Throughout the bustling coronary coronary heart of tech, the place new ideas sprout before we’re in a position to are more likely to them, Intercom—a messaging software program program agency—found itself at a crossroads. Sean McBride, a product supervisor at Intercom, alongside alongside along with his group, rifled by a buffet of prioritization fashions, in search of the one that can best serve their distinctive challenges. And whereas these pre-existing fashions provided insights, none truly resonated with the precise needs of Intercom’s ever-expanding universe of endeavor ideas.
So, what does a corporation do when it’s caught between a rock and a tricky place? It innovates.
McBride and his group weren’t about to let current fashions keep them once more. They rolled up their sleeves and carved out their very personal….
Enter the RICE prioritization model—a current, pragmatic technique that melds 4 clear-cut components: attain, affect, confidence, and vitality.
By devising a parts that churned these components collectively, the group birthed a tool that spat out a clear, concise score for any endeavor idea thrown its means. No additional second-guessing. No additional “what if?” Solely a straight-up, purpose system to info their product roadmap. And guess what? This wasn’t solely a makeshift gadget—it dramatically refined Intercom’s decision-making prowess.
Stripped proper all the way down to its core, RICE is a beacon for product managers navigating the foggy waters of product roadmaps. It’s a straightforward framework, however profound in its software program, serving to teams pinpoint which initiatives deserve the limelight based on 4 pivotal requirements. For individuals who’ve ever felt overwhelmed by the tidal wave of duties demanding your consideration, RICE could merely be your lifesaver.
Now, let’s uncover the middle of the RICE model and discover out how one can additionally wield it in your space.
The 4 Parts of the RICE Prioritization Model
RICE stands as a compass, directing you through the storm of picks with its 4 cardinal components:
Attain
Proper right here’s the place we step once more from our personal inclinations, inserting ourselves inside the sneakers of the shoppers.
Attain asks a vital question: what number of people will this endeavor resonate with over a defined interval? For example, for my group at LifeHack, this may occasionally translate to “what variety of members will this endeavor affect over a single quarter?”.
The essential factor? Concrete numbers. No magic, no guessing—attain is framed relating to people or events per time interval, be it “prospects per quarter” or “product sales per 30 days”. It requires data-driven proof, not hopeful conjectures pulled from the ether.
Impression
Impression is the muscle of the endeavor, the drive it exerts on specific individual clients. Will it nudge the needle, and in that case, how far?
For one group, it’s more likely to be quantified as “how so much will this endeavor improve the conversion payment when a shopper subscribes to it?”
Precise measurement could also be elusive, so Intercom items a scale
- 3 for “massive affect”
- 2 for “extreme”
- 1 for “medium”
It’s a system that, whereas not good, avoids leaving us stranded inside the swamp of subjective guesswork.
Confidence
Amid the glint of formidable ideas, confidence acts as the actual fact look at. It begs the question: how certain are you, truly, about these estimates? This subject is the reins that sluggish you down everytime you’re charging ahead with little higher than extreme hopes.
Confidence is expressed as a share. Straightforward selections maintain the strategy nimble and avoid willpower quagmire:
- 100% for “extreme confidence”
- 80% for “medium”
- 50% for “low”
It’s a second for candid reflection: how robust is the underside you’re establishing on?
Effort
Effort is the helpful useful resource toll: the time and vitality that you just and your group would possibly need to pour into this endeavor. It’s counted in “person-months”, a tricky estimate of the work one group member can do in a month.
Proper right here, full numbers (or 0.5 for lighter lots) suffice. In RICE, additional effort doesn’t earn a gold star—it actually dilutes the score, reminding you that velocity and agility are virtues.
In a world the place ‘additional’ is usually seen as ‘larger’, RICE flips the script. It’s the quiet nonetheless steadfast info that whispers,
“Choose appropriately. Make it rely.”
How one can Use the RICE Model (Step-by-Step Data)
The RICE model isn’t a fancy riddle—it’s a compass, designed to steer you efficiently by the waves of initiatives and choices..
1. Map Out the Terrain
First, jot down an inventory of the potential new product choices able to be prioritized. This isn’t restricted to the model new and shiny; it consists of the stalwarts of your backlog too.
