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RICE Prioritization Technique

Jul 11, 2024

RICE Prioritization Technique

Introduction

  • Speaker: Nikki, co-founder at Jexo
  • Topic: RICE Prioritization Technique
  • Purpose: Prioritize product backlog effectively, eliminating personal biases
  • Developed by: Intercom

When to Use RICE

  • Established Products: Ideal for products with available user data
  • Versatility: Can also be used for other prioritization needs, like content marketing

Components of RICE

1. Reach

  • Question: How many customers will the change impact in a specific time frame (e.g., quarterly, monthly)?
  • Important to quantify the number of affected customers.

2. Impact

  • Question: How much does this change contribute to our goal (e.g., increasing conversions)?

3. Confidence

  • Question: How confident are we that this change will work?
    • High confidence if backed by data
    • Low confidence if lacking supporting data

4. Effort

  • Question: How hard will this change be to implement?
    • Include all parties (design, development, etc.)

Using RICE in Practice

  • Example Tools: Using JIRA and Foxley prioritization plugin
  • Metrics Assignment Guidelines:
    • Reach: Number of new/expected customers or users
    • Impact: Evaluate based on goal (e.g., conversion rates)
    • Confidence: Data-backed confidence levels
    • Effort: Assess required effort involving all stakeholders

Sample Backlog Prioritization

Task Examples

  1. Onboarding Video: (Reach: New/expected customers, Impact: High, Confidence: High, Effort: Small)
  2. Navigation Redesign: (Reach: All users, Impact: Medium, Confidence: Low, Effort: Large)
  3. Adding New Filters: (Reach: Users of existing filters, Impact: Low, Confidence: Medium, Effort: Medium)

Calculating RICE Score

  • Formula: RICE Score = (Reach * Impact * Confidence) / Effort
  • Re-order list by highest to lowest priority score

Additional Tips

  • Visualize effort and impact on a priority matrix to spot "quick wins"
  • Tools: Foxley app for Jira to manage and visualize priorities

Alternative Methods

  • ICE: Use ICE if data about reach is unavailable
  • Other Methods: Weighted shortest job first, Value vs. Effort, Quick Wins

Conclusion

  • Stay informed: Check out additional videos for other prioritization methods
  • Happy Prioritizing!

Full transcript