Sometimes running a business can seem like a never-ending game of whack-a-mole. As soon as you solve one problem, five more pop up. Chaos like this can lead to chronic stress and bad decision-making. While the business world can be stressful, using an impact effort matrix will help you go from reacting to taking decisive action.
What is an impact effort matrix?
It goes by a few names. The effort impact matrix. The impact effort grid. The impact vs effort matrix. The benefit effort matrix. Whatever you choose to call it, the usefulness remains the same. The impact effort matrix is a visual matrix designed to help you visualize the level of effort vs impact for any given activity. Basically, it takes all tasks needed to accomplish a goal and maps them out by comparing how much progress towards the end goal each task will yield and how much effort each task takes to accomplish.
The vertical axis represents how much impact accomplishing a task or solving a problem will have on your overall goals. The horizontal axis shows the amount of effort needed to accomplish the task. A structure like this creates four quadrants.
The high-effort, high-impact quadrant contains very effective things but takes a lot of work. The high-effort, low-impact quadrant contains required and difficult tasks that only benefit the overall project a little. The low-effort, low-impact quadrant includes easy tasks that only help a little. The low-effort, high-impact quadrant is the target quadrant. These are tasks that significantly drive you towards your goal but don’t require many resources or much work. The more ideas and solutions you can have in this quadrant, the better.
We should also note that there are a few variations on the matrix. For instance, a version called the priority payoff matrix removes high-effort, low-impact tasks entirely. In cases like this, the matrix is a tool to sort through tasks and cut out needless work.
At first, it may seem like tasks that need doing are all important and urgent. To some degree, that’s true. You must pay attention to all of them for long enough to avoid causing a major problem. However, not all tasks are equally important and urgent, and not all of them will drive you toward your goal.
When is it helpful to use an impact effort matrix?
The impact effort matrix works in almost any setting where you work towards a particular goal with multiple complex parts. With this in mind, there are a few situations in the business world where the matrix has some major benefits.
Project management benefits from the matrix because it allows task assignments and prioritization to take the front seat and can often streamline complex projects. Product development also has many of the same traits in that it involves a lot of people and moving parts. Perhaps not as obviously, the matrix is very useful in resource allocation in that it helps prioritize department budgets and training.
Let’s walk through building a product development example matrix to flesh out these ideas a bit.
Building the matrix
For our impact matrix example, let’s say we are at a tech startup working to develop a new fitness tracker that will hit the market next year. Before starting on the matrix, it’s important to define exactly what your team’s end goal is for the matrix. If you go too broad with something like “make the company a profit”, the matrix won’t be very effective. Conversely, a simple goal like “catch up on your emails by Thursday” does not warrant an impact effort matrix. In our example, let’s set the goal of “Release a working and successful fitness tracker within the next 12 months.” With this established, we can move on to the first step
Step 1: List your tasks
First, work with your team to make a list of required tasks. This could be anything from responding to supplier emails to creating a new algorithm in the device to monitor sleep patterns.
This step involves some decision-making about what a requirement is and what would just be nice to have. For example, a team member might think having the tracker available in at least seven colors is important. But, if there is no consumer research to back that up, it might not make it onto the matrix. You could use pen and paper for this step, but working with an interactive display makes it a lot easier since you can screen share in real time for a more seamless operation.
Step 2: Define your scales
This step is incredibly important because most people have different definitions of impact and effort. Without clarity, you will likely argue about how impactful a given task will be. The way around this is to outline exactly what you mean by each term.
When you define your impact scale, explain what you want to factor into the rankings. For example, if the deadline for releasing the fitness tracker is the biggest priority, then you are asking, “How much will this task impact the release date?” However, if your concern is more about user experience, you’d ask, “How much will this task impact the final usability of the product?” In most cases, you’ll be looking at a combination of impact factors, but you must be on the same page about their relative prioritization before moving forward.
