How Does a Product Owner Prioritize Backlog

Techniques for prioritizing product backlog

Have you found yourself asking the question: how does a product owner prioritize backlog? Consider the techniques listed below.

1. Stack ranking

One of the most common methods of prioritizing the product backlog is stack ranking. Stack ranking is done by sorting each task by priority. In this way, the task with the most critical functionalities is set at the highest rank, followed by the next set of important tasks. If new items are added to the backlog, the product owner compares them to each item before ranking them. If the backlog contains many tasks, this may become a tedious process. 

2. CD3 method 

The cost of delay method (cost of delay divided by duration) is a highly effective backlog prioritization method that can reduce the risk of a potential loss. A product owner evaluates the items with the highest cost and places them at the top of the backlog. The tasks that may cause the company the most losses are given the highest priority. The cost may be financial, reputational, time-critical, or otherwise. The cost of delay method can be challenging to implement as the cost of each item on the backlog must be reviewed, making the process complex and lengthy.

3. Custom and intuitive formula

This method relies on the collective intelligence and ideals of the team working on the product. This is especially applicable to experienced teams with a history of collaborative problem-solving processes. In such cases, not only will the team use their established rapport for better communication and faster resolutions, but they will also operate from a collective vision. As this method relies heavily on team intuition, teams with no prior experience may not be a good fit for this technique. 

4. MoSCoW

The MoSCoW method is used to classify backlog items into four categories. The categories are:

• Must-have: When a task falls into this category, the project cannot be considered a success without executing the task. It has the highest priority
• Should-have: The tasks in this group are of high priority but not critical
• Could-have: This category is a wish-list. It's easily ignored in cases of limited time or resources
• Won't-have: These tasks are of the least priority

A disadvantage of the MoSCoW method is that it may be difficult to agree on which tasks to fit into a particular category.

Choosing a method to prioritize product backlog is often conditional and has no set rules. However, with the techniques above, you're one step closer to answering “how does a product owner prioritize backlog?”