THE PRODUCT LEADER COLUMN
By Oluwafunke Kofoworade – Product Manager | Founder, TechProductGems
In the golden age of digital products, ideas come fast and expectations even faster. Product teams are under pressure to deliver sleek features, instant fixes, and magical user experiences all while staying on budget and ahead of the competition. But in this noisy space, one quiet skill separates effective product managers from the rest is PRIORITISATION.
It’s not just about saying “yes” or “no.” It’s about making bold, strategic calls that align business goals, user value, and technical feasibility. And in 2024, as AI, automation, and cloud tools multiply what is possible, the question of what to build next has never been more crucial.
Why Prioritisation Is a Strategic Superpower
The feature backlog is always full. Stakeholders always have “just one more request.” And engineers, quite rightly, ask: “What’s the trade-off?”
A strong product manager knows that not all features are equal. Prioritisation is the art and science of identifying what drives meaningful outcomes. That means balancing three lenses:
- User Value: Will it solve a real user problem?
- Business Value: Will it move a key metric or support growth?
- Technical Effort: Can we build and maintain it efficiently?
Ignore any of these, and you risk shipping features that no one uses, that no one needs, or worse that break the system.
From Gut Feeling to Frameworks: Making Prioritisation Transparent
When I mentor junior PMs, I often ask: “How do you decide what to work on next?”
Some point to roadmaps. Others say, “gut feeling.” The best ones point to frameworks tools that help remove bias and communicate decisions clearly. Here are three I have seen work across sectors:
- RICE (Reach, Impact, Confidence, Effort)
Perfect for large teams juggling dozens of requests. It asks: how many users are impacted, how big is the benefit, how confident are we, and how much effort is required? The result: a prioritised list grounded in logic, not politics.
- MoSCoW Method (Must, Should, Could, Won’t)
Simple yet powerful. A great tool when facilitating workshops with marketing, ops, or sales teams who want quick answers. Helps defuse tension while still focusing on delivery.
- Kano Model
A framework that brings emotion into the mix. It asks: is this feature a baseline expectation, a performance enhancer, or a delightful surprise? Useful when thinking about user satisfaction, onboarding, and experience design.
Tip: Frameworks are tools, not rules. The real value is in the conversations they spark.
When Saying “Not Yet” Saves the Product
In a recent logistics product I supported, a senior stakeholder was adamant about launching a custom analytics dashboard. It sounded powerful. But the data team flagged several risks: inconsistent data sources, unclear reporting logic, and heavy engineering lift.
Instead of rejecting the idea outright, I ran a quick RICE scoring session. The results? Low reach, medium impact, high effort. We documented it, shared it, and agreed to park it . In the meantime, we shipped a simple reporting template that improved client engagement by 14%.
That is the power of prioritisation done right: it builds trust, respects resources, and still delivers value.
The Common Pitfalls
Prioritisation isn’t about saying yes to whoever shouts loudest. Watch out for these traps:
- HiPPO Syndrome: Decisions driven by the “Highest Paid Person’s Opinion”
- Shiny Object Bias: Chasing new tech trends without user validation
- Over-Prioritising Revenue: Forgetting long-term UX and scalability
- Ignoring Engineering Input: Underestimating tech debt or build effort
The best PMs keep everyone in the loop not just the loudest in the room.
Build a Prioritisation Culture, not a One-Off Process
The secret? Make prioritisation visible, collaborative, and iterative. Whether it’s through Jira boards, Notion pages, or roadmap review meetings, bring your team into the “why” not just the “what.”
I maintain a living prioritisation canvas. Every feature has a scorecard, a rationale, and a timestamp. Stakeholders know where things stand. Engineers know what is blocked. And I know we are building what matters most.
Final Word: Strategy Is Focus
In 2025’s tech landscape, speed matters but focus wins.
Prioritisation is not a technical task. It is a leadership function. It requires empathy, curiosity, data literacy, and a willingness to defend what truly matters. The best product managers won’t just ship more features. They will ship the right features with clarity, confidence, and a strategy that scales.
Because in the end, product success isn’t about how much you build.
It’s about what you choose not to build and why.
Oluwafunke Kofoworade is a Product Manager, RoboNish Technologies , and founder of TechProductGems, a platform helping aspiring PMs build modern skills for the global tech market.
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