The same idea applies to the effort scale. The tricky part here is that effort is very subjective. Depending on skill sets, a task that might take one person an hour might take another a day. That’s why it’s important, where possible, to direct team members to wherever they have the most relevant skills. With all that said, some tasks will be easy for anyone, and others will be difficult and time-consuming, even for people with an ideal skill set. When mapping this out, consider factors like time commitment, complexity, and resources available.
Now, you are ready to start plotting the tasks to the matrix.
Step 3: Plot your tasks
Work carefully through the list with your team and agree on where to put each task. They will fall into one of the quadrants, but it’s important to note that there are still variations within the quadrants as well. This is why having a versatile interactive display that you can write on and collaborate with is important. For example, responding to an email and having a short meeting about a minor product adjustment are both low impact and low effort, but sending an email is still less effort than a meeting.
With your matrix built, you can start using it to streamline your workflow, meet deadlines, and improve your bottom line.
Using the matrix to assign tasks
Display the matrix for your team and start working through each quadrant. Prioritize the high-impact, low-effort tasks. These are quick wins. These are great tasks for people who are competent and fast working but may not have the most patience. If you have a team member who can knock out solid work in the same day, these are the kinds of tasks to give them.
Tasks utilizing your most diligent and patient team members fall in the high-impact, high-effort quadrant. These tasks require people who are able to see the big picture and stay focused for long periods of time. The payoff is there, but getting there takes a long time. When discussing these tasks with your team, consider ways to break them down into smaller steps or assign groups of people to work on them.
Hopefully, you can remove some of the low-effort, low-impact tasks entirely. For those who need help, consider letting your less experienced team members hone their skills on them. They don’t require a lot of experience, and the whole project doesn’t hinge on them.
The high-effort, low-impact quadrant is the most thankless. You need these tasks to reach the goal, but they only directly benefit the project a little. In a perfect world, you could find a workaround. Maybe you could get AI to do data entry or outsource status reports to someone on another team. Unfortunately, most of the time, someone has to take these on. Lighten the load by breaking up the task and letting multiple team members work on it. Be sure not to overlook or shortchange these tasks because it takes a while to see a payoff.
As you are using the matrix to build a streamlined workflow, here are a few things to keep in mind to get the most out of the conversation.
Frequently asked questions
1. What if our team is having trouble categorizing a task’s impact?
Remember to keep an eye on the end goal and consider how this task directly relates to that. Consider what would happen to the project if this task went undone entirely. Be open to all perspectives. The matrix is a starting point – as the project goes on, you may find a task more or less impactful than you thought at the beginning.
2. How can I make sure my team uses the impact matrix?
Remember that the matrix’s function is not just organization but collaboration. The matrix presents the team with a full picture of the workload in one easy-to-understand visual. The benefit here is that instead of working with the skill set of one person or a small department, you can leverage the skills of everyone on the project. Encourage team members to help each other wherever they can with both their time and skills.
3. Is building the matrix a one-time exercise or an ongoing process?
In order to get the most out of the matrix, ongoing regular reviews are essential. An out-of-date matrix is a useless matrix. Depending on the scope of the project, consider setting up weekly or monthly matrix reviews to stay aligned and track progress.
4. What tools do I need to effectively use the matrix?
While you can theoretically construct and use a matrix with just pen and paper, technology is integral to making this work as a useful tool. If you have thirty people with markers trying to write their tasks on a piece of paper or a whiteboard at the same time, things will get chaotic. Additionally, a matrix should be visually clean and easy to update as tasks are completed or parameters change. Take advantage of interactive technology like interactive displays to make the process as seamless and stress-free as possible.
5. What’s the best way to allocate tasks?
It can be tempting to try and knock out all the high-effort tasks up front to get them out of the way. Unfortunately, that is often a recipe for burnout. When allocating tasks, remember that the impact is the main focus. Generally speaking, prioritize the high impact and balance the high and low effort categories to keep the team running smoothly.
The impact effort matrix lets you take a task that seems insurmountable and break it down into something manageable. This is huge for both productivity and company morale. With the right tools and planning, almost anything is possible.
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