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How to prioritize when “everything is on fire”: the ICE or RICE matrix

In business, there are almost always more tasks than time, people, and resources. You need to launch an ad campaign, update the website, close the reporting period, respond to clients, implement a CRM, check the finances, solve an HR issue, and also “quickly look at one small urgent task.” As a result, a manager or team may feel that everything is on fire at the same time.

But if all tasks seem urgent, it does not mean they are equally important. Some truly affect money, clients, and risks. Others simply demand attention more loudly. This is why businesses need clear prioritization tools — for example, the ICE and RICE matrices.

These methods help you avoid choosing tasks based on emotions and instead compare them using specific criteria: impact, reach, confidence, and effort. Let’s look at how to use ICE and RICE, how they differ, when to choose each matrix, and how to apply them in business management, marketing, projects, and operational tasks.

Why it is difficult to set priorities when everything is urgent

When a company has many tasks, the manager often falls into the urgency trap. It feels like everything needs a reaction at once: a client has written, an employee is waiting for a decision, the accountant is asking for documents, a contractor has delayed a task, and an advertising campaign needs adjustments.

The problem is that urgency is not always the same as importance. An urgent task may be loud, but not strategic. And an important task may not require an immediate response, but if it is ignored, the consequences will appear later: lost profit, weak financial control, errors in processes, team burnout, or loss of clients.

For example, fixing a small visual error on the website may feel urgent because someone noticed it today. But reviewing the structure of the marketing funnel may be more important because it directly affects inquiries and sales. If a manager constantly chooses only the loudest tasks, the business starts operating in firefighting mode.

Prioritization is needed to answer a simple question: which task will bring the greatest effect with a reasonable use of resources?

What ICE and RICE are in simple terms

ICE and RICE are methods for evaluating tasks based on several criteria. They help compare ideas, projects, hypotheses, initiatives, and improvements with one another.

Both approaches are especially useful when:

  • there are too many tasks;
  • the team is arguing about what should be done first;
  • you need to choose between several ideas;
  • resources are limited;
  • the manager wants to make decisions based on logic, not only intuition;
  • it is important to explain to the team why one project goes into work before another.

ICE is simpler and faster. It is suitable for operational prioritization when tasks need to be compared quickly.

RICE is more detailed. It is better suited for projects where it is important to consider not only impact, but also the reach of the audience or the number of clients affected.

The ICE matrix: what it ss and how it works

ICE is a prioritization method that evaluates a task based on three criteria:

  • Impact — the impact;
  • Confidence — the confidence level;
  • Ease — ease of implementation.

The formula looks like this:

ICE Score = Impact × Confidence × Ease

Each criterion is usually rated on a scale from 1 to 10. The higher the final score, the higher the priority of the task.

Impact: how much the task will affect the result

Impact shows what effect a task can bring.

For example:

  • whether it will increase sales;
  • whether it will reduce costs;
  • whether it will improve the customer experience;
  • whether it will reduce manual work;
  • whether it will reduce risks;
  • whether it will help the team work faster.

If a task can significantly affect key business indicators, it receives a high score. If the effect is weak or indirect, it receives a low score.

Confidence: how sure we are about the assessment

Confidence shows how sure you are that the task will actually bring the expected effect.

Confidence may be high if there is data, analytics, results from previous tests, customer feedback, or clear business logic.

Confidence is low when an idea is based only on a feeling: “it seems like this could work.”

This criterion is important because it reduces the risk of overvaluing an attractive but untested idea.

Ease: how easy the task is to implement

Ease shows how simple it is to complete the task in terms of time, money, people, and complexity.

Tasks that can be done quickly and without major costs receive a high score. Tasks that require many approvals, development, budget, or the involvement of several specialists receive a low score.

For example, changing text on a service page may be easier than completely rebuilding the website. And launching a test advertising campaign may be faster than developing a new CRM system

Example of prioritization using ICE

Suppose a company has three tasks:
Task
Impact
Confidence
Ease
ICE
Update the texts on the service page
7
8
9
504
Launch a new advertising campaign
8
7
6
336
Completely redesign the website
10
5
2
100
At first glance, it may seem that redesigning the website is the most important task. But according to ICE, it receives a low priority because the complexity is high and confidence in a quick result is not at its maximum.

At the same time, updating the texts on the service page can bring a good effect with minimal effort. This means that this task should be done first.

This approach helps the business move faster: first complete tasks with high impact and low complexity, and plan larger projects separately.

When to use ICE

ICE is well suited for situations where priorities need to be set quickly.

