The Hidden Cost of Big Backlog Items
Revised on May 15, 2025 to capture the latest in Scrum and Agile advice.
In creative work, complexity is the enemy of speed and quality. And in software development, big requirements almost always mean complex requirements.
That complexity introduces risk—risk of delay, risk of defects, risk of rework. And risk, in turn, means cost and waste.
In short: bigger is not better. In fact, it’s usually worse.
How Scrum Handles Requirements
Scrum doesn’t prescribe a format for requirements, but most teams represent them as Product Backlog Items (PBIs)—often written as user stories.
A PBI might be tiny (“Fix typo on homepage”) or massive (“Enable customer account creation”). Large PBIs are commonly referred to as epics.
While Scrum leaves sizing decisions up to teams, the practice of Product Backlog Refinement (formerly called “grooming,” and even earlier, “pre-sprint analysis”) exists for one reason: to break big ideas into manageable, doable work.
And that starts with decomposition (slicing).
Learn more user stories and slicing: Solving Problems, How Small is Small Enough?, Simplify Your Work by Slicing, Slicing Backlog Items
The Real Goal of Decomposition (Slicing)
Many teams aim to break PBIs down until they’re “small enough to fit in the Sprint.” But at Artisan Agility, we believe that benchmark is too big.
Here’s why:
PBIs larger than 4 days of work frequently produce hidden defects
Teams often mark them “done,” only to find bugs later
Instead of reopening the story, they open a defect—masking the root issue
This erodes quality and undermines empirical planning
Our Recommendation:
No PBI should take more than 3 days to complete. At this size:
Defects become rarer
Progress is more visible
Sprints are easier to plan
Feedback loops tighten dramatically
How to Get There: Sharpen Your Slicing Skills
Getting PBIs down to 3 days or less takes practice—but it’s a skill worth mastering. Great slicing techniques lead to:
Clearer acceptance criteria
Faster feedback
More predictable velocity
Less pressure near the end of the Sprint
You’ll also spend less time arguing about estimates and more time delivering value.
🏆 Want to Master This Skill?
Don’t miss your chance to become the user story maestro your team needs.
🎯 Register for “Amazing Stories! 1” today
Your essential guide to writing effective, clear, and sprint-ready user stories.
You’ll learn:
How to slice user stories without losing context
The secrets of truly “ready” PBIs
Real-world examples that transform your backlog immediately
👉 Sign up now and give your team the clarity and flow they’ve been missing.
