Prioritizing a Backlog

Rank work items by impact and urgency. Use a framework — not gut feeling.

Quick Reference

• Input: Ticket list, task list, or feature requests.
• Frameworks: RICE, MoSCoW, value-vs-effort, WSJF.
• Output: Ordered backlog with scores and rationale.
• Rule: Every ranking decision needs a stated reason.

HARD-GATE

DO NOT prioritize without understanding each item's impact and effort.
DO NOT assign scores without stated criteria for each dimension.
DO NOT rank everything "high priority" — force relative ordering.

Core Process

1. Receive — ticket list, task list, or feature requests.
2. Detect framework — ask user or infer from context (see scoring criteria below):
   • RICE — Reach × Impact × Confidence ÷ Effort.
   • MoSCoW — Must have, Should have, Could have, Won't have.
   • Value-vs-Effort — Plot on a 2×2 matrix.
   • WSJF — Cost of Delay ÷ Job Size.
3. Score each item — apply the framework consistently, state rationale.
4. Order — rank by score, with ties broken by strategic alignment or dependencies.
5. Flag — items needing clarification before scoring, dependency conflicts.
6. Output — ordered backlog.

Inline Scoring Criteria

RICE

Formula: (Reach × Impact × Confidence) ÷ Effort — higher score = higher priority.

MoSCoW

• Must — without it the release fails or is illegal.
• Should — high value, painful to omit but workable.
• Could — nice to have; cut first under time pressure.
• Won't — explicitly deferred; document why.

Value-vs-Effort (2×2)

• High value / Low effort → Do first (quick wins).
• High value / High effort → Schedule carefully (big bets).
• Low value / Low effort → Fill-in work only.
• Low value / High effort → Eliminate or defer.

WSJF

Formula: (User value + Time criticality + Risk reduction) ÷ Job size.

Worked Example — RICE

Input: four feature requests for a SaaS product.

Flagged: "CSV import wizard" — effort estimate uncertain, revisit after spike.

Output Style

1. Framework — state which framework was used and why.
2. Ordered backlog — | Rank | Item | Score | Rationale |
3. Framework breakdown — per-item dimension scores (for scored frameworks).
4. Flagged items — items needing clarification or with dependency constraints.
5. English only unless user requests otherwise.

Integration