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Agile Work Hierarchy Reference

Work Item Definitions

🧱 Task

  • Smallest unit of execution.
  • Represents how something gets done.
  • Tied directly to one Story.
  • Examples: Implement API endpoint, write unit tests, update stylesheets.

📗 Story

  • Represents the what and why.
  • Contains user requirements and acceptance criteria.
  • May contain multiple Tasks.
  • Follows user story format: "As a [user], I want [goal], so that [reason]."

📘 Epic

  • A collection of related Stories.
  • Often spans multiple sprints.
  • Helps organize broader features or capabilities.

🗂 Initiative

  • Strategic goal involving multiple Epics.
  • Aligned with business objectives or large-scale project phases.

Work Tracking Model

Initiative → Epic → Story → Task
  • Initiatives group Epics across teams.
  • Epics organize related Stories.
  • Stories define outcomes and value.
  • Tasks show specific technical steps.
Work Item Hierarchy Overview

Here is the Work Item Hierarchy Overview:

graph TD
    subgraph Initiative 1
        I1E1[Epic]
        I1E2[Epic]
        I1S1["Story: 'What?' & 'Why?'"]
        I1S2["Story: 'What?' & 'Why?'"]
        I1T1["Task: 'How?'"]
        I1T2["Task: 'How?'"]
        I1T3["Task: 'How?'"]
        I1T4["Task: 'How?'"]
        I1E1 --> I1S1
        I1E2 --> I1S2
        I1S1 --> I1T1
        I1S1 --> I1T2
        I1S2 --> I1T3
        I1S2 --> I1T4
    end

    Initiative1[Initiative 1] --> I1E1
    Initiative1 --> I1E2

Key Differentiator

Stories = What & Why (Requirements & Acceptance Criteria)\ Tasks = How (Implementation to prove the requirements are met)

This reference may be updated as our workflow evolves.