name: 'step-03-success' description: 'Define comprehensive success criteria covering user, business, and technical success'

Path Definitions

workflow_path: '{project-root}/_bmad/bmm/workflows/2-plan-workflows/prd'

File References

thisStepFile: '{workflow_path}/steps/step-03-success.md' nextStepFile: '{workflow_path}/steps/step-