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Userstories and when enough is enough

Perfection in software is impossible. Software developement is subject to the Law of Diminishing Returns . So how do you decide when enough is enhough?

In a recent presentation Al Goerner discussed catagorising stories. Two of the more interesting catagories were "New feature" and "Feature enhancement". In an Agile project where new stories are constantly being added to the backlog, these two catagories can help use decide when a product is maturing and the new stories coming into the backlog are simply tweaks to the original requirements. In general "Feature Enhancements" provide a much smaller "bang for your buck" then "New Features". A simple rule of thumb is that when your backlog is mostly "Feature enahncements" then it is time to re-evaluate the ROI for continuing developement and compare it with the opertunitiy cost of a new endeavour.

Catagorising stories can also help us manage Risk and Issues within our backlog.

About the author

Mash is a pragmatic software craftsman always looking to improve his software creation skills and helping others do the same. He firmly believes that a well-rounded software craftsman must have a keen interest in all aspects of software creation, including; process, people, technology, user experience, development, operation, maintenance, and social impact. He relishes the daily challenges that Codurance brings to him–stretching his existing knowledge and expertise allowing him to constantly grow as a professional.

Mash is an advisor and a leader. During his diverse career, he has succeeded in invigorating large ailing software projects as well as creating highly effective software teams and departments. His broad and deep technical knowledge, organisational skills, craft focus, and empathy to people involved have been integral to his success. He has worked in many roles for charities, investment banks, consultancies, government, media and cloud providers. He prides himself at being a hands-on software developer and believes that software development skills are very hard to learn and the best way to maintain them is to apply them.

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