8. Story Mapping
Use a User Story Map as a negotiation tool with the team to figure out what your product increments will be.
In this issue, we discuss a tool that is completely misunderstood by most development teams - and yet it's such an essential part of working iteratively and incrementally that I use it in almost every place I work.
I once visited a company that proudly showed their extensive story map. It was incredibly detailed, covered a dozen personas, and nearly a thousand cards. They had it spread across multiple meeting rooms. It was cool to see a team so excited about user-driven work.
Then they used it to start a multi-year development project that was delivered too late .
For me, story mapping is a negotiation tool. You can do it in a few hours, not weeks. And there are ways to avoid the common mistakes most people make that lead to elaborate, pointless maps that nobody refers to again.
Read on to learn about when I reach for this technique, how to maximize buy-in, and how to avoid common pitfalls.