Use case scenario
Assume you work as a project manager in a financial institution. Two features need to be delivered.
Reduction of Loan Processing Time: As part of your organizational aim, loan processing takes a significant amount of time owing to manual involvement; however, with certain digital features, loan processing time will be lowered from three months to one month.
All accounts should be complaint: One day, the government announces that every citizen who has a bank account must link their identity proof (AADHAR card or citizenship proof) in the bank's digital portal within 6 months or account will be marked non complaint.
Unfortunately, due to resource and schedule constraints, you are only able to deliver one of the two features.Which one do you intend to implement and deliver ?
Answer : All accounts should be complaint should be prioritized over any other critical feature becasue its compliance driven.
Feature prioritization takes back seat
Lets see few of the situations where feature prioritization should not be used or not the best apporach per say
Feature is Mission-Critical or Compliance-Driven: Prioritization is meaningless when a feature is required to meet legal, regulatory, or contractual responsibilities . For example:
- GDPR compliance.
- Security updates or bug patches to avoid downtime. These are "must-haves" that arent appropriate for priority discussion.
There's a Strong Vision-Driven Mandate: When the founder, CEO, or leadership team has a clear strategic direction(e.g., "We’re becoming AI-first"), prioritizing competing features undermines alignment with the overall vision. Instead:
- Align your work directly with that vision.
- Prioritize within the constraints of the mandate but not against it.
Early Stages of a Startup or MVP :When developing a minimum viable product (MVP), the goal is to deliver core functionality as soon as possible to evaluate market fit. Prioritization frameworks can slow things down unnecessarily at this stage.
- Instead,focus on features that enable learning and prove the core value of the product.
Responding to Critical Market or User Feedback :If a high-value customer or a large segment of users urgently needs a feature, their importance outweighs the prioritization score.In such situations, Speed is critical, and you'll need to pivot or accelerate delivery.
For Maintenance, tech Debt, or Backend Work : Tasks like refactoring code, upgrading systems, or paying off technical debt often don't score well in prioritization models. However, neglecting them can harm the product long-term. Rather than using frameworks, these decisions frequently call on judgment.
During Crisis Situations : If the product is experiencing a critical issue (e.g., a major outage, security breach, or performance degradation), feature prioritization takes a backseat to immediate firefighting.
Conclusion
Prioritization frameworks are valuable tools, but they are not always the best approach. They should be used availed to make informed decision-making, not a rigid rule and they are not a one-size-fits-all solution. Flexibility and need of the situation are crucial in navigating the complexities of product development.
Happy Read-ing!