Feature Prioritization Cases
Feature prioritization cases train you to make clear tradeoff decisions when several options look valuable. A typical case: "Imagine you are a product manager at Uber in its early stages. Should the team focus on accelerating driver growth or rider growth?"
The goal is to show how you make decisions when faced with competing options. You are not expected to just "pick one" - you need to demonstrate a structured thought process.
You must be thinking, "How do I decide between options that all seem important?"
Before we dive into the framework, let's understand what good product thinking looks like.
What good product thinking looks like
Strong prioritization cases test whether you can show:
- Strategic Thinking - Can you connect decisions to company goals and mission?
- Analytical Rigor - Do you use data and frameworks, not just gut feeling?
- Trade-off Analysis - Can you articulate the pros and cons of each option?
- Communication - Can you explain your reasoning clearly to stakeholders?
Priorities should not be driven by the loudest person in the room. A strong PM uses a systematic approach.
The Prioritization Framework
A simple but effective framework for prioritization cases follows these steps:
-
Understand the Goal
- What is the company trying to achieve? Does this align with the company mission?
- Is there a specific initiative or OKR the team is targeting?
- Ask clarifying questions if the goal isn't clear
-
Define Your Evaluation Criteria
Demonstrate that you have a framework. I recommend evaluating three criteria:
- Business Value - Will this make the company money or drive key metrics?
- User Impact - Does this improve the user experience meaningfully?
- Effort - What's the engineering, design, and operational cost?
You can use established frameworks like RICE (Reach, Impact, Confidence, Effort) or create a simple scoring system (1-3 for each criterion).
-
Evaluate Each Option
- Apply your criteria systematically to each option
- Be explicit about your assumptions
- Consider second-order effects (what happens as a result of this decision?)
-
Provide a Recommendation
- State your recommendation clearly
- Support it with your analysis
- Acknowledge trade-offs and what you'd monitor after implementation
Tips for Success
- Start with the goal - Always tie your prioritization back to what the company is trying to achieve
- Be systematic - Use a scoring system rather than relying purely on intuition
- Consider both sides - For two-sided marketplaces, analyze impact on all user types
- Think about effort realistically - Don't just consider engineering time; include adoption, training, and operational costs
- Sanity check your answer - Does your recommendation make intuitive sense given the context?
Sample Cases
- You're a PM at Spotify. Should you prioritize improving playlist recommendations or adding social features?
- As a PM at Amazon, would you focus on reducing delivery times or expanding product selection?
- You're at LinkedIn. Should you invest in improving the newsfeed or enhancing job matching?
Remember: There's rarely a "correct" answer. What matters is demonstrating a structured approach, clear reasoning, and the ability to make decisions with incomplete information - exactly what you'll do as a PM every day.
A concise answer structure
Say: “Our goal is X, so I will compare the options on user impact, strategic contribution, risk, and total effort.” State who is affected, use a consistent time horizon, and make important assumptions explicit. Then recommend one option, explain what you are not doing, and name the evidence that could reverse your choice.
Frameworks support judgment; they do not replace it. A RICE score can make assumptions comparable, but an interview answer should also discuss dependencies, trust, reversibility, and strategic timing. End with a metric and a review point so the recommendation becomes a learning plan rather than a permanent bet.