Impact / Effort Matrix
A one-page Impact / Effort matrix for cutting a long list down to what's worth doing. Name what you're sorting, then drop each item into one of four quadrants by how much it moves the needle versus how much work it takes: Quick Wins (high impact, low effort — do first), Big Bets (high impact, high effort — plan and resource), Fill-ins (low impact, low effort — do between the big work), and Thankless (low impact, high effort — avoid or drop). The colored quadrants and verdict badges make the call obvious at a glance. Start with the Quick Wins, schedule the Big Bets deliberately, and be honest about dropping the Thankless work. Print it blank to sort as a team.
- Landscape
- 1 page
- Planning
Best for: Prioritising a backlog or idea list by payoff — surfacing the quick wins and killing the thankless work.
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