Feature Specification Document
1. Overview
Feature: Automated Task Prioritization based on Deadline & Difficulty
This feature introduces an automated system that prioritizes user tasks within the app by analyzing both the task deadlines and difficulty levels. It is designed to help busy individuals—such as students, professionals, and users juggling multiple projects—manage their workload more effectively by dynamically sorting tasks according to priority. Users will also retain control by having the ability to override the automated priority.
2. Goals
Problems Solved
- Time-management challenges: Users often struggle to determine which tasks to focus on when managing multiple deadlines.
- Cognitive overload: Difficulty balancing task urgency and complexity can lead to procrastination or missed deadlines.
- Manual prioritization effort: Users need a convenient, data-driven system to reduce the effort of manual sorting.
Opportunities Created
- Improved productivity: Users can spend more time executing tasks rather than planning.
- User engagement: Dynamic, context-aware task lists can increase app usage and satisfaction.
- Support for decision making: Providing data-backed prioritization guides users in workload balancing.
Success Metrics
- Priority feature adoption rate: Percentage of active users engaging with this prioritization feature.
- User satisfaction: Feedback ratings and NPS related to task management improvements.
- Task completion rate: Increase in timely completion of high-priority tasks.
- Override usage: Frequency of users manually adjusting the automated priority, indicating control balance.
3. User Stories
US1:
As a busy professional, I want my tasks automatically prioritized by approaching deadlines and difficulty so that I can focus on the most urgent and challenging work first.US2:
As a student, I want to see my tasks sorted by priority so that I can plan my study sessions efficiently and avoid last-minute cramming.US3:
As a multi-project manager, I want to override the system’s priority for specific tasks so that I can customize task order based on context only I understand.US4:
As a regular user, I want the task list to update priorities in real-time when I change deadlines or difficulty so that I always have the latest recommended order.
4. Acceptance Criteria
User Story | Acceptance Criteria |
---|---|
US1 | - Tasks are automatically assigned a priority value based on deadline proximity and difficulty rating. |
- Tasks are displayed in descending priority order on task list views by default. | |
US2 | - Priority sorting is applied across projects and task categories. |
- UI clearly indicates task priority (e.g., numeric, color-coded, or label). | |
US3 | - User can manually override the automated priority through task detail or quick actions. |
- Manual override persists until user resets or changes priority again. | |
US4 | - Changes to deadline or difficulty trigger immediate re-calculation and re-rendering of prioritized task list. |
- System smoothly handles rapid updates without UI lag or crashes. |
5. Technical Design
Data Model
- Extend task object schema with:
- Deadline: Date/time field (existing or confirmed).
- Difficulty: Enum or integer scale (e.g., 1–5) set by user or default.
- Priority: Computed numeric score stored transiently or persistently.
- Manual Override Flag & Value: Boolean and optional priority value.
Prioritization Algorithm
- Simple weighted scoring function:
Priority Score = W1 * (1 / Days until deadline) + W2 * Difficulty
- Weights (W1, W2) configurable to balance urgency vs complexity (initial default: equal weights).
- If manual override present, use override value instead.
Architecture & Flow
Client-side:
- Trigger priority recalculation upon task creation or updates (deadline/difficulty/manual priority).
- UI renders tasks sorted by priority with visual indicators.
Server-side:
- Store additional fields in the database schema.
- Optionally, pre-calculate priorities on server for performance and sync with clients via API.
Integration
- Utilize existing task data storage and APIs.
- Add difficulty input in task creation/edit UI.
- Update task list components to support priority sorting and override controls.
Performance & Scalability
- Algorithm is compute-light and can run on client or server with minimal latency.
- Real-time updates implemented using event-driven updates or polling with debounce to reduce overhead.
Security & Privacy
- No additional sensitive user data collected.
- Ensure priority data respects existing authorization and data access layers.
6. Future Considerations
- Advanced AI prioritization: Integrate machine learning to adapt weights based on user behavior and historical completion rates.
- Additional factors: Incorporate other inputs like estimated task duration, user energy levels, or task dependencies.
- Cross-device sync: Real-time priority syncing across multiple devices with conflict resolution.
- Notifications: Priority-driven reminders and alerts.
- Visualization: Gantt charts or heatmaps showing priority trends and workload distribution.
- Bulk override: Allow users to batch override priorities for groups of tasks (e.g., by project or tag).
Estimated Development Effort: 25 days
End of Specification Document
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