I've mentioned it in almost every programme I've worked in:
"When everything is important, nothing is."
Everyone agrees. And then the meeting ends — and nothing changes.
The problem is not motivation. It's not capability.
It's the absence of a simple, shared decision-making tool.
Why prioritisation fails in most organisations
Most Finance and Transformation leaders I work with don't lack information. They have dashboards, reports, status updates.
What they lack is a shared logic for answering one question:
Which project wins?
Without that logic, prioritisation gets delegated to the loudest voice in the room. Or to the most senior person who happens to be available. Or — most often — it doesn't happen at all.
The result: 20 projects running in parallel. None of them finished.
The framework: Impact vs. Readiness
I call it the Steering Priority Matrix. It's a simple 2x2.
Axis 1: Business Impact
How significantly does this programme contribute to your strategic goals — revenue, cost, risk reduction or regulatory compliance?
High Impact = removes a critical bottleneck or directly drives a key strategic objective.
Low Impact = nice to have, or unclear connection to strategy.
Axis 2: Steering Readiness
Can you actually deliver? Do you have clarity on scope, accountabilities, resources and decision paths?
High Readiness = clear ownership, available resources, defined escalation paths.
Low Readiness = unclear scope, competing priorities, missing governance.
This gives you four quadrants:
→ High Impact / High Readiness
Steer hard. These are your priority programmes. Protect their resources.
→ High Impact / Low Readiness
Fix the governance first. More investment without steering clarity will only accelerate failure.
→ Low Impact / High Readiness
Question why this is running. Is it truly strategic — or just comfortable to execute?
→ Low Impact / Low Readiness
Stop. Or pause. Redirect resources where they matter.
How to use it in 20 minutes
List your top 10 active programmes
Place each one in the matrix — honestly
The conversation that follows is worth more than any status report
The matrix doesn't give you answers. It forces the right questions.
And in transformation programmes, the right questions are more valuable than perfect data.
The one question for this week
If you placed your programmes in this matrix right now — how many would be in the bottom two quadrants?
Reply to this email. I read every response.
Until next week,
Cordula
Cordula Buss | Plan A2C | Finance Transformation & Project Controlling
P.S. If this framework would have helped in a programme you've been part of — forward it to someone who is in that programme right now.