RICE + Strategic Alignment Skill

RICE + Strategic Alignment Skill

Produce a prioritisation output that balances quantitative RICE scoring with qualitative strategic fit — because the highest RICE score isn't always the right next bet.

Required Inputs

Ask the user for these if not provided:

• List of initiatives or features to prioritise (names and brief descriptions)
• Current strategic priorities or OKRs (needed to rate strategic alignment)
• Reach estimates (users affected per quarter — even rough estimates work)
• Effort estimates (person-months — from engineering if available)
• Quarter or planning period

Two-Stage Process

Stage 1: RICE Scoring

• Reach: Users affected per quarter
• Impact: 3/2/1/0.5/0.25 scale
• Confidence: 100% / 80% / 50%
• Effort: Person-months
• RICE = (R × I × C) / E

Stage 2: Strategic Alignment Score

Rate each initiative against your current strategic priorities (provided as input):

• Directly supports top OKR: +3
• Supports secondary OKR: +2
• Neutral: +1
• Contradicts strategic direction: -1

Final Priority Score

Combined Score = RICE Score + (Strategic Alignment × 10)

Validate — Flag any initiative where RICE score and strategic alignment conflict sharply (e.g., high RICE, low alignment). These require an explicit team conversation before sequencing.

Output Structure

Priority Matrix — [Quarter]

Initiative	RICE Score	Strategic Alignment	Combined Score	Quadrant	Recommendation
[name]	[score]	[score]	[combined]	[Now/Next/Later/Drop]	[action]

Quadrant Definitions

• Now: High RICE + High Strategic Alignment → Build this quarter
• Next: High RICE + Lower Alignment → Queue for next quarter
• Later: Lower RICE + High Alignment → Revisit when capacity allows
• Drop: Low RICE + Low Alignment → Remove from backlog

Recommendations

[Top 5 initiatives with rationale for sequencing]

Deeper Materials

This skill ships with support files — use them when they are available:

• references/strategic-weighting.md — Blending RICE with Strategic Fit — Without Cooking the Books. Apply it while producing the output; it carries the calibration and judgment calls the method summary above compresses.
• templates/matrix-worksheet.md — a fill-in version of the deliverable with the quality gates inline. Offer it when the user wants to work the document themselves rather than have it generated.

Scoring Rubric (0–40)

Score any output of this skill before handing it over; 32+ is ship-quality.

Dimension	0	5	10
Scoring integrity	Invented or uniform component values; 100% confidence everywhere	All components estimated, but confidence levels unexamined and scales inconsistent across rows	Every component sourced or explicitly flagged; no unvalidated 100%s; 50%-confidence rows marked and scale choices (e.g. reach units) stated
Strategic-alignment rigour	Alignment rated on "feels strategic" with no reference to priorities	Ratings given but not tied to named OKRs; nothing scores negative	Every rating maps to a specific OKR by name; initiatives that contradict strategy actually receive −1
Conflict surfacing	Combined score presented as the definitive ranking	Sharp RICE-vs-alignment divergences are visible in the table but never discussed	Every sharp divergence is flagged with an explicit conversation recommendation (owner, forum, and a scoreable alternative where one exists)
Quadrant decisiveness	Everything lands in "Now"; no Drops	Quadrants used, but Drop recommendations are vague ("deprioritise") and capacity is ignored	Honest distribution including specific Drop actions with re-entry conditions, and sequencing checked against actual capacity

Quality Checks

• All RICE components have an estimate (even if low confidence — flag those)
• Strategic alignment is rated against specific OKRs, not general "feels strategic"
• Conflicts between RICE rank and strategic alignment are explicitly flagged
• "Drop" recommendations are specific — not just "low priority, deprioritise"
• Confidence levels on estimates are noted where weak (drives the 50% confidence flag)

Anti-Patterns

• Do not treat the combined score as a definitive ranking — use it to structure a conversation, not replace one
• Do not rate strategic alignment as "high" because an initiative feels important without mapping it to a specific OKR
• Do not place all initiatives in the "Now" quadrant — a matrix with no "Drop" recommendations is not credible
• Do not ignore the conflict flag when RICE rank and strategic alignment sharply diverge
• Do not accept 100% confidence on estimates that have not been validated with data