user-story
Translate user needs into development-ready stories with Mike Cohn format and Gherkin acceptance criteria.
- Combines "As a / I want / so that" user story structure with "Given / When / Then" acceptance criteria for testable, outcome-focused work
- Includes quality checks and anti-patterns to avoid generic personas, vague outcomes, and scope creep
- Designed for backlog grooming, sprint planning, and shared understanding between product, engineering, and QA
- Emphasizes stories as conversation starters, not locked contracts; includes guidance on when to split oversized stories
Purpose
Create clear, concise user stories that combine Mike Cohn's user story format with Gherkin-style acceptance criteria. Use this to translate user needs into actionable development work that focuses on outcomes, ensures shared understanding between product and engineering, and provides testable success criteria.
This is not a feature spec—it's a conversation starter that captures who benefits, what they're trying to do, why it matters, and how you'll know it works.
Key Concepts
The Mike Cohn + Gherkin Format
A user story combines:
Use Case (Mike Cohn format):
- As a [user persona/role]
- I want to [action to achieve outcome]
- so that [desired outcome]
Acceptance Criteria (Gherkin format):
- Scenario: [Brief description of the scenario]
- Given: [Initial context or preconditions]
More from deanpeters/product-manager-skills
prd-development
Build a structured PRD that connects problem, users, solution, and success criteria. Use when turning discovery notes into an engineering-ready document for a major initiative.
1.7Kroadmap-planning
Plan a strategic roadmap across prioritization, epic definition, stakeholder alignment, and sequencing. Use when turning strategy into a release plan that teams can execute.
1.5Kcompany-research
Create a company research brief with executive quotes, product strategy, and org context. Use when preparing for interviews, competitive analysis, partnerships, or market-entry work.
1.3Kproduct-strategy-session
Run an end-to-end product strategy session across positioning, discovery, and roadmap planning. Use when a team needs validated direction before committing to execution.
1.2Kprioritization-advisor
Choose a prioritization framework based on stage, team context, and stakeholder needs. Use when deciding between RICE, ICE, value/effort, or another scoring approach.
1.1Kuser-story-mapping
Create a user story map that lays out activities, steps, tasks, and release slices. Use when planning a workflow, backlog, or MVP around the user journey.
1.1K