The 3x3 Impact/Effort Matrix
The impact/effort matrix is a tool that helps teams prioritize items based on their impact to the user and the level of effort it’d take to implement the item. Items can be features, workflows, improvements, and so on. After plotting items on the matrix, teams can decide how to prioritize the items. It’s a great way to get everyone on the same page and see things from an holistic view.
Challenges with the 2-axis design
Traditionally, people draw two axes for the impact/effort matrix. Although in my experience working with different groups, I’ve seen people get hung up on the 2-axis design. Participants usually get hung up on the nuances of accuracy (e.g., “Is Feature A more medium impact than Feature B?”) and it stalls productivity. When looking at a high level, this fine-tuned accuracy isn’t important. The 2-axis design is vague, which makes prioritizing items difficult. Participants have to re-interpret an item’s placement and then compare it against other items, causing unnecessary fatigue and distraction to the activity.
Why a 3x3 grid?
By using a 3x3 grid, you’re creating nine large buckets. People can take an item and quickly decide if it is low, medium, or high effort and if it has low, medium, or high impact. No longer does the team digress into debating how much more medium impact Feature A is than Feature B. Then when you want to prioritize, each item’s impact and effort are very clear.
Supplies
- Sticky notes, white board, dry erase markers, sharpies
Audience
- This is great for internal teams or even with stakeholders.
Steps — Let’s do this!
Step 1.
On sticky notes, list out the items you want to prioritize. Items can be features, workflows, improvements, etc. One item per sticky note.
Step 2.
Draw a 3x3 grid and label one side “Impact” — this is the impact to the user. Label each section with “low,” “medium,” and “high.” Label the other side “Effort” — which is the effort your team is providing. So if you’re a design team, you’re talking about the design effort, not the engineering effort. (Cross-functional teams could do this together, but the discussion around effort will be a bit more involved.) And then break out each section with “low,” “medium,” and “high.”
Step 3.
Have the team go through each item and place them on the grid based on what you all think its impact and effort is.
Step 4.
After the items have been placed on the grid, your team can prioritize how to tackle these groupings. For example, do you tackle all the low effort ones first or the high effort / high impact ones? Do you even bother with the high effort / low impact items? If you work with another team, (e.g., an engineering team), they can prioritize the same items based on the effort it’d take them.
Variations
If your team is remote or you want some sort of archive, you can try this using a collaborative tool like Boardthing (they have a free trial). Download this graphic, add it to a Boardthing for the background (add it to a sticky, resize the sticky, and lock it), and plot your virtual sticky notes on the grid.
Share Your Thoughts
If you try this out, let me know how it worked for you!
