FREE TEMPLATE
Effort-impact matrix for SMEs
Prioritize in minutes which projects to do first and which to postpone, with clear interpretive messages.
Difficulty level · 1 (Easy)
- 🟢 Identify Quick Wins real
- 🧠 Decide with objective criteria (effort/impact)
- 📈 Go from analysis to a 90-day plan
What is the purpose of this effort-impact matrix tool?
The Effort-Impact Matrix (SME version) It helps you prioritize initiatives based on effort and impact on results. Includes blocks by steps, visible glossary, automatic interpretive messages and conditional colors so that any manager can use it without analytical training. Ideal for marketing, sales, operations, and management, and fits perfectly with a 90-day plan realistic.
- ✅ Visual and pedagogical (blocks “STEP 1/2/3”)
- ✅ Glossary in context (no manual needed)
- ✅ Automatic interpretations (plain text below the graphic)
- ✅ Compatible with Google Sheets and Excel
How does it work?
1) Add your initiatives
Write tasks/projects in the Backlog.
2) Evaluate effort and impact
The calculation quadrant and the icon automatically.
3) Interpret and decide
Read the automated message and define priorities.
Download the template
Complete template, glossary, interpretive messages, and "Portfolio 90d" sheet. No specific knowledge of analysis or finance is required.
What does the tool include?
01_Instructions
STEP 1/2/3 blocks in light green.
02_Backlog
Visible glossary, automatic quadrant, and icons.
03_Visual Matrix
Graphic + interpretive message + “How to read”.
04_Portfolio_90d
Capacity vs priority and YES/NO selection.
Real-world use cases
Marketing
Prioritize campaigns, websites, and content based on their impact on leads/sales.
Operations
Automate tasks (AI), reduce time, and choose improvements with ROI.
Address
Plan a realistic quarter (90 days) with focus and results.
Frequently asked questions about the effort and impact matrix
Use person-days: number of people × dedication × days of the period. Conservative is best.
Postpone or reduce effort; revisit it in the next cycle. Red helps prioritize, not discard.
Yes, on the sheet 00_Parameters (low effort, high impact, risk adjustment).
Yes. It preserves formulas, conditional formatting, and comments.
Yes, capacity vs priority sheet that marks YES/NO according to useful limit and priority.
Download the template
Complete template with glossary, interpretive messages and "Portfolio 90d" sheet and instructions for easy use without the need for advanced technical knowledge.
Our way of understanding consulting
In Direction & Results We believe that an effective prioritization tool should not complicate management, but rather contribute Clarity, focus, and real results. That's why we designed our Effort-Impact Matrix for SMEs, A practical template that transforms productivity theory into tangible decisions that are easily shareable with your team or external collaborators.
We prioritize an operational approach inspired by recognized methodologies of change management and continuous improvement, such as those promoted by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO 56002 on innovation) and the Harvard Business Review's Lean Startup Guide. These references reinforce an essential idea: Simplicity is strategic when it comes to deciding where to invest your company's time and resources.
Our method integrates the analysis of impact, effort, and risk with an automatic interpretation that facilitates the decision-making in SMEs, allowing for meaningful planning of the future 90 days. Thus, each action is evaluated not only by its cost or return, but also by its alignment with business objectives and the team's actual capacity. The matrix helps to visualize priorities, reduce analysis paralysis, and transform reflection into an operational plan.
We apply this logic to all our consulting services: strategic planning, ROI-driven marketing, advanced digitization, and project management, following the recommendations of the European Commission on SME productivity. Because to move forward with a firm direction, it's not enough to have ideas: you have to Knowing what to do first, when to do it, and how to measure it to achieve sustainable results.
