RICE Method of Prioritization

If you’re struggling to prioritize tasks and find yourself constantly overwhelmed, you might want to try the RICE method of prioritization. RICE stands for Reach, Impact, Confidence, and Effort, and it is a framework that helps you evaluate and prioritize tasks based on their potential impact and effort required.

The RICE method is especially useful for product managers, marketers, and anyone who needs to prioritize tasks based on their impact on business goals. By evaluating tasks based on their reach, impact, confidence, and effort, you can ensure that you’re focusing on the tasks that will have the biggest impact on your business and that you have the resources and confidence to complete them.

While the RICE Method is typically used for project managers, it can be applied to you and your individual tasks — you just need to reassess how you think about each of the categories.

If you need someone in your corner join my Facebook group, Executive Function Support for Women. I will be your cheerleader.

Photo byShannyn Schroeder

Fundamentals of RICE Method

Reach

Reach refers to the potential number of people who will be affected by a particular project or task. It’s important to consider the reach of a project before investing significant time and resources into it. The higher the reach, the more impact a project can have.

When looking at your own task list, consider who is impacted by whether or not you complete the task. If you don’t do laundry, will everyone in the house run out of clean underwear, or just you?

Impact

Impact refers to the potential benefit that a project or initiative can provide. It is important to consider the impact of a project before investing resources into it. The higher the impact, the more valuable a project can be.

For your own to-do list, you can look at the impact the task will have on others (your reach) or it can be measured by how you will feel when the task is done.

Confidence

Confidence refers to the level of certainty you have in the potential reach and impact of a project. It is important to have a high level of confidence in a project before investing significant resources into it.

This one is tough because estimation is difficult for many people who struggle with executive dysfunction. In addition, when you look at your own task list, your emotions get in the way of being objective when making these decisions.

Effort

Effort refers to the amount of time and resources required to complete a project or initiative. It is important to consider the effort required before investing resources into a project. The lower the effort, the more feasible a project can be.

Using the RICE method can help you prioritize projects by evaluating them based on their reach, impact, confidence, and effort. By considering these factors, you can make informed decisions about which projects to pursue and which to put on hold.

Want to learn more about executive functioning? Take my FREE course.

Calculating RICE Scores

To calculate the RICE score, you will need to gather four pieces of information: Reach, Impact, Confidence, and Effort. Here’s how to calculate each of these factors:

Reach

The reach is the number of people who will be affected by the feature. To calculate the reach, you can use the following formula:

Reach = Number of Users * Impact Percentage

For example, if you have 1,000 users and the feature will impact 50% of them, the reach would be:

Reach = 1,000 * 0.5 = 500

Impact

The impact is the degree to which the feature will affect the user. To calculate the impact, you can use a scale from 1 to 10, where 1 is the lowest impact and 10 is the highest impact.

Confidence

The confidence is your level of certainty that the feature will have the desired impact. To calculate the confidence, you can use a scale from 1 to 10, where 1 is the lowest confidence and 10 is the highest confidence.

Effort

The effort is the amount of work required to implement the feature. To calculate the effort, you can use a scale from 1 to 10, where 1 is the lowest effort and 10 is the highest effort.

Once you have calculated each of these factors, you can use the following formula to calculate the RICE score:

RICE Score = Reach * Impact * Confidence / Effort

The higher the RICE score, the higher the priority of the feature. By using the RICE method of prioritization, you can ensure that you are focusing on the features that will have the greatest impact on your users while minimizing the amount of effort required to implement them.

I’m NOT a numbers person and the idea of having to do math to prioritize my list makes me cringe. BUT, for some of you, having data in the form of numbers to help you decide what needs to get done first can really help. You can start to see that not everything has the same level of importance.

Common Misconceptions about RICE

When it comes to prioritization methods, RICE is a popular one. However, there are some common misconceptions that people have about this method. Here are a few:

Misconception #1: RICE is a one-size-fits-all solution

RICE is a great prioritization method, but it’s not a one-size-fits-all solution. It’s important to remember that different projects and teams have different needs, and what works for one may not work for another. RICE is just one tool in your toolbox, and it’s important to use it in conjunction with other methods to get the best results.

If you have a hard time objectively looking at who is impacted by your tasks, or you struggle with honestly estimating, (or if you hate math like I do), the RICE Method might not be for you.

Misconception #2: RICE is only useful for product development

While RICE was originally developed for product development, it can be applied to many different types of projects. RICE can be used to prioritize almost any project. The key is to adapt the method to fit your specific needs.

Misconception #3: RICE is all about the numbers

While RICE does involve some numerical calculations, it’s not all about the numbers. RICE is a framework that helps you evaluate projects based on four key factors: reach, impact, confidence, and effort. It’s important to remember that these factors are not always quantifiable, and that subjective opinions and insights are just as important as hard data.

The nice thing about numbers is that they are objective and sometimes we need that level of objectivity to know what we should be working on or what direction we should be moving in.

No one perfect prioritization method exists. No matter which one you try, you need to adapt the method to fit your needs. Don’t be afraid to use other tools and methods in conjunction with RICE to get the best possible outcomes.