User Stories
A User Story is a short, informal description of a feature told from the perspective of the person who desires the new capability, typically following the format: As a [role], I want [goal], so that [benefit].
Explanation
User stories are the most common way to express requirements in agile. They shift the focus from writing detailed specifications to having conversations about what the user needs. The story itself is a placeholder for a conversation between the team and the Product Owner or stakeholder. Details emerge through discussion, not documentation.
Good user stories follow the INVEST criteria: Independent, Negotiable, Valuable, Estimable, Small, and Testable. Each story should be independent enough to be developed and delivered on its own, provide value to the user, and be small enough to fit within a single Sprint.
User stories are typically accompanied by acceptance criteria, which define the conditions that must be met for the story to be considered done. Acceptance criteria provide the detail needed for development and testing without requiring a lengthy requirements document upfront.
Key Points
- •Format: As a [role], I want [goal], so that [benefit]
- •Follow the INVEST criteria: Independent, Negotiable, Valuable, Estimable, Small, Testable
- •Serve as a placeholder for conversation, not a detailed specification
- •Accompanied by acceptance criteria that define completion conditions
Exam Tip
Remember the INVEST acronym for well-written user stories. Exam questions often test whether a story is too large, lacks value, or is not testable.
Frequently Asked Questions
Related Topics
Product Backlog
The Product Backlog is an emergent, ordered list of everything that might be needed in the product, serving as the single source of requirements for any changes to be made.
Epic
An Epic is a large user story or body of work that is too big to complete in a single iteration and must be broken down into smaller, more manageable user stories.
Story Points
Story points are a unit of measure for expressing the overall effort, complexity, and uncertainty involved in completing a Product Backlog item, used for relative estimation rather than measuring time.
Definition of Done
The Definition of Done (DoD) is a formal description of the state of the Increment when it meets the quality measures required for the product, providing a shared understanding of what it means for work to be complete.
Test your knowledge
Practice scenario-based questions on this topic with detailed explanations.