How non-functional requirements can be dealt with within the product backlog?

Question

Q: How non-functional requirements can be dealt with within the product backlog?

Answer 1

Non-functional requirements play an important role in the overall product development and delivery. These are the requirements without which the functional part cannot be termed as complete. Let’s first understand what a non-functional requirement is, “Nonfunctional Requirements (NFRs) define system attributes such as security, reliability, performance, maintainability, scalability, and usability. They serve as constraints or restrictions on the design of the system across the different backlogs.” – Scaledagile. There are different ways of handlings such requirements, like:

Create user stories in the backlog – The non-functional requirements can be similar to “constraints” we put on the system. It can be written in the same format as the usual user story.

Inclusion in DoD – The team can add these requirements as part of their definition of Done. If it is one of the parameters in the definition, it will make sure the NFR doesn’t get missed out and the team can keep track of it along with the original story.

Acceptance Criteria – Non-functional requirements may also be articulated as part of Acceptance criteria which are circumstances that a product must fulfill to be accepted by a user, customer or other stakeholders.