Managing stories with front end and backend

[Abhijit Kulkarni]

Hi champs,

I have stories those involved front end and backend development. Wanted to understand the best approach

Approach one - Create a single user story that aligns with the INVEST criteria. Create 2 sub tasks, one for Front end and one for Back end. You are free to assign each sub ask to different developers

Approach 2 - Create 2 different stories, one for Front end and one for Back end and assign these to different developers

[Bill Sheboy · Accepted solution]

Hi @Abhijit Kulkarni 

What problem are you trying to solve?  Knowing that may help the community to provide better suggestions.  Thanks!

And...IMHO there are no "best practices", only better and worse ones, depending on what you are trying to accomplish and how the team collaborates.

For example, if your team is trying to use agile ideas of reducing WIP and focusing team capacity on delivering value, a third approach would be to use one user story.  The team may swarm as they can help (e.g., FE dev, BE dev, etc.), perhaps pairing and mobbing to spread knowledge, reduce rework, and together complete the request sooner.  Then who is assigned to which pieces is less relevant as the team is delivering value.

Kind regards,
Bill

[Abhijit Kulkarni]

Thanks a lot! That really helps

[Gunjan Jeena]

I would normally advise that if both parts (frontend and backend) are required to deliver the same value to the end-user, it is better to create one user story for both frontend and backend with two subtasks for each of them. This will keep an emphasis on the goal itself and not the separate steps that will lead to the accomplishment of the user story.
In case the frontend and backend can be delivered separately or in different sprints, it is also fine to have two separate stories. In any case, it should be up to you to choose the most convenient way.