2. Assign the Scores
Estimate:
- Attain. For each enterprise in your itemizing, gauge what variety of clients will actually really feel its presence. A specific time frame can maintain this tidy—like clients per 30 days. If revenue sings to you, MRR is a worthy amount to serenade.
- Impression. Foresee the ripples each endeavor would possibly make on shopper satisfaction or revenue. Your scale could be taught ‘minimal’ on the low end and crescendo to ‘massive’. Tune this scale to the melodies of your purchaser solutions.
- Effort. Sum up the hours or months your group needs to take a position all through all fronts—development, design, testing.
- Confidence. Measuring the ability of your convictions, are these estimates rock robust (100%) or additional akin to throwing darts at nighttime (
3. Crunch These Numbers
Alongside together with your scores set, apply the parts for each endeavor or attribute:
RICE Ranking = (Attain * Impression * Confidence) / Effort
That may help you do the maths, I’ve crafted a Notion Template whereby you solely should plug in these estimates.
4. Set up the Duties
Set up the initiatives or choices by their RICE scores, highest first. Often, these extreme flyers are the treasures you’re looking out—they get constructed first.
5. Huddle with Your Crew
Lay the scores and your proposed route on the desk to your group and stakeholders to see. Proper right here’s the place the discuss heats up, the place you untangle discrepancies, kind out points, or unearth new insights that might sway the journey.
6. Tweak and Revise
Persistently revisit and retune your RICE scores as current intel rolls in or as your group’s flag is hoisted in new directions. This ensures your group’s vitality sails in harmony alongside together with your ever-evolving targets and that your treasure—time—is spent appropriately.
Case Analysis
Our group had a slew of potential initiatives, ranging from redesigning our website online to making a model new course and launching an e-mail publication sequence. With restricted property, we needed a rational approach to resolve what to kind out first. So we used the RICE model to help us prioritize:
1. Determining Duties
Our decisions: website online redesign, new on-line course development, and e-mail publication sequence launch.
2. Defining the Parts
We tailor-made Attain, Impression, Confidence, and Effort to LifeHack’s targets—notably, rising shopper engagement and course enrollments.
3. Scoring Each Difficulty
For the website online redesign:
- Attain: extreme—impacting 95% of our clients
- Impression: extreme (3x), anticipating improved shopper experience and course sign-ups
- Confidence: 85% Assured in these estimates
- Effort: pegged at 2 person-months.
For the model new on-line course:
- Attain: 60% of our current shopper base, as per earlier course enrollment expenses
- Impression: extreme (3x), anticipating it to boost LifeHack’s fame and revenue
- Confidence: 80%
- Effort: 3 person-months.
For the e-mail publication sequence:
- Attain: 70% of our subscribers
- Impression: extreme (3x), believing it’d foster shopper loyalty and encourage course sign-ups
- Confidence: 90% Assured in these estimates
- Effort: 2 person-months.
4. Calculating RICE Scores
After the maths, the website online redesign had one of the best RICE score, suggesting it was basically probably the most surroundings pleasant approach to acquire impactful outcomes.
So our endeavor rankings are:
- Website online Redesign
- Email correspondence Publication Assortment
- New On-line Course Enchancment
5. Confirm with the Crew and Modify When Essential
I shared these rankings with our group and stakeholders. We had a dialogue, with some sudden insights from our purchaser help group, who well-known frequent shopper requests for a model new course.
Given this new solutions, we decided to re-evaluate the Attain and Confidence components for the model new on-line course, which moved it to the second of our priority itemizing.
Bottom Line
The RICE model is your compass, turning infinite decisions right into a clear path. It presents a scientific technique, serving to you reply the pivotal question, ‘what comes subsequent?’ with information, not merely gut feeling. It’s about aligning your group’s efforts with impactful initiatives, justified by clear, quantifiable requirements.
As your targets evolve, RICE adapts. It encourages widespread re-evaluation, ensuring your group’s focus stays sharp and associated.
With RICE in hand, you probably can set sail purposefully in course of serious affect.