Building Capability

Tool: The Entry Point Prioritiser

Chapter: 5 — Finding the Highest Value, Lowest Cost Entry Point
Purpose: Apply the four questions and practical filter to your opportunity list, so you can identify the right place to start with confidence.

How to Use This Tool

Start with a list of potential first-phase builds — ideally generated from the Three Horizons Mapper (Chapter 3 tool) or the Big Picture Planner (Chapter 4 tool). Work each option through the four questions and the filter. The right entry point will become clear.

Before you score: Lay out your Process Overlays from Chapter 2 alongside this tool. Each overlay represents a candidate process — and the colour-coding (amber and red steps, handoff friction, decision bottlenecks) already contains information about where value is being lost and where an intervention would have the most impact. Don’t start from a blank list if you have a map. Read from the map first.

Allow 60 minutes. Do this with someone who understands both the commercial priorities and the operational reality.

Step 1: List Your Candidates

Write down the top five to eight opportunities you’re considering for a first build.

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.

Step 2: Apply the Four Questions

For each candidate, score it against the four questions on a simple 1–5 scale (1 = low, 5 = high). Don’t overthink the scores — your instinct is usually right.

Pair 1: Value

Q1 — Customer value
If this were built and working, how significantly would it improve the experience or outcome for the customer (internal or external) it serves?

Q2 — Business value
If this were built and working, how significantly would it improve operations, reduce cost, increase revenue, or remove risk for the business?

Pair 2: Strategic Positioning

Q3 — Competitive differentiation (outward)
Does this entry point begin to express something specific about your organisation that a generic competitor could not simply copy? Does it reflect your particular knowledge, customers, or way of operating?

Q4 — Foundation for what comes next (inward)
Does building this create a platform, data layer, or architectural foundation that makes subsequent builds faster, cheaper, or more connected? Does it open doors or close them?

Tip: Look at your Process Overlays. Which processes share the same roles, systems, or data sources? A first build that touches shared infrastructure will have higher Q4 value — because improving it benefits multiple overlays at once, not just one.

Step 3: Apply the Practical Filter

For your top two or three candidates (highest combined scores), answer these questions:

Realistic development time for a meaningful first phase:

Option A:
Option B:
Option C:

Estimated cost:

Option A:
Option B:
Option C:

Organisational capacity required (team involvement, change management, process disruption):

Option A:
Option B:
Option C:

Any dependencies or integration complexity that would extend the timeline significantly:

Option A:
Option B:
Option C:

Step 4: Find the Entry Point

Review your four-question scores and the filter. The right entry point is the option that:

• Scores well on both Q1 and Q2 (high value for customer and business)
• Scores well on Q3 and/or Q4 (starts to differentiate and/or opens the door)
• Passes the filter (achievable in a sensible first phase)

My entry point is:

Option selected:
Why it scored highest:
Why it passes the filter:

What does success look like at the end of this first phase?
Define the outcome clearly — what will have changed, for whom, and how will you measure it?

What will be different:
Who will feel it:
How you'll measure it:

Watch-outs

• Politics, not value: If your highest scorer is also the CEO’s pet project, check it against the questions with fresh eyes. Does it genuinely score well, or does it just have the most vocal advocate?
• Complexity creep: If the “first phase” you’re describing is already six months of development, you haven’t found the door — you’ve tried to build the whole building. Scope it tighter.
• The easy option: If your entry point scored highest mostly because it was cheap and fast, check questions three and four again. Low cost alone is not a reason to start somewhere.

Online Version

Want to go deeper?
The online version of this tool includes a full scoring matrix for up to fifteen opportunities, a facilitated prioritisation workshop guide, and worked examples from real organisations using all four questions.
Available in the members area at [website]