Role Storm
by Kelly Waters
Joe Ocampo ('AgileJoe') has recently written about a concept he calls 'Role Storming'...I'm not sure I like the name - sounds a bit buzzwordy - but I think the concept is really great!
When you first start a project, you need to build out the initial Product Backlog. Role Storming would be a great way to start, ensuring the team not only understand who the users are, but also helping the team to keep focused on *users*, not technical solutions at this stage.
I think the examples in Joe's blog post would make great Epics on the Product Backlog, to outline the initial scope of the solution, and to be broken down into User Stories as the they get nearer to development.
Kelly.
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3 November 2008 00:29
Joe Ocampo's 'Role Storming' is a great description of how the initial stages of a story-writing workshop should work (pardon the pun).
It's reminiscent of Mike Cohn's approach. What it brings to mind for me (and this is maybe implicit in Joe's post) is the need for the business to agree on the list of roles/persona's in order to focus the brainstorming.
I like the approach of simply getting to concepts of stories (or epics) first and then cycling down into from there.
One topic that I've been pondering recently and our developers at Ergo Consulting have been debating is the how and when of taking a user story and getting enough technical detail in order to be able to estimate the task appropriately and begin development. Any input and idea's anyone has around those topics would be read with interest.
3 November 2008 07:02
Hi Derek
If you're looking for feedback, it might be better to post an entry on the allaboutagile forum, with a link to the blog post you're referring to.
Here people will be emailed with your comments and are more inclined to reply.
The address is www.groups.google.com/group/allaboutagile.
Or you can click on Discussion Forum on the navigation at the top of my blog.
Kind regards
Kelly.