The COO’s Guide to Prioritization: How to Lead When Everything Feels Urgent

Aug 12, 2025 | 0 comments

When you’re the Chief Operating Officer, everything lands on your desk eventually — and most of it comes labeled “urgent.”
From team escalations to strategic pivots, you’re expected to act fast, delegate smart, and never drop the ball.

But here’s the catch: not everything can be a priority — even if it feels like it is.

Great COOs don’t just move faster. They prioritize better.
And in high-growth environments, the ability to filter noise and focus on what truly matters is the difference between leading and reacting.

Why Prioritization Is the COO’s Superpower

Unlike the CEO, who sets vision, or department heads, who own their lanes, the COO sits in the center of the storm.
You translate strategy into execution. You connect the dots. You fight fires — but only the right ones.

Without clear prioritization, COOs fall into:

  • Task saturation: Constant motion with little progress
  • Decision fatigue: Worn down by small, low-leverage choices
  • Team confusion: Your lack of focus becomes theirs

That’s why world-class COOs treat prioritization as a skill — not just a to-do list.

How to Prioritize When Everything Feels Important

Here’s a COO-tested framework for cutting through urgency and focusing on what moves the business forward.

1. Align with the CEO’s Current Top 3

If you’re not in sync with the CEO’s evolving priorities, you’ll always feel like you’re playing catch-up.

Every COO should know, at all times:

  • What are the CEO’s Top 3 priorities right now?
  • Which of them depends on Operations to move forward?
  • What can I say no to in order to support them?

Check in weekly if needed. It’s not micromanagement — it’s alignment.

2. Use the 3 Buckets Model

Cameron Herold teaches COOs to break priorities into three distinct categories:

  • Grow (what scales the business)
  • Fix (what’s broken and hurting performance)
  • Support (what enables other leaders to succeed)

Every task or project should fit into one. If it doesn’t? Question it.

3. Prioritize Leverage Over Volume

As COO, your job isn’t to do more. It’s to do what matters most.

Ask yourself:

  • Will this decision remove a major bottleneck?
  • Will this action help multiple departments at once?
  • Is this task $10/hour, $100/hour, or $10,000/hour work?

High-leverage activities compound. Focus there.

4. Build a Culture That Knows What Matters

Your prioritization doesn’t live in a vacuum.
Your leadership team — and their teams — take cues from you.

Ways to model this:

  • Talk openly about trade-offs in meetings
  • Celebrate ruthless focus, not just busy schedules
  • Empower teams to delay or kill low-priority projects

You’re not just prioritizing your work — you’re teaching the organization how to think.

Managing Pressure Without Losing Clarity

When everything feels urgent, your ability to stay calm becomes a competitive advantage.

Here’s how COOs stay grounded:

  • Daily check-ins with yourself: What’s truly critical today?
  • Tactical use of sprints: Short bursts of focused execution (not constant hustle)
  • Space to think: Block time on your calendar for strategy, not just meetings
  • Support systems: Peer networks, coaches, or COO groups that help you zoom out

You can’t prioritize chaos. You have to create the space to think.

The Bottom Line: Lead the Urgency, Don’t Let It Lead You

Prioritization isn’t just about productivity.
It’s how you protect your time, your team, and your ability to make great decisions under pressure.

You’ll never have a shortage of demands. But you do have a choice about where you focus your energy.

 Want to scale faster and lead with more clarity?
Join COO Alliance — the #1 community for second-in-command executives.
Surround yourself with top-tier COOs, learn proven prioritization frameworks, and lead with confidence even under pressure.
 

Join us today: https://cooalliance.com/apply-for-cooa/

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Written By Cameron Herold

Written By Cameron Herold

Cameron Herold is known around the world as THE CEO WHISPERER. He is the mastermind behind hundreds of company's exponential growth. Cameron's built a dynamic consultancy: his current clients include a "Big 4" wireless carrier and a monarchy. What do his clients say they like most about him? He isn't a theory guy they like that Cameron speaks only from experience. He earned his reputation as the CEO Whisperer by guiding his clients to double their profit and double their revenue in just three years or less. Cameron is a top-rated international speaker and has been paid to speak in 26 countries. He is also the top-rated lecturer at EO/MIT's Entrepreneurial Masters Program and a powerful and effective speaker at Chief Executive Officer and Chief Operating Officer leadership events around the world.

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