How do you influence the roadmap when everything requires an ROI?

If you haven't tried the RICE framework to help prioritize in a numerical/data-driven way. try this!

RICE Framework (Reach, Impact, Confidence, Effort)

• Reach: How many users/customers will this feature impact?
  Example: Number of users affected, target segment size.

• Impact: What is the expected benefit?
  Example: Score as High (3), Medium (2), Low (1).

• Confidence: How certain are you about the reach and impact?
  Example: High (100%), Medium (80%), Low (50%).

• Effort: How much work is required?
  Example: Estimate in engineering person-weeks or months.

Formula:
RICE Score= (Reach×Impact×Confidence)/Effort

Example:

Feature: Real-time behavioral data pipeline for enterprise clients.

• Reach: Affects 20 enterprise customers, impacting 15% of revenue.

• Impact: High (3) — Addresses a top complaint and enables upsell opportunities.

• Confidence: Medium (80%) — Based on customer feedback and sales insights.

• Effort: 4 person-months.

• RICE Score: (20x3x0.8)/4=12