Use Cases

This page is intended to tell you more about the most common Smart Checklist use cases.

Definition of Done Checklists

The Definition of Done (DoD) combines a list of tasks that have to be completed by a team for a product increment to be officially considered as Done. The DoD checklist is usually compiled at the beginning of a sprint and is used by both software and QA engineers, and Product Owners.

With so many people being involved in the DoD checklist creation and management, one has to ensure that it is fully accessible to all team members. What's even more important, it has to be integrated into the existing software development workflow.

Railsware addressed the above-mentioned points by allowing organizations to use Smart Checklist as a Jira plugin.

So, Product Owners can use it to review an Issue progress by accessing the results from the Agile board view. In addition, they do not have to worry about leaving one of the DoD criteria out, since the Smart Checklist validation feature will not allow for the ticket status change while there is at least one incomplete item on the list. Development teams can use it to plan their activities, make proper estimations of time and resources that are required for a specific task. Moreover, Smart Checklist enables adding details to every item on the list, and so - ensuring that an executor gains a much deeper understanding of the full scope of works.

It is worth mentioning that Smart Checklist allows to create the DoD checklist templates and use them across all tickets per project.

Definition of Done Example:

You Type	You Get

You Type

You Get

# Definition of Done - Code produced (all ‘to do’ items in code completed) - Code commented, checked in and run against current version in source control - Peer reviewed (or produced with pair programming) and meeting development standards - Builds without errors - Unit tests written and passing - Deployed to system test environment and passed system tests - Passed UAT (User Acceptance Testing) and signed off as meeting requirements - Any build/deployment/configuration changes implemented/documented/communicated - Relevant documentation/diagrams produced and/or updated - Remaining hours for task set to zero and task closed

Open

Acceptance Criteria Checklists

The Acceptance Criteria, in turn, provides a set of clearly defined conditions that a system should meet in order to be accepted by a user. The Acceptance Criteria can be applied at either Epic, Story, or Feature Level. Quality Assurance specialists can use the Acceptance Criteria checklists as the initial information for the creation of detailed test scenarios.

Indeed, it is so easy for a user to make sure that a product is ready for release by going through the Acceptance Criteria list and checking off the items that satisfy the previously identified ‘pass’ results. Just like Trello, Smart Checklist supports Markdown syntax formatting, which is very much appreciated by our customers who are in the process of transferring from Trello to Jira, and are looking for a Jira-based alternative to Trello checklists.

Acceptance Criteria Example:

You Type	You Get

You Type	You Get
# Acceptance criteria - **Given** my bank account is in credit, and I made no withdrawals recently, > **When** I attempt to withdraw an amount less than my card's limit, > **Then** the withdrawal should complete without errors or warnings	Open

User Story Implementation Plan Checklists

Companies apply the Agile User Story approach in order to review the expectations an end-user has from the system. To define a User Story, the following formula may be applied: ‘A user’ wants ‘this functionality’ in order to get this ‘benefit’. User Stories facilitate communication across the team and bring in an in-depth understanding of the system they are building. Unlike requirements, User Stories are less formal, providing just a general overview of the feature.

After a User Story is finalized, a dev team creates a detailed Implementation Plan, which will include all steps that have to be completed in order to deliver this Story. In this case, Smart Checklist may be used to document the core points as checklist headlines, mentioning the additional tasks as individual items in the group.

Each User Story item may contain the Acceptance Criteria details which will be checked against by a Product Owner.

Business Processes and other ToDo Lists

Below is the brief list of points which one can review in order to understand whether Smart Checklist is something that you would use for your project:

• You have a defined list of things that have to be performed on a task.

• You are involved in handling the repeatable tasks/processes.

• You work with a lot of data that has to be processed (collected or analyzed).

• You are looking for a good way to better organize your tasks and keep track of their progress.

• The steps you have to complete as part of the project or task do not require going into details and so - creating subtasks.

ToDo List Example:

Release Checklist example:

Onboarding is a standard process that happens and repeats every time a new person joins the company. If you are working at an organization with a number of internal policies and procedures in place, most likely that the onboarding process will take time and involve some actions from the Human Resources department. In order to make sure that everything goes well, you can create a Smart Checklist template for Onboarding and use it for every new employee that comes in.

One may also be involved in recurring projects that have to do with consultancy services. For example, before providing a potential client with a quote, one has to hold a preliminary interview and ask a lot of questions about their business. A clear list of checkboxes will help this particular employee structure the conversation, maintain the focus, and collect the data required for the consultant to come up with a relevant for this customer offer.

Some Smart Checklist customers deploy the tool to handle frequent Service Desk tickets that may arrive once a week. The Smart Checklist user creates a ticket, imports the ready template, and, by checking off every item on the list, ensures that the task is closed on the very day.