RICE Model
When it helps
When you're choosing between several ideas or projects and don't know where to start – the RICE model helps you compare options in a structured way. It makes assumptions explicit and puts expected impact and effort into a clear ratio. The goal isn't mathematical precision, but consistent comparability.
How to practice
- Imagine this: You have three project ideas on the table. All of them seem worthwhile, but you only have capacity for one. Gut feeling alone isn't enough – and endless deliberation isn't either. The RICE model gives you a structure to place the options fairly side by side.
- Write down all the options you're choosing between. Then evaluate each one using four criteria – always with the same scales.
- Reach: How many people or units are affected, within a defined time period? Enter a concrete number, for example 50, 200, or 1,000.
- Impact: How strong is the effect? Scale of 1 to 5: 1 = very low, 3 = medium, 5 = very high.
- Confidence: How well supported is your estimate? Scale of 0.1 to 1.0: 0.1 = very uncertain, 0.5 = partially supported, 1.0 = very confident.
- Effort: How much time or resources does the option realistically require? Enter a concrete number, for example estimated working hours or days.
- Calculate the RICE score for each option: (Reach × Impact × Confidence) / Effort. The highest number indicates the most efficient option – best impact relative to effort.
- Ask yourself: Which option has the highest RICE score – and does that match your intuition? If not: what do you know that the model doesn't capture?
Note: The model creates comparability, but doesn't replace strategic thinking or responsibility.