Effective Methods for Prioritizing Work Decisions

How I Prioritize as a Program Manager at Amazon One of the toughest parts of being a program manager is deciding what gets attention when everything feels important. At Amazon, where the pace is fast and the stakes are high, I’ve learned that effective prioritization isn’t just a skill—it’s a necessity. Here are three approaches that help me stay focused and move the needle: 1️⃣ Impact vs. Effort Matrix When juggling multiple projects, I map tasks based on how much impact they’ll have versus how much effort they’ll take. High-impact, low-effort items? Those are no-brainers. Low-impact, high-effort tasks? They often end up on the backlog or get re-evaluated. This simple framework keeps me and my teams working smarter. 2️⃣ Customer Obsession At Amazon, the customer always comes first. Before prioritizing, I ask myself: How will this improve the customer experience? If an idea doesn’t bring clear value to the customer, it’s either deprioritized or reconsidered. It’s a principle that keeps us grounded in what really matters. 3️⃣ Time for Big-Picture Thinking Amid the daily fire drills, it’s easy to let long-term planning slip. I’ve started blocking time on my calendar specifically for strategic thinking. This helps me step back, focus on the bigger picture, and ensure we’re not just putting out fires but also building for the future. Prioritization is messy, and it’s not always perfect. But these methods have helped me find clarity in the chaos and deliver meaningful results. How do you decide what deserves your attention when everything feels important? #Leadership #Prioritization #CustomerObsessed #ProgramManagement

Every task that comes to me is urgent and important. Sound familiar? This is a challenge many of us face daily. Early in my career, prioritization was relatively straightforward—my manager told me what to focus on. But as I grew, the game changed. Suddenly, I was managing a flood of requests, far more than I could handle, and the signals from others weren’t helpful. Everything was “important.” Everything was “urgent.” Often, it was both. To handle this effectively, I realized I needed to develop an internal prioritization compass. It wasn’t easy, but it was transformative. Here are 6 strategies to help you build your own: 1/ Be crystal clear on key goals Start by understanding your organization’s goals—at the company, department, and team levels. Attend organizational forums, departmental reviews, or leadership updates to stay informed. When in doubt, use your 1:1s with leaders to ask: What does success look like? 2/ Deeply understand KPIs Metrics guide decision-making, but not all metrics are equally valuable. Take the time to understand your team's or function's key performance indicators (KPIs). Know what they measure, what they mean, and how to assess their impact. 3/ Be assertive to protect priorities Not every task deserves your attention. Practice saying “no” or deferring requests that don’t align with key goals or metrics. Assertiveness is not about being inflexible—it’s about protecting your capacity to focus on what truly matters. 4/ Set and reset expectations Priorities change, and that’s okay. What’s not okay is working on misaligned tasks. Keep open communication with your manager and stakeholders about evolving priorities. When new demands arise, clarify and reset expectations. 5/ Use 1:1s to align with your manager Leverage your 1:1s as a strategic tool. Share your current priorities, validate them against your manager’s expectations, and discuss any conflicts or challenges. 6/ Clarify the escalation process When priorities conflict, don’t let disagreements linger. If you can’t agree quickly, escalate the issue to your manager. This avoids unnecessary churn, ensures trust remains intact, and keeps momentum focused on results. PS: You won’t always get it right—and that’s okay. Treat each misstep as an opportunity to refine your compass. What’s one tip you’ve used to prioritize when everything feels urgent? --- Follow me, tap the (🔔) Omar Halabieh for daily Leadership and Career posts.

Big picture to daily focus: A smarter way to prioritize. Prioritization can feel overwhelming—especially when you're juggling market strategies, portfolios, projects, and daily tasks. But what if there was a simple, clear method to align it all? Here’s the approach I use: 1️⃣ 𝗭𝗼𝗼𝗺 𝗢𝘂𝘁: Start with the market view. Use tools like the 𝗕𝗖𝗚 𝗠𝗮𝘁𝗿𝗶𝘅 to evaluate opportunities and prioritize at the strategic level. 2️⃣ 𝗭𝗼𝗼𝗺 𝗜𝗻: Shift to the project view. The 𝘐𝘮𝘱𝘢𝘤𝘵 𝘌𝘹𝘦𝘤𝘶𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘔𝘢𝘵𝘳𝘪𝘹 bridges strategy to execution by helping you focus on tasks with the highest impact. 3️⃣ 𝗙𝗼𝗰𝘂𝘀 𝗗𝗮𝗶𝗹𝘆: Finally, organize your personal time with the 𝗘𝗶𝘀𝗲𝗻𝗵𝗼𝘄𝗲𝗿 𝗠𝗮𝘁𝗿𝗶𝘅 to ensure you work smart and avoid unnecessary distractions. To make it even easier, I’ve redesigned the matrices to follow a consistent high/low format. This alignment helps you read, understand, and act faster. Prioritization doesn’t have to be complicated. By zooming out, then zooming in, you can turn strategy into seamless execution. Note that I've used my 𝗜𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗰𝘁 𝗘𝘅𝗲𝗰𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗠𝗮𝘁𝗿𝗶𝘅 at Microsoft to prioritize efforts as big as multi-million dollar ventures down to much smaller efforts.  By simply checking the impact on a scale of 1 to 10, and ability to execute on a scale of 1 to 10, as a team or individually, all will get revealed. What’s your go-to method for prioritizing? Let’s share tips below! #leadership #productivity