This document describes the user story refinement process used for Project GATE, a cross-platform mobile app. It details how the process evolved over time from 1) large user stories created by a separate design team to 2) splitting stories based on screen flows to 3) using two concurrent design teams to reduce lead time. The current process involves an extended design team with representatives from each function to refine rough designs and user stories in meetings. Continuous process improvement is emphasized based on team feedback.

1. User Story Refinement in
Project GATE
Spirit Tu
22nd January, 2015

2. About me
• 12-year NTUT life
– 2004, B.E. degree in EN from NTUT
– 2006, M.S. degree in CSIE from NTUT
– 2012, Ph.D. degree in CSIE from NTUT
• Senior Program Analyst at GSS
– Oct 2012 – May 2013
• Senior Software Engineer at Gamania
– iOS, Android, and PC (?) App developer of the
project GATE
User Story Refinement in Project GATE2

3. Project GATE?
• According the NDA, Project GATE is
– A cross platform (iOS and Android) app with
gamification, cloud services, and social network
• GATE?
– ゲッターロボ
– Getter Robo
User Story Refinement in Project GATE3

4. Sprint timetable
• 2 weeks / sprint
– Daily scrum held on 11:45 – 12:00
• For a better user’s experience
– Polish & tuning (debugging)
• Publish a version on Mon if nothing wrong
4
Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri
Planning Refinement
Planning Refinement
Mon The Wed Thu Fri
Tuning Review
Polish Tuning Retrospective
Week 1
Week 2
User Story Refinement in Project GATE

5. Feature design team
(kanban)
Source of user stories
User Story Refinement in Project GATE5
User story
refinemen
t
Product Owner Scrum Master Team Member
Artist
Team Member
Programmer

6. User story refinement 1.0
• Feature design team transform the PO’s (boss)
vision into features
– Specification document
User Story Refinement in Project GATE6
x 47

7. User story refinement 1.0
• To estimate the story point
– Requirement understanding
• Ensure feasibility and possible solution
• Check details and questions
• QE make up test cases
• Screen elements
– Rough architecture design & API discussion
• Data structure
User Story Refinement in Project GATE7

8. User story refinement 1.0
• Issues should be solved
– Split stories based on screens
• Not end-to-end stories
• Duplicated or similar stories
– Split stories based on module
• Heavy dependency between stories
• Implicit value
User Story Refinement in Project GATE8

9. First impact
• In the retrospective
meeting, team members
argue the bad stories
– Value driven
– Must be end-to-end
User Story Refinement in Project GATE9

10. User story refinement 2.0
• Everything will go right?
– Yes, the user stories have explicit value, but…
• Huge user stories
User Story Refinement in Project GATE10
This is a user
story!

11. User story refinement 2.0
• Team members split the user stories
– Time-consuming meeting
• Ensure the size of each story for art, client, and server
– PO has to trace the completeness between the
stories and the specification documents
• Ensure everything in specification storied
– Feature design team need revise the specification
documents many times
• A feature may need refinement twice or more
User Story Refinement in Project GATE11

12. User story refinement 2.0
• However, there are still some advantages
– End-to-end
• Easy to demonstrate in the review meeting
– Well-sized user stories
• More precise task time estimation
• Stable velocity
User Story Refinement in Project GATE12

13. Second impact
• Again, in the retrospective meeting, team
members argue the need of a complete
specification document
– Live document?
User Story Refinement in Project GATE13

14. Flow chat based refinement (1/3)
• Phase I – Introduce the screen flow chat
User Story Refinement in Project GATE14
Product Owner Scrum Master Team Member
Artist
Team Member
Programmer

15. Flow chat based refinement (2/3)
• Phase II – Split the user stories
User Story Refinement in Project GATE15
Product Owner Team Member
Programmer

16. Flow chat based refinement (3/3)
• Phase III – Story point estimation
User Story Refinement in Project GATE16
Product Owner Scrum Master Team Member
Artist
Team Member
Programmer
Story 1: 8 + 2 + 5 = 15
Story 2: 5 + 0 + 2 = 7
Story 3: 5 + 8 + 1 = 14
Story 4: 3 + 0 + 0.5 = 3.5
Story 1: 2 + 1 + 0.5 = 3.5

17. User story refinement 3.0
• Team member split the user stories based on
the screen flow chat
– End-to-end and able to demonstrate
– Explicit value (maybe small)
– Feature design team adds details in the stories
– Average story point: 8.9
• However, the stories split by this method are
frozen
– Boss wants a more quick responsive time
User Story Refinement in Project GATE17

18. Responsive time not quick enough?
User Story Refinement in Project GATE18

19. Responsive time
• Find the lead time from the past records
• In the retrospective meeting, team member
try to meets the boss’s requirement
– Two feature design teams
User Story Refinement in Project GATE19
Feature 1 design
A team
Feature 1 develop
A team
Feature 2 design
B team
Feature 2 develop
B team
11.4 days 20.1 days 11.1 days 19.8 days
Cycle time Cycle time
Runway lead time Scrum develop lead time
???

20. User story refinement 4.0
• Two feature design teams
– Design the feature based on the boss’s vision and
minimum requirement
• A simple architect after the feasibility study
• A screen flow chat or a description
• User stories with story point estimation
User Story Refinement in Project GATE20
Feature 1 design
A team
Feature 1 design
B team
Selected
Design
Develop
Feature 2
Feature 2 design
A team
Feature 2 design
B team
Selected
Design
Develop
Feature 2
60 % - 70%
30% - 40 %

21. Pretty quick responsive time?
• Completed two features by this method
– Pros
• 2 sprints for a feature  1 month for a feature
• Reduce document overhead (revise)
• Team member fully participated in feature design
– Cons
• Work overtime
• Too many context switch
• BCD (boss centered design) annoys some team
member
User Story Refinement in Project GATE21

22. How about internal user stories?
• Internal user stories (e.g., performance tuning,
refactoring, etc.) usually arranged in planning
meeting by team member, but
– Each function has different issues to be solved
– Some issues need cross-function cooperation
– Some issues need PO’s decision, e.g., security
policy
• Long planning meeting
User Story Refinement in Project GATE22

23. User story refinement technical branch
• At the end of the retrospective meeting
– Team member book issues that need refinement
• Issue
• Cross function requirement
– PO arrange refinement meetings
• Prioritize issues and schedule the meetings
• Decide the participants
User Story Refinement in Project GATE23

24. A growing team 15 members at May 2013
User Story Refinement in Project GATE24
1
3
2
12
3
1
1
1
Android
iOS
Server
QE
Art
PO
Planner/UX
Scrum Master
Secretary

25. A growing team 24 members at Jun 2015
User Story Refinement in Project GATE25
4.5
3.5
3
3
3
3
2
1 1
Android
iOS
Server
QE
Art
PO
Planner/UX
Scrum Master
Secretary

26. User story refinement 5.0 beta
• Communication cost
– O(n2)
– Too many opinion to make a decision
• Extended feature design team
– At least, one representative for each function
– Refine the rough design
– Split the user stories
– Estimate the user story points
User Story Refinement in Project GATE26

27. Extended feature design team
User Story Refinement in Project GATE27
User story
refinemen
t
Product Owner
Team Member
Artist/UX
Team Member
Programmer
Extended
Feature design
team

28. Summary
• User story refinement meeting is important to
Startup
– Team members feel that they are building an
amazing product, not just a work (well, it’s still the
boss’s product)
– Team members’ participation can provide good
quality user stories
• Continuous improvement
– User story refinement meeting should also be
improved based on the feedback
User Story Refinement in Project GATE28

29. Well, something updated
• Prototype design team
– Develop prototype on the branch
– Minimize the design team member
• Other team member can still provide suggestions to the
prototype design team
– Hackpad
• Progress update
• Suggestions and comments
– More quick response?
User Story Refinement in Project GATE29