It can be used for:

  • marketing hypotheses;
  • website improvements;
  • sales department tasks;
  • internal processes;
  • HR initiatives;
  • automation;
  • management decisions;
  • small projects;
  • business optimization ideas.

For example, if a company is choosing what to do first — update a landing page, set up analytics, launch an email campaign, or prepare a new commercial offer — ICE helps compare tasks quickly.

For entrepreneurs, this method is especially useful because it does not require complex analytics. It is enough to gather the team, evaluate the tasks by three criteria, and see which actions can bring the best result faster.

What RICE is and how it differs from ICE

RICE is a more detailed prioritization model. It evaluates a task using four criteria:

  • Reach — reach;
  • Impact — impact;
  • Confidence — confidence level;
  • Effort — effort.

The formula looks like this:

RICE Score = Reach × Impact × Confidence / Effort

The main difference from ICE is that RICE separately takes reach into account. In other words, the method helps you understand how many clients, users, employees, or processes the task will affect.

Also, in RICE, instead of ease of implementation, Effort is used. The more effort a task requires, the lower its final priority.

Reach: how many people or processes the task will affect

Reach shows the scale of the task.

For example:

  • how many clients will see the change;
  • how many users will be affected by a new feature;
  • how many employees will benefit from automation;
  • how many inquiries will pass through the new process;
  • how many reports will be generated faster.

This criterion is especially important for digital products, websites, marketing, customer service, and operational processes.

For example, if a change affects 1,000 clients per month, it may have a higher priority than a task that affects only one employee, even if both seem useful.

Impact: how strong the effect will be

Impact in RICE is similar to Impact in ICE. It shows how strongly the task will affect the result.

The rating can be numerical, for example:

  • 3 — very high effect;
  • 2 — high effect;
  • 1 — medium effect;
  • 0.5 — low effect;
  • 0.25 — minimal effect.

You can also use your own scale. The important thing is to apply it consistently to all tasks.

Confidence: how sure we are

Confidence is usually rated as a percentage:

  • 100% — high confidence;
  • 80% — there is data or strong reasoning;
  • 50% — the hypothesis needs testing;
  • 30% — low confidence.

This criterion helps avoid giving high priority to ideas that look attractive but are not confirmed by facts.

Effort: how many resources will be needed

Effort shows how much effort is required to complete the task. It is usually measured in person-weeks, person-days, or conditional points.

For example:

  • 1 — quick and simple;
  • 3 — medium complexity;
  • 8 — a large task;
  • 15 — a major project.

The higher the Effort, the lower the final RICE score. This is logical: if a task requires many resources, it must bring a sufficiently large effect to become a priority.

Example of prioritization using RICE

Imagine that a company is choosing between three tasks:
Task
Reach
Impact
Confidence
Effort
RICE
Improve the inquiry form on the website
1000
2
80%
2
800
Launch a new blog section
500
1
70%
3
117
Implement a complex CRM integration
100
3
60%
8
22,5
Emotionally, the CRM integration may seem like the most serious task. But if it affects only a small number of processes and requires many resources, its priority may be lower.

Improving the inquiry form receives a high score because it affects more users, has a strong impact, and requires less effort.

For marketing and sales, this approach is especially useful: it helps choose not the most “beautiful” ideas, but those that influence inquiries, conversion, and revenue faster.

ICE or RICE: which one to choose

The choice depends on the situation.

ICE is better to use if:

  • you need to make a quick decision;
  • there are many tasks and little data;
  • the team is small;
  • you need to evaluate hypotheses at the start;
  • simplicity is important;
  • the task does not require an exact calculation of reach.

RICE is better to use if:

  • there is data on clients, inquiries, or users;
  • it is important to consider the scale of impact;
  • tasks are competing for serious resources;
  • you need to explain priorities to the team or management;
  • the topic involves a product, website, marketing, CRM, or service processes.

For small and medium-sized businesses, both methods can be used. For example, you can first quickly filter tasks through ICE and then apply RICE to the 5-10 most important initiatives.

This combined approach helps avoid spending time on detailed calculations for every small task while still making more accurate decisions for important initiatives.

How to apply ICE and RICE in business

For a priority matrix to actually work, several rules should be followed.

First, evaluate tasks using the same scale. If Impact is measured from 1 to 10 for one task, the same scale should be used for all the others.

Second, evaluate not only urgency, but also business effect. A task may be unpleasant or loud, but that does not mean it is more important than tasks that affect profit, clients, or risks.

Third, discuss the scores with the team. A manager may see the strategic effect, a marketer may see the impact on inquiries, an accountant may see financial risks, and HR may see the workload on employees. The more perspectives you include, the more accurate the prioritization becomes.

Fourth, review priorities regularly. The business situation changes: new data, clients, legislative requirements, financial limitations, or staffing changes may appear.
If decisions are made under uncertainty, it is useful to understand how to act when there is not enough data. You can read more about this in the FlagMAN-D article: How to make decisions under uncertainty: 5 approaches for managers.

How to use the matrices when “everything is on fire”

If the company is already in chaos and there are too many tasks, you do not need to start with a perfect system. Start with a simple algorithm.

First, write down all tasks in one list. Do not sort or argue yet — simply collect everything that requires attention.

Then remove tasks that do not actually require action: outdated ideas, duplicates, “just in case” tasks, and requests without a clear result.

After that, divide the remaining tasks into three groups:

  • tasks that affect money, clients, or legal risks;
  • tasks that affect processes and the team;
  • tasks that would be good to do but can be postponed.

Then apply ICE or RICE to the tasks in the first group. These are usually the tasks that determine business stability.

For example, if you simultaneously need to prepare tax reporting, update the design of a presentation, and choose a new corporate chat, the priority will not go to the most pleasant or visible task, but to the one with the highest risk and the greatest impact on the business.

Prioritization does not cancel urgent tasks. It helps you understand which of them truly need to be done now and which can be postponed without serious consequences.

Where ICE and RICE can be wrong

Any matrix is a tool, not an absolute truth. ICE and RICE help structure decisions, but they do not replace managerial thinking.

These methods can be wrong if:

  • scores are assigned formally;
  • the team overestimates its favorite ideas;
  • there is no data on reach;
  • implementation complexity is underestimated;
  • legal, tax, or HR risks are not considered;
  • all tasks receive equally high scores;
  • the manager uses the matrix only to confirm a decision that has already been made.

That is why it is important not to turn ICE and RICE into bureaucracy. Their purpose is to help reveal priorities, not to create yet another table for the sake of having a table.

If the decision involves financial, tax, or HR matters, a single matrix may not be enough. For example, implementing a new pay system, changing the legal structure, or optimizing the tax burden requires not only an ICE or RICE assessment, but also a professional analysis of the consequences.
In such cases, FlagMAN-D helps businesses evaluate decisions from the perspective of finance, taxes, accounting, and HR processes. More details about decision-making support are available on the financial consulting page.

Example for a manager: how to choose priorities for the week

Suppose a manager has five tasks:

  • check advertising expenses;
  • update the sales department work regulations;
  • prepare documents for the accountant;
  • hold a team meeting;
  • test a new idea for the website.

If the evaluation is emotional, the priority may go to the most visible task — for example, the website or the meeting. But if ICE is applied, it may turn out that preparing documents for the accountant and checking advertising expenses are more important because they affect financial control and risks.

This is especially relevant for small businesses, where the manager often handles sales, finances, the team, marketing, and operational processes at the same time.

Good prioritization helps you not do more tasks, but do the right tasks before the others.

How to implement ICE or RICE in a team

You do not need complex software for the method to start working. A table is enough.

Create a simple document with the following columns:

  • task;
  • description;
  • owner;
  • deadline;
  • Impact;
  • Confidence;
  • Ease or Reach / Effort;
  • final score;
  • decision: do now, do later, postpone, abandon.

Hold a short prioritization session once a week or once every two weeks. For small teams, this is enough to reduce chaos and make work more manageable.

It is important to agree in advance: a high score does not mean automatic execution. It means that the task should be considered a priority. The final decision still remains with the manager or responsible project owner.

Conclusion

When “everything is on fire” in business, the biggest mistake is trying to do everything at the same time. This leads to overload, chaos, and constant switching of attention. The ICE and RICE matrices help regain control: they compare tasks using clear criteria and make it possible to choose what will truly bring results.

ICE is suitable for quick evaluation and operational decisions. RICE works better when the scale of impact and resources need to be considered. Both methods help a manager make decisions more calmly, more logically, and more transparently for the team.

But it is important to remember: prioritization is a way to manage the business’s attention. When a company understands which tasks affect profit, clients, processes, and risks, it stops constantly putting out fires and starts moving systematically.
If you need to assess which managerial, financial, or organizational decisions are most important for your business right now, FlagMAN-D specialists can help you look at the situation comprehensively: through numbers, processes, risks, and the real priorities of your company.
2026-07-10 11:00