Backlog refinement is a collaborative team event where you have a detailed discussion about backlog items, including both user stories, and other product backlog items. The goal is to prepare them for the sprint planning event, which may involve initial sizing or estimation where possible. Traditionally, these activities were part of sprint planning itself. However, while the Scrum Guide doesn’t designate backlog refinement as a separate event, it’s become widely adopted by Agile teams globally. Here’s why this is beneficial:
- Refinement may reveal that some backlog items require additional work before being ready for estimation or selection during sprint planning. If this happens during sprint planning, the team might not have enough time to complete the necessary preparation, potentially delaying those items.
- Especially in today’s remote work settings, maintaining focus for a long online meeting can be challenging and unproductive. Splitting refinement and planning from traditional sprint planning and distributing them across the sprint cycle allows for more effective preparation and higher-quality backlog items.
Duration and Frequency
- Duration: 1 hour
- Frequency: Minimum of 2 sessions per sprint. The team or product owner/manager may decide to hold additional sessions as needed. These sessions are typically held at the beginning and middle of each sprint, but can be adjusted based on team needs.
Objectives
- Create and break down backlog items (including user stories and product backlog items) prioritized by the product owner/manager.
- Have an in-depth team discussion about the context, user stories, enablers, and acceptance criteria of the backlog items.
- Identify blockers, dependencies, and other considerations, including non-functional requirements (NFRs).
- Estimate or time-box user stories, and other product backlog items
Who Attends
- Product Owner/Manager (facilitator)
- Business Analysts (facilitator)
- Delivery Manager or Agile Coach (optional)
- All Developers
- All User-Centered Design (UCD) team members (User Researchers and UX/UI Designers)
- Q/A
- Other technical roles (if applicable)
- Any other stakeholders (by invitation only)
