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- A product backlog is a running list
of all the work that needs to be done on a software product.
It's used to prioritize work
and serves as the go-to source
for sprint planning on agile projects.
Open-ended feature requests
can bog your development team down
and make it hard to focus on the things
that move your product forward.
The Scrum Product Backlog gives structure to your work,
so you can complete the most strategic
and urgent tasks next.
We created a simple product backlog template
to make developing and refining the backlog easier,
so you'll be ready to dive into
your next sprint planning session
with a clear picture of your top priorities.
A product backlog outlines all the requirements
for a software development project
in order of priority and timeframe.
Anytime new work pops up
over the course of product development,
it's added to the backlog in the form of a user story.
That way nothing falls through the cracks.
Product development is an ever evolving process,
and a Scrum backlog should keep up with changes.
Having a well managed product backlog
makes sure your software projects
always have clear priorities
with a focused plan of action.
Here's how to make sure your product backlog sets you up
for successful sprint planning.
Clearly identify top priority items
and make sure they're scheduled to begin
in your next sprint.
Don't include every possible task related to your project
in the backlog.
This takes the focus away from higher priority tasks.
Every item listed in the backlog
should add value to the product.
Reevaluate your backlog frequently:
check that every user story is still important and relevant,
mark items as complete when the work's been shipped.
Assign story points to indicate the level of effort
rather than estimated time required
to build a product feature
or resolve a bug.
Backlog items can be super granular
but they don't have to be:
tasks are usually broken down more thoroughly
during the sprint planning process.
Now that you know why a backlog is important,
let's talk about the elements
that make up a typical backlog.
A user story is a simplified requirement description
put in the voice of the end user.
It typically follows this format.
initial product ideas get framed as user stories
before they're added to the backlog.
A feature represents new,
or improved functionality,
that creates value for users of the end product
and ties back to an established user story.
You may wanna break,
particularly, complex features down into smaller parts
and identify the tasks it will take
to build the feature out.
It just depends on how your team likes to work.
Every feature has the potential to be better
and that's where enhancements come in.
An enhancement is a proposed improvement
to an existing feature or function,
so your product delivers even more value to users.
A bug is an issue that pops up during product use.
Keeping track of bugs in the backlog
makes it easier to prioritize and plan fixes
with each new sprint cycle.
Each part of a product backlog,
such as user stories, features, and bugs
will differ based on the specific development project.
So a template works great as a starting point
and can be easily customized
to fit your project and process.
With TeamGantt,
you can view your backlog list in a variety of formats,
so it's easy for anyone on your team to see what's on deck
and make sure your product backlog stays healthy.
Let's look at some examples
of how you can use TeamGantt's different views
to plan and manage your product backlog.
See a big picture view of everything in your backlog
and schedule features, enhancements, and bug fixes
into sprint periods quickly and easily in the Gantt chart.
The flexible drag and drop interface
makes it easy to move things around on schedule as needed
if and when things change.
Drag individual tasks into an upcoming sprint period,
or even entire groups of tasks,
to quickly reschedule a sprint cycle.
Add dependencies between features,
or tasks, that need to be completed in sequential orders,
so you can prioritize your backlog more easily.
Task colors enable you to apply
a visual language to your backlog,
so it's easy to interpret at a glance.
How you color code your tasks is totally up to you.
Some common ways are to assign priority to user stories,
clearly visualize sprint periods,
and indicate task ownership,
or readiness status.
Use comments to keep team members in the loop on updates.
You can also attach or link to requirement documents
and other important files.
Got more than one project to oversee?
Or maybe your team breaks robust features down
into their own backlogs?
Open multiple plans in a single Gantt chart
to make sure everything's tracking like it should,
and manage resource availability across all your projects.
List view is ideal for reviewing
and refining your product backlog
in meetings with stakeholders or team members.
Use drag and drop functionality
to prioritize work on the fly
and easily add start and end dates
to schedule tasks to a future sprint.
Work with your team during grooming sessions
to add context and criteria to backlog items
via the edit window.
For example, you can assign priority and story points,
list acceptance criteria
or conditions of satisfaction,
upload wire frames,
or elaborate on important details
or considerations to get each item closer to ready.
Ready to move your work
from the backlog into your next sprint?
Use our Board view to plan and track each sprint cycle,
so developers can knock out work in an agile way.
Ready to get started building your own backlog?
We've created a free product backlog template
for you in TeamGantt,
so you can jump right in.
Customizing the template is quick and easy,
thanks to TeamGantt's drag and drop simplicity.
And since everything's online,
your whole team can collaborate on activities in real time.
Sign up for a free TeamGantt account today,
and save time on project set up
with this free product backlog template.
And that's it for this video on product backlog templates.
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I'll see you next time. (upbeat music)