1

Choose Appropriate Persona

• Select a scenario from the list slated for the next iteration or choose a scenario that is architecturally significant. Open the scenario template in Microsoft Word and save the document using the scenario name to distinguish it from the other scenarios written so far.
• Select the persona who most likely performs the scenario. If many personas perform the scenario, choose one of them arbitrarily. Write in the scenario document that this is the primary persona for the scenario.
• Check to see if the scenario is the same for each persona. If other personas approach the problem (from the product perspective) in the same way as the primary persona, write their names in the alternate personas section of the scenario document. The primary persona will be used in the scenario description.
• If a persona requires different functionality, add a new scenario entry for that persona to the scenario list or write a scenario for each primary persona.

2

Write Scenario

• Write the scenario in the description section of the scenario document. Starting from the beginning, describe each step that the persona performs as they use the product to accomplish their goal. Provide minimal descriptions of steps that are written in previous scenarios that do not differentiate this scenario from previous scenarios. Be specific when writing steps that do differentiate this scenario from others.
• To make the scenario easy to read, start a new paragraph at each decision point within the area that highlights the differentiating factors. A decision point is a point in which the persona makes a key decision in using the product. It is not necessary to use this guideline in areas that have been covered by previous scenarios.
• Describe the path through the product as a single train of thought. Capture the actions of the primary persona and consider what that person would do when faced with the decisions that the product would ask them to make.
• Describe product behavior at a high level. The storyboard can often be used to capture the remainder. Describe persona behavior at a detailed level.
• Document the goal (the best case scenario) and any sources that the scenario was derived from. Save the scenario document and upload it to the project portal. Attach the scenario document to the scenario work item.

3

Split Scenario

• Optional
• If the impact analysis indicates that a scenario is too large to be implemented in a single iteration, it is a candidate to be split. To split a scenario, create new smaller scenario work items that represent parts of the large scenario. The large scenario is now the parent scenario of the new smaller scenarios. Each new scenario must still maintain a complete path through the product.
• Link the parent scenario work item to the new scenario work items. Also, link the new scenario work items to the parent work item. Determine the differentiating factors for each new scenario. Create two or more scenario documents from the scenario template.
• Create a new scenario document using the scenario template for each new scenario work item. In the scenario document, write the new differentiating factors. Save the scenario documents with a unique name or with the parent scenario name and additional information describing the split.
• Attach the new scenario documents to their respective scenario work items.
• Open the scenarios list and import the new scenario work items so that the scenarios list is up-to-date.

Scenarios capture all of the external behavior of the product and the interactions with the personas in the area of the differentiating factors.