user-story-mapping
Purpose
Visualize the user journey by creating a hierarchical map that breaks down high-level activities into steps and tasks, organized left-to-right as a narrative flow. Use this to build shared understanding across product, design, and engineering, prioritize features based on user workflows, and identify gaps or opportunities in the user experience.
This is not a backlog—it's a strategic artifact that shows how users accomplish their goals, which then informs what to build.
Key Concepts
The Jeff Patton Story Mapping Framework
Invented by Jeff Patton, story mapping organizes work into a 2D structure:
Horizontal axis (left-to-right): User journey over time
- Backbone: High-level activities the user performs
- Steps: Specific actions within each activity
- Tasks: Detailed work required to complete each step
Vertical axis (top-to-bottom): Priority and releases
- Top rows: Essential tasks (MVP / Release 1)
- Lower rows: Nice-to-have tasks (Future releases)
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