Delivered at Agile & Beyond 2019 by Helene Gidley and Thomas Meloche of A2Agile, Inc.

1. A2Agile, Inc. © 2019
Building Better Backlogs
Helene Gidley
Thomas Meloche
Agile and Beyond 2019

2. Statements We’ve Heard
2
We took an hour to
estimate one story.
We don’t really have
anything to
demonstrate at Sprint
Review. Many of our stories
carry over to the next
sprint.
A2Agile, Inc. © 2019

3. Captured as Requirement
Idea Requirement
3A2Agile, Inc. © 2019

4. Requirements in Agile
4
Idea User Story
As a new shopper I can place an
item in my cart so that I can
purchase more than one item at a
time.
A2Agile, Inc. © 2019

5. A Better Way
5
Value Stream Map Story Map
Persona
Map
Stakeholder
Interviews
Persona
Customer
Interviews
Wireframes
Cogni@ve
Walkthrough
Idea
A2Agile, Inc. © 2019

6. A2Agile, Inc. © 2019
Understand Where We Are
6

7. Map the Value Stream
77
Value Stream Map
Stakeholder
Interviews
Customer
Interviews
Idea
A2Agile, Inc. © 2019

8. Value Stream Mapping
An online shopping site
8
Order
Request
Order
Capture
Fulfill
Order
Ship
Order
Collect
Payment
Order
Returns
Process
Return
Refund
Payment
Customer
Service Rep
Shipping
Clerk
Warehouse
worker
AR Clerk
Customer
Customer
Customer
Service Rep
AP Clerk
A2Agile, Inc. © 2019

9. Build Your Own
● A Michigan based moving company wants to
start a new project
● Working in teams of 4-5 people, build your
value stream map for a local moving company.
9A2Agile, Inc. © 2019

10. Value Stream Maps in Context
10
“I literally have 100 project proposals and it doesn’t feel like anyone is thinking
about anything other than their problem.” - COO
Order
Request
Order
Capture
Fulfill
Order
Ship
Order
Collect
Payment
Order
Returns
Process
Return
Refund
Payment
Customer
Service Rep
Shipping
Clerk
Warehouse
worker
AR Clerk
Individual Project
A2Agile, Inc. © 2019

11. Build Persona Models
Value Stream Map
Stakeholder
Interviews
Persona
Models
Customer
Interviews
Idea
11A2Agile, Inc. © 2019

12. Persona
12
● A description of a specific
fictional person
○ Name, Sex, Age
○ Goals, Motivations
○ Activities, Actions, Use
Cases
● Value and select features
● 80/20 Rule
● What NOT TO BUILDA2Agile, Inc. © 2019

13. Predict the Future
13
● Predict the Future
○ Highest Value Features
○ Users Most Want
○ Users Most Need
● Guide Visual Design
● Drive Copy Writing
● Option Sequences
● Used Across Industries
A2Agile, Inc. © 2019

14. Secret #4: Map Personas
Value Stream Map
Persona
Map
Stakeholder
Interviews
Persona
Models
Customer
Interviews
Idea
14A2Agile, Inc. © 2019

15. Who Are We Building For?
15A2Agile, Inc. © 2019

16. Persona Map Ceremony
16
Select the primary persona for
whom an application interface
is being developed.
● Small card for each persona
● Large target
● Only one at the center
● Do as a formal ceremony
A2Agile, Inc. © 2019

17. Class Problem: Mobile app for moving company drivers
● Local mover operating for past 10 years in SE Michigan area
● Founders started company as juniors in high school to make money for
college
● Company has grown with offices in Detroit, Ann Arbor, Grand Rapids,
Traverse City and Lansing and is expanding fast across Michigan and nearby
states
● Need to communicate with drivers in real time about changes to routes for
additional pickups, traffic problems, emergencies, and driver assistance
● Provide drivers with method to collect payment from customer at time of
goods delivery
● Provide drivers with a way to record their expenses to expedite the
reimbursement process 17A2Agile, Inc. © 2019

18. A2Agile, Inc. © 2019
Define Personas and Map Them
In your groups, define 3-4 personas for the moving company following the
Persona Template
Put them on 3x5 cards
Determine which persona is the Core Persona and which are on the outer rings
Place them on a Persona Map
18

19. Create a Story Map
1919
Value Stream Map Story Map
Persona
Map
Stakeholder
Interviews
Persona
Customer
Interviews
Idea
A2Agile, Inc. © 2019

20. The Story Map
Time
Search
for items
Select
Item
Checkout
Receive
Item
Necessity
More
Necessary
Less
Necessary
Browse by
category
Search by
Item #
Filter by
size
Select Item
and put in
cart
Enter
shipping
and billing
addresses
Enter
payment
info
Create
account
Submit
Order
Receive
package
tracking
link
Order
Request
Order
Capture
Fulfill
Order
Ship
Order
20A2Agile, Inc. © 2019

21. A2Agile, Inc. © 2019
Build Your Own
Build your story map for the moving company problem for the core persona
2121
Time
Necessity
More
Necessary
Less
Necessary
Activity Activity Activity
Meta-Story Meta-Story
Meta-Story
Meta-Story
Order
Request
Order
Capture
Fulfill
Order
Ship
Order

22. A2Agile, Inc. © 2019
Release Planning
● Choose groups of features that support an end-to-end user experience
● Support all necessary activities with the first release – Minimum Marketable Feature
(MMF)
● Improve feature support and add additional features with subsequent releases
22
more
necessary
less
necessary
first
release
second
release
third
release
Activity
Meta-Story
Activity Activity Activity
Meta-Story
Meta-Story
Time

23. Continued Learning
23A2Agile, Inc. © 2019
● Books:
○ The Inmates are Running
the Asylum by Alan Cooper
○ About Face by Alan Cooper
● Blogs:
○ https://
www.jpattonassociates.com/
the-new-backlog/

24. Statements We’ve Heard
24
We took an hour to
estimate one story.
We don’t really have
anything to
demonstrate at Sprint
Review. Many of our stories
carry over to the next
sprint.
A2Agile, Inc. © 2019
I have 1500 stories in Jira and don’t know
where to start.

25. Working With You To Fix Your Backlog
25A2Agile, Inc. © 2019
● Building A Better Backlog:
Product Owner Training July
16-19
● Multiple touch-points over time
○ Weekly One-on-One
coaching sessions
○ Team coaching
○ On-site workshops

26. A2Agile, Inc. © 2019
Your Thoughts
26