Simple model to supercharge your user stories

If you create user stories to define your requirements, it helps to have a simple way to check that they’ll help you deliver valuable solutions each iteration.

That’s where the INVEST model comes in. The six INVEST criteria spell out how to create user stories that follow the principles and values of Agile

In the INVEST model, good user stories are:

• Independent
• Negotiable
• Valuable
• Estimable
• Small
• Testable

To help you put the INVEST model into practice, we’ve compiled a short, simple description of each of the criteria and an explanation of why it matters.

Thanks to Te Papa for bringing te reo to Agile

Following on from Māori language week, we’ve started to use more te reo in our day-to-day work.

Each Monday we’re sharing our kupu o te wiki (Māori word of the week) with a definition, a bit of background and an example of how you might use it.

Some terms we’re introducing to our kōrero include tū mai (stand-up), whakaputunga (the backlog) and kua oti (done).

We’re finding that Te Papa’s guide to Agile in te reo Māori has been an invaluable resource for this. The blog post lists reo interpretations of Agile terms along with audio pronunciation guides. It also links to Te Papa’s:

• Agile in te reo poster (PDF)
• Agile in te reo booklet — with added terms (PDF)

It’s interesting the way that even this small introduction to te reo also starts to give you a glimpse into te ao Māori.

Lock in your Agile immersion training before it’s too late

Our December Agile Professional Foundation course is already filling up. Even though there’s no physical limit on the number of seats with an online course, we do limit numbers to keep the course personal and interactive.

The course runs via Zoom on the mornings of 6 – 9 December.

Here are the details. If it sounds right for you, we recommend you book today.

Free two-hour tour of Agileland

Not ready to commit to four mornings? Our Introduction to Agile is a two-hour online tour of the world of Agile, led by people who live there every day of the working week.

Find out about Agile methodologies like Scrum, Kanban and XP. You’ll learn about the Agile mindset that underpins them all, along with what makes each of them different.