Prioritisation
Prioritisation involves focusing resources and attention on the most critical areas to maximise impact and manage risks. It is applied across various domains including medicine, supplier management, process execution, financial controls, business continuity, and cyber risk management.
THE IDEA
Prioritisation in Other Contexts
Triaging and prioritisation protocols exist in a medical context.10 And you will see various other tools and techniques to help with prioritisation so that resources and attention can, ideally, be focused on the things that matter the most:
- In supplier management, the identification of key, critical or single‐source suppliers, so attention is focused on the areas that might have the most significant impact on the organisation.11
- In process execution, the use of Lean techniques to expedite high‐priority items of the most value to key customers.12
- In financial controls and compliance, the identification of critical controls that must be kept running for the accounts to be up to date and accurate and for fraud to be kept in check.13
- In business continuity planning and crisis management, prioritisation mechanisms for keeping contingency plans up to date and testing them.
- In cyber risk management, understanding the mission‐critical IT ‘crown jewels' – to make sure data and information is kept secure, and system operability is sustained’.14
However, even though we know resourcing and prioritisation is a crucial area to get right, it's still quite usual to encounter difficulties that cause a host of knock‐on problems.
When to use it
A hospital emergency room triaging patients based on severity of condition.
A company identifying key suppliers to ensure supply chain resilience.
An IT team prioritising security for critical data assets.
A business continuity team focusing on testing contingency plans for high-impact disruptions.
FROM THEORY TO EVERYDAY LIFE
In practice
Supplier Management
Identifying key, critical, or single-source suppliers to focus attention on areas with the most significant potential impact on the organisation.
Process Execution with Lean
Using Lean techniques to expedite high-priority items that deliver the most value to key customers.
Financial Controls and Compliance
Maintaining critical controls to ensure accounts are accurate, up to date, and to prevent fraud.
Business Continuity and Crisis Management
Prioritising the updating and testing of contingency plans to prepare for potential disruptions.
Cyber Risk Management
Understanding mission-critical IT 'crown jewels' to secure data and sustain system operability.
A MOMENT TO REFLECT
Put it to work.
How do you currently prioritise tasks or resources in your workflow? Are there critical areas you might be neglecting?
Identify a situation where lack of prioritisation led to negative outcomes. What could have been done differently?
In your domain, what are the 'crown jewels' that require prioritised protection?
CONTINUE THE CONVERSATION
Source texts
- Beyond the Five Whys Root Cause Analysis and Systems Thinking (James C. Paterson)