage How many of your current projects can you confidently connect to underserved customer outcomes?