I’ve been reading various techniques for splitting large user stories in helpful ways, such as by user workflow through the system etc. What I’m struggling with is how to word these smaller stories if all they achieve is facilitating the next step in the process and not delivering the application’s main benefit to the user.
For example, if my new system is split down into 3 smaller stories along the lines of;
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Create a new account online
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Create certain entities against my new online account
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Have my mobile device query these entities against my account and act on them
The system only really provides useful functionality to the end user when all stories are complete. So if following the traditional “As a [User] I would like [Functionality] so I can [Benefit]” The benefit of the first and second story is simply facilitating subsequent stories and not really providing the user with the main piece of functionality (the epic). Is this the correct way to do this?
You have three stories here which have to be done (probably in a sequence) to achieve a goal, being able to query against the entities from a mobile device is a feature which will deliver a business goal, it does not appear to be the business goal itself IMHO.
Here’s my suggestion, phrase the business goal that your epic has to achieve and define stories like so
As a user I would like to register myself on the system so I can [business goal]
As a registered user I would like to create entities in my account so I can [business goal]
As a registered user with account entities I would like to act on queries against my entities from a mobile device so I can [business goal]
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The best way then would be to treat it as an epic, and scope in stories in sprints thereafter. My answer uses the same approach (stories as part of an epic).