Loading...
Answers
MenuWhat questions do you ask yourself when prioritizing ideas?
Filters to strain ideas through to find the most applicable.
Answers
Hi,
I've worked with start-ups, SMEs and corporates serving both the public and private sectors. I have 25 years of experience managing projects, programs, operations, engineering and technology-driven change and have served in both leadership and advisory roles internationally.
Here are some essential things to think about when prioritising ideas:
Why do it? | Does it align with vision, goals & values? | is it the most sensible next step (thinking holistically)? | is there something else with a better ROI | what's the opportunity cost (ie what can't be done if you do this)? | does this help remove critical uncertainties ie reduce risk? | is there an associated health, safety or environmental issue | when does it need to be completed? | will this help build momentum and commitment? | what are the dependencies? | can it be properly resourced? | are there clearly defined, measurable success criteria? | does this have the required level of executive support? | how well does it align with other initiatives? | do all key stakeholders agree on the emergent priorities?
Feel free to come back to me with questions. Also, if you have a particular context I can get more specific.
Cheers,
Trevor
The key thing to ask is "which idea is going to create the biggest impact?"
There are plenty of ideas that may be "cool" but ultimately nobody really needs it so it probably won't have an impact. Segways for example fall into this category (though they are experiencing some success in the tourism industry). On the other hand there are some ideas that would appear to be pretty mundane and boring, but they fulfil a real need and end up becoming a great success. The paper clip is probably a really simple example of this.
Go out there and find out who the idea will benefit, speak to them and find out if it is really something that they need.
Good luck :-)
Hiong
Since the goal is to maximize cash flow you have evaluate ideas based on the factors that will result in biggest return to you in the shortest amount of time.
First thing you have to evaluation is how much revenue does the idea have the potential to generate. This has a variety of sub categories. Like does it fill a need in the marketplace, are people willing to pay for it and how much are they willing to pay.
The next factor should be cost to deliver, both in terms of direct costs to produce the idea or service and second is how much cost will it require to manage the process. This second goes hand in hand with scalability. It's great to have a product or service that generates a high margin but if requires too much time to manage it is probably not a viable business idea.
There are other considerations as well, such as legal and logistics but I think the first two items will get you started in the direction you wan to go.
Here are some key questions I would ask myself when prioritizing ideas:
Impact: Which idea has the potential for the greatest positive impact, if successful?
Alignment: Which idea best aligns with and furthers my goals and mission?
Demand: Is there clear customer or user demand and need for this idea in the market?
Feasibility: Given my resources and capabilities, which idea has the highest likelihood of being feasibly executed?
Competition: How much competition already exists for this idea? Is it crowded or open for disruption?
Scalability: Does the idea have potential for sustainable long-term growth if it gains traction?
Monetization: Is there a clear path to generate revenue or funding for the ongoing development of this idea?
Resources: What resources, like time, money, and skills, will be required? Do I have them or can I access them?
Passion: Which idea am I genuinely most excited about and passionate to work on long-term?
Risks: What risks are involved and how can I mitigate them? Low-risk ideas may be better to start with.
Traction: Has early customer feedback or testing shown any idea gaining faster momentum?
Considering factors like impact, alignment, demand, and feasibility helps decide the best ideas to focus time and resources on first.
Hi, I love these type of questions - it's where I spend my time supporting leaders to connect with themselves and what's important to them, so the first question to ask is "Is this truly important to me?" followed by "If this disappeared right now, how would that make me feel?" "If this disappeared right now, what would be the impact (both positively and negatively) on myself, my team, my loved ones etc?" If you want to talk to go through these questions, along with any follow up questions, call me. Take care, Andrea
Related Questions
-
How do we develop a small-project management workflow, or hire someone to develop it for us?
I don't know how much your workflows vary from project to project which may have some impact on the best way to develop this, but a good starting approach could be to analyze the current workflow(s) that you are using now and then document best practices based on that as well as incorporating research-based best practices into your workflow(s) depending on they type of workflow that needs developed. Checklists, templates, etc. could be developed to assist your staff based on this analysis. Happy to discuss further. I have developed many processes and project plans for IT related processes in the Healthcare sector. SteveSW
-
What Project Management Course should I take?
I ran a web design agency for 6 years, despite of studying PMBOK for advanced project management (for Engineering projects). I used "Web Redesign, Strategies for Success by Kelly Goto" Courser Link: http://www.lynda.com/Web-Design-tutorials/webredesignstrategiesforsuccess/316-6.html as a basis for building our project management model. 1) Breakdown the project into milestones for your team and for your client example (Finish Wireframes, Confirm on Design Palette and colors, Confirm on Content, Functionality Testing) 2) Include all expected tasks/hours from the beginning, should be increasing with your experience, especially you are focusing on specific platforms, let customer see the different dates in which they are required to provide feedback, even schedule calls with clients on these days 2) Use a robust Project Management tool like BaseCamp, where you can give client direct access to the platform preferably with a Skype/Telephony functionality to schedule calls. If you need any more help designing and deploying your PM system, I would be glad to help.AM
-
What is the best project management tool for a startup developing and scaling a mobile application?
I tried Basecamp, Jira, Unfuddle, Trello and PivotalTracker before for different projects which were developed with agile approach. All of them worked fine to me and I needed some time to setup my framework and processes there. I think it would be worth checking Trello or PivotalTracker which I personally like more than Basecamp because of better agile oriented structure.DL
-
What are some side projects that turned into highly successful companies?
I started my business unexpectedly in 1994 when I found myself out of a job with $70K in debt. While it took me 90 days to land my first client, I picked up a job supervising a catering kitchen, and also went to teach evening education classes at three local universities in Atlanta. It is often better to have a deadline or be forced or you won't make the jump. It takes everyone a different amount of time. I was debt free and earning six figures in 18 months.MG
-
What is the best project management software out there for creative firms? Agency or video production, if possible.
We use Salesforce for CRM, so we implemented Financial Force PSA. This has been an excellent solution for us, but it definitely requires a lot of customization to represent your business processes (like any holistic solution would).JL
the startups.com platform
Copyright © 2025 Startups.com. All rights reserved.