Prioritisation – way to place bets – or the path to strategy delivery?

Prioritisation – is this our most overlooked, least prepared for, yet most impactful management gap?

On 18th May, 7pm UK the BIG CIC organised a discussion on the topic.

Part 1 – The Proposition
2 – The Structural Challenge
3 – PMO Perspective
4 – Strategist Perspective
5 – Practitioner Perspective
6 – Wrap up and conclusions

At every level—strategy, business plans, investments, product features—we all face the same reality: There is simply too much to do.

Where we have full control, this isn’t a problem. We rank, sequence, and deliver until capacity runs out. But most of the work that truly matters cuts across domains. And that’s where things break down.

Different leaders prioritise different things. Alignment becomes fragile. And prioritisation turns into negotiation rather than decision-making.

Some organisations try to fix this:

We build scoring models.
We weight “strategic” initiatives more heavily.

But often, those weightings are pseudo-strategy:

No one truly owns them
Their link to business purpose is unclear
And when challenged, we discover there is no real cascade of objectives

Without clear objectives, we also struggle to measure value:

We track activity and milestones
But benefits? Outcomes? Real impact?
They’re harder—and often avoided

So what can we do?

The Proposition

Start with a scoring system
Not because it’s perfect—but because it creates a practical starting point for better conversations
Use it to expose the strategy
Challenge and refine “strategic weightings” to uncover what actually matters
Introduce OKRs and benefits thinking
Move beyond milestones to outcomes and value
Extend prioritisation beyond projects
Apply it to all work—not just formal initiatives

What might happen?

Better alignment to strategic objectives
More effective use of capacity
Greater organisational agility

All triggered by improving how we prioritise.

We brought people together to explore this further.

What is our viewpoint of the Propositrion? Join us to hear our views and share yours.

David Dunning – making the case for starting with prioritisation
Kiran Goparaju– the structural challenge
Alex Shapley – devils advocate
Veronica Edward-Smith – the PMO position
David Booth– the strategist position
Dan Dures – the practitioner viewpoint