The English term backlog means "order backlog" or "backlog of work" and generally refers to a dynamic list of collected tasks, features or requirements that are waiting to be processed.
In project management, the term backlog generally describes all project-related tasks that still need to be completed. In agile project management, a distinction is made between a product backlog and a sprint backlog.
Product backlog
In software development, the term product backlog refers to all the requirements collected for the software to be developed and is generally used in connection with the agile Scrum process model.
Each piece of software to be developed has exactly one product backlog and one product owner. It is important to note that a product backlog is never complete, as it only contains requirements that are best understood, especially at the start of development. In addition to the requirements, a product backlog also includes bugs that need to be fixed or necessary improvements in the form of user stories, epics or tasks. All backlog items should have a precise description, a priority and an effort estimate.
The prioritization of the so-called backlog items is carried out by the product owner - often in collaboration with the development team. As already mentioned, the backlog is never complete and must be regularly maintained by the product owner, as existing backlog items often have to be reprioritized due to new requirements or new tasks are added as a result. At the same time, the descriptions of the individual requirements are adjusted, as backlog items with higher priorities ideally have an even more detailed and finer description than those with lower priorities. It is therefore important to note that this is a dynamic list that is changed and adapted and should therefore not be confused with a requirement or functional specification.
Sprint backlog
The sprint backlog contains project tasks that are selected from the product backlog and are to be implemented in the next sprint in order to achieve the sprint goal. All tasks are assigned statuses so that completed tasks are also marked as such. This enables the team to recognize the progress of the development at any time and at the same time maintain an overview of the overall progress. The individual items are realized and updated by the development team.
Further information:
https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scrum#Product_Backlog
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