The INVEST Criteria is a mnemonic that stands for Independent, Negotiable, Valuable, Estimable, Small, and Testable. It is used primarily in Agile and Scrum methodologies to create clear and effective user stories. This framework helps teams deliver better products by ensuring that each user story is well-defined and structured to facilitate efficient planning, execution, and testing. The criteria promote transparency, predictability, and adaptability in the development process.
Independent: Ensure each user story is self-contained, with no inherent dependency on another user story. | Negotiable: User stories should be flexible and open to negotiation and discussion. | Valuable: Each user story must deliver a clear value to the customer or user. | Estimable: The team must be able to estimate the size and complexity of the user story. | Small: User stories should be small enough to be easily manageable and testable but large enough to provide significant value. | Testable: There should be clear acceptance criteria to test and verify that the story meets the requirements.
Regularly review and refine user stories with stakeholders | Train and educate the team on the INVEST criteria | Use the criteria as a checklist during backlog grooming sessions
Improves clarity and focus of user stories | Facilitates better planning and estimation | Enhances product quality and customer satisfaction
Can be overly rigid in dynamic development environments | May not be suitable for very complex features | Requires thorough understanding and discipline to implement effectively
When defining user stories in Agile project management | During backlog refinement and sprint planning sessions
In non-Agile, highly structured or waterfall projects | When quick, ad-hoc development is needed without detailed planning