Product StrategyProven Pattern
Enforce strict stack ranking - adding priorities requires removing others
Force explicit trade-offs on new requests.
When to use
When managing roadmaps
Don't do this
Adding projects without trade-offs
3 Founders Who Did This
1
Facebookby Fidji Simo
Asked herself and team: if Live is our number one intention but only has 10 engineers while we do other things on the side, our actions don't match our intention
Result:Led to pausing all other projects and reallocating 90+ engineers to Facebook Live to align resources with stated priorities
Read full story →2
Eventbrite, Rupa Healthby Nels Gilbreth, Rosa Hamalainen
When receiving new tasks, respond with 'Here's all the other priorities on my plate - where does this new task fall?' Forces explicit discussion of trade-offs.
Result:Helps managers assist with prioritization rather than expecting reports to juggle competing demands alone; surfaces true organizational priorities
Read full story →3
Stripe/Notionby Cristina Cordova
Enforced strict stack ranking process where adding priorities required removing others
Result:Maintained team focus despite abundance of partnership opportunities