The Agile Daily Standup - AgileDad

Are User Stories The Same as Requirements? - Mike Cohn

May 8, 2024

Mike Cohn, Agile expert and author, discusses the relationship between user stories and requirements. User stories act as placeholders for future conversations with stakeholders to convey detailed needs. Each story serves as a pointer to a requirement, guiding the team towards necessary discussions for project success.

06:55

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Mike Cohn

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Quick takeaways

User stories act as placeholders for future conversations with stakeholders, directing discussions towards project requirements.

Acceptance criteria are essential for defining user story requirements and guide development approaches by understanding user needs.

Deep dives

Understanding User Stories as Pointers to Requirements

User stories are not equivalent to requirements but act as placeholders for future conversations between teams and stakeholders. These stories serve as pointers directing discussions towards the necessary details required for a project. Stakeholders convey the specifics during these conversations, which may include flow diagrams, UI sketches, sample data, or instructions for tasks. Acceptance criteria, written by the product owner, distinguish vital requirements that determine whether a product backlog item is accepted or rejected.

Exploring the Relationship Between User Stories and Requirements

4min

Exploring the Significance of 'So That' Clause and 'Invest' Acronym in User Stories

2min

Are User Stories The Same as Requirements? - Mike Cohn

Are user stories the same as requirements? Not quite, but they’re close.

Rather than thinking of a user story as a requirement, I find it more useful to think of each story as a pointer to a requirement.

Most commonly, every story is a placeholder for a future conversation between the team and its stakeholders. During that conversation, stakeholders will convey the details about what is needed. If more detail is needed than can be conveyed in a conversation, the story may point to a flow diagram, a sketch of the user interface, sample data, instructions on how to perform a calculation, or so on.

A user story itself is too vague to be considered a requirement. You’re better off thinking of a story as a pointer to a requirement.

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