The Facilitator’s Guide to SAFe®

Backlog Refinement

Purpose & Agenda Purpose & Agenda

Preparation Checklist
Purpose
Teams should be primarily focused on the current iteration goals, but it is important that they Tips and Tricks
take some time during the iteration to plan for the future. Backlog refinement sessions allow Overcoming Challenges
teams to begin building alignment and shared understanding about upcoming work, to start
identifying dependencies, to inform backlog prioritization, and to begin hypothesizing how
the team may address future issues. Product Owners typically facilitate Backlog refinement for
the team.

Agenda
SAFe recommends this event happen once or twice per week as needed, and no less than once
per iteration. The team can decide how much time to spend in these events.

Discuss the most important items of work for the team to clarify first.
Often, the priority items to discuss are possible stories for the upcoming iteration. The team
backlog must always contain some stories that are ready for implementation without
significant risk or surprise. The team should first make sure there are enough stories in the
backlog for the next iteration and validate that there are no outstanding questions or
C C3
C
ard
dependencies. You may spend most of your time in most of your backlog refinement
meetings creating stories and acceptance criteria for the upcoming iteration.

C
onversation

onfirmation
Discuss other future Stories
Next, the team can consider stories for future iterations. What is needed to release the
I N V E S T

features this team is working on or to reach PI Objectives? What maintenance or enablers

may be needed? What work is needed to address dependencies with other teams? This is a Independent
good time to brainstorm candidate stories for the future. Importantly, the PO can get Negotiable
information from across the team on the scope and effort of future work to create a
predictable roadmap. Valuable

Estimable
Estimate Size and Prioritize
Although stories will be sized as they move from the backlog to an iteration plan, initial Small
sizing of candidate Stories can be helpful. Teams can discuss each Story using the INVEST
Testable
criteria and the 3 C’s method and then rank priority of all Stories.

Learn more: https://www.scaledagileframework.com/team-backlog/

The Facilitator’s Guide to SAFe®
Backlog Refinement

Event Checklist Purpose & Agenda

Preparation Checklist
Location and time
Tips and Tricks
Find a meeting place.
Choose a physical or virtual space which fosters communication and collaboration and Overcoming Challenges
keep your backlog in a tool that everyone can access and review easily.

Establish a time and cadence for the backlog refinement that the team agrees upon
Decide how often to refine the team’s backlog—SAFe recommends holding Backlog
Refinement at least once per iteration, but you can adjust frequency and duration based
on the team’s needs.

Note: If you are scheduling Backlog Refinement for the first time or on a new cadence,
be sure to schedule it well in advance and let all team members know.

Prepare inputs
Prepare the Team backlog
Gather a list of Features, PI Objectives, and dependencies with other teams Post-event actions
Define Candidate Stories for the next Iteration Update the team work
Define team capacity allocation management tool and team
boards with any new story
Expected outcomes timing, acceptance criteria,
sizing, or other details for the
Agreement on the scope and effort for the work that will support team goals in the
upcoming iteration(s) stories the team worked on.

Shared understanding of how upcoming work may

Communicate with teams you
be solutioned
have planned dependent
Estimated stories with acceptance criteria ready for the work with to align on any
next iteration
changes to the work
Spikes for further investigation
Identified dependencies are either resolved or an action to follow up is determined
Current plan risks and impediments have been surfaced and discussed

Learn more: https://www.scaledagileframework.com/team-backlog/

The Facilitator’s Guide to SAFe®
Backlog Refinement

Tips & Tricks Purpose & Agenda

Preparation Checklist
Facilitating remotely
Tips and Tricks
Move your team boards online and make sure everyone has access to that tool and record
all decisions and refinements there. Overcoming Challenges

Use a team communication channel or digital calendar to create and share an agenda for
the meeting ahead of time, prioritizing which stories and work to discuss.
Update any information you have in the team’s work management tool so that it is up
to date before the meeting starts.

Work as a team to find a remote-friendly way to estimate and discuss sizing.

You could have team members keep videos on and hold up numbers, set up an online poll,
or create something unique to your team’s video meetings.

Using this meeting creatively

Agree to set a timer and brainstorm candidate stories, then share
New to Backlog
As candidate stories are being discussed and added, use this time to work on improving Refinement?
story writing as a team. Have team members present and get help from the rest of the team
If you are scheduling
on the story they wrote.
Backlog Refinement for the
Work through disagreements and promote reaching understanding and alignment about first time or on a new
story details, size, and priority by setting aside time to dissent, and timeboxing it. cadence, be sure to schedule
it well in advance and let all
Consider having people work in two’s and three’s for a portion of the meeting to refine
team members know.
stories and discuss them in smaller groups.

Designate time regularly to creating and refining enabler stories.

When stories are sized at eight points or more, have your team work on ways to slice this
larger story into several smaller stories.

Learn more: https://www.scaledagileframework.com/team-backlog/

The Facilitator’s Guide to SAFe®
Backlog Refinement

Overcoming Challenges Purpose & Agenda

Preparation Checklist
Let’s face it, not everything goes perfectly all the time. In a fast-paced business environment,
change is the only constant. It can be difficult to move your team forward when disagreements Tips and Tricks
or conflicts occur. Below are some common areas where Scrum Masters can succeed in the face
Overcoming Challenges
of adversity.

Potential Issues

Discussing a single story is using The team does not agree on a Stories are vague or full of
too much of the meeting time. story’s size. assumptions.

Ways to overcome: Ways to overcome: Ways to overcome:

Work with the team to timebox Get help from the Scrum Master to Table discussions on those stories
discussion of each story to 5 minutes. promote Healthy discussion. until the next Backlog Refinement.

You can set a timer and visually refer Ask someone who has estimated the Identify needed clarifications so that
to it as the team discusses each story. story to a smaller size to share why the PO can resolve before the
and ask for someone who is next discussion.
estimating a higher size to share why
and then allow the team to change Invite Subject Matter experts, or
their estimates. representatives from teams who will
complete dependent work, to
If there is still no agreement, then it backlog refinement so they can join
falls to the PO to size the story and the discussion and help refine those
you can be conservative and go with stories with more specificity.
the higher estimate.

Learn more: https://www.scaledagileframework.com/team-backlog/