Agile planning poker cards are a helpful tool for deciding which items to move forward with and which to save for the next sprint. By regularly conducting backlog refinement sessions, the team can ensure the development process remains agile and responsive to changing needs and priorities. Such dynamic environments require collaboration and project tracking tools like Jira Software, which has a backlog feature, help managers make those changes for their teams at large. For Agile software development teams, maintaining a consistent understanding of the scope and context of the product is critical. Products already released to market often have a large backlog of user stories yet to be developed. Agile teams draw from the product backlog when planning sprints, and the condition of the backlog plays a significant role in the overall success of the product.
For example, the MVP approach is great for creating a minimum viable product in the shortest possible time but it doesn’t provide much flexibility for changes during the product cycle. The DEEP Backlog technique, on the other hand, is focused on the “why” and not just the “what” of a product. This makes it ideal for larger-scale products where understanding market needs and user behaviour is critical. A Product Backlog is emergent when we accept that items will change over time and develop processes that do not deter the creation, elaboration, or removal of items on the backlog. Items in the backlog should contain enough contextual information for your cross-functional team to understand and discuss.
How should a product owner prepare for backlog grooming?
We can pack stories with so much information that no one has the time or desire to read them or supply so few details they’d fit on a fortune cookie strip. Without a well-structured and maintained product backlog, the team risks delivering a product that does not meet the needs of the customer or the business. Third, a DEEP product backlog should be estimated, meaning that each item should have a rough estimate of its complexity and effort required to complete it. Maintaining the product backlog is the primary responsibility of the product owner or product manager.
A backlog refinement meeting is when a project team meets to review, update, and clean its product backlog. It is crucial in any Agile methodology, as it clarifies the team’s workload for a future sprint. These meetings aim to maintain two sprints worth of items in the backlog so the team always has a fresh supply of work and can pivot to new tasks when requirements https://infodnepr.ru/?module=articles&action=view&id=9124 change. A DEEP product backlog clearly helps us to zero in on user stories that are most important or most valuable. We can sidestep the risk of our backlog becoming a stumbling block rather than a stepping stone. Sometimes, product managers or owners may be handed a pre-prepared product backlog that is probably supposed to make their work easier.
an effective means of communicating the status of your product roadmap
This allows participants time to review backlog items and how they fit into the overall project. Obtaining a DEEP backlog is one of the key outcomes of a product backlog grooming or refinement session, which is a recurring event for agile product development teams. Regular backlog grooming sessions help ensure prioritizing the right stories and that the product backlog does not become a black hole. Obtaining a DEEP backlog is one of the key outcomes of a product backlog grooming or refinement session, which is a recurring event for agile product development teams. Regular backlog grooming sessions help ensure prioritizing the right stories and that the product backlog does not become a black hole. Like any meeting in a project management context, an agenda is essential to keep discussions on topic.
- 📘 Read our guide to incorporating user story points to start using this technique.
- This kind of INVESTment will not yield expected results as stories are very likely to change over a much longer duration of multiple release cycles.
- A Product Backlog is emergent when we accept that items will change over time and develop processes that do not deter the creation, elaboration, or removal of items on the backlog.
- Product managers are always looking for ways to get a clear picture of their backlog.
- Regular backlog grooming sessions help ensure prioritizing the right stories and that the product backlog does not become a black hole.
This prioritized backlog then becomes the focus of the next sprint planning session. We may not be wrong to say that product professionals create backlogs that are estimated and prioritized in most cases. The criteria that are more likely to not be given enough attention are the first and the third (detailed appropriately and emergent).
Speak with Impact: Unleash Your Voice in Meetings
It’s a simple tool that product owners or product managers can use to manage the product backlog and user stories effectively. This article provides proven strategies for conducting backlog refinement meetings that keep your backlog current, clean, and organized. It explains why backlog refinement sessions are important, how to run efficient sessions, and helpful tips Agile teams have learned along the way. But for good Agile project management, it is essential to master backlog refinement meetings. At the end of the sprint, a sprint review is conducted with the stakeholders to better understand what to tackle next. Backlog items that weren’t completed may be pushed back into the larger product backlog to get to at a later date or during the next sprint.
A product backlog stores, organizes, and manages all work items that you plan to work on in the future. While providing agile training, consulting, and coaching engagements at Digital.ai, formerly VersionOne, our clients often ask how to logically structure, organize, and manage their product backlog. Because backlog refinement meetings can involve complex discussions and sometimes run for a full hour, it is vital to invite only the needed participants. Since not much is known about them, it’s difficult to properly estimate items that are lower in priority. When you are further down the priority list, your estimation will be more of a guess since you don’t have all of the information yet. In these cases, use a simple agile estimation technique, such as t-shirt sizing (labeling work items as XS, S, M, L, XL) to make a guesstimate.