Theme
The hierarchy of agile requirements
Agile requirements are organized from the largest to the smallest granularity:
- Theme: groups several epics that belong to the same functional or business area.
- Epic: groups several related user stories. Too large for a single sprint.
- User story: the sprint's work item. Can be completed in days or a few weeks.
- Task: internal breakdown of a story to make daily tracking easier.
Example
In an accounting management software system, the "customer management" theme is made up of the following epics:
- "Customer registration, removal, and maintenance"
- "One-off and recurring invoicing"
- "Browsing queries and loyalty actions"
- "Orders" and "Returns"
Each of these epics will in turn be broken down into specific user stories that the team can estimate and commit to in sprints.
When it is useful to work with themes
Themes are especially useful in large projects or those with very extensive backlogs, where grouping epics by functional area makes communication with stakeholders and high-level planning easier. Not every project needs this level of grouping: in small projects, the epic may be enough as the top level of organization.
Common mistake
Confusing the theme with the epic. The theme groups epics; the epic groups stories. In projects where the backlog is small, trying to work with all three levels (theme, epic, story) creates bureaucracy without value. The right level of granularity is the minimum that allows the team and the Product Owner to plan and communicate clearly.
Resources
🏦 Skill User storiesState of the art and development guide · Skill Arena
See also
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