Refinement Notes
Refinement notes capture the outcomes of backlog refinement (grooming) sessions.what was discussed, what was estimated, and what decisions were made. They serve as a quick reference for team members who missed the session and a historical record of how stories evolved from idea to ready-for-sprint.
When to Use
- During refinement sessions to capture decisions in real-time
- After refinement to share outcomes with absent team members
- When onboarding new team members to explain backlog context
- Before sprint planning to review what's been refined
- When stories need re-refinement due to time elapsed
When NOT to Use
- You need the stories themselves written -> use
deliver-user-stories - You need a general meeting summary, not a backlog-refinement record -> use
foundation-meeting-recap - You are running the retrospective ceremony -> use
iterate-retrospective - Refined stories need their failure scenarios enumerated -> use
deliver-edge-cases
Instructions
When asked to document refinement notes, follow these steps:
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Record Session Metadata Note the date, attendees, and duration. This helps track who was part of decisions and when discussions happened.
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List Stories Discussed For each story, capture the outcome: estimated points, refined status, key discussion points, and any modifications made to the original scope.
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Document Questions Raised Questions that couldn't be answered in the session need owners and due dates. Don't let them disappear.they often block sprint planning.
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Capture Decisions Made Record any scope decisions, technical approaches agreed upon, or priority changes. These decisions are valuable context that gets lost without documentation.
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Note Action Items Any follow-up work needed before stories are sprint-ready: mockups to create, technical spikes to run, stakeholders to consult.
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Flag Blocked Stories Clearly identify stories that can't proceed until blockers are resolved. Include what the blocker is and who owns resolution.
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Plan Next Session Note what should be refined next and any preparation needed.
Output Format
Use the template in references/TEMPLATE.md to structure the output. Complete notes fill every template section: Session Info; Summary; Stories Refined; Stories Summary Table; Questions Raised; Decisions Made; Action Items; Blocked Stories; Parking Lot; and Next Session.
Quality Checklist
Before finalizing, verify:
- All discussed stories have outcomes recorded
- Open questions have owners assigned
- Decisions are captured with enough context
- Blocked stories are clearly flagged
- A reader who missed the session can tell each story's outcome and what happens next without asking
Examples
See references/EXAMPLE.md for a completed example.
