Stakeholder requests aren’t backlog items

Why internal product owners should filter requests before they commit the team

A stakeholder asks for a new report.

If you own an internal product, you’ve probably seen what happens next. The request gets turned into a ticket and added to the backlog. It gives the stakeholders an answer and it feels safer than saying no.

But automatically creating a backlog item is actually not the best first step.

A report request may be a sign that someone can’t get the information they need. It may point to a real problem with the product. But the report itself is still only one proposed answer.

When every request goes directly into the backlog, the backlog stops representing product decisions. It becomes a collection of stakeholder proposals waiting for a team to sort them out later.

A request tells you something. It doesn’t tell you everything.

People usually ask for changes in the language of solutions. When they ask you for a new report, they’re wording the request based on their understanding of how the system works. They may not realize that there may be other ways to get the information they seek without creating an entirely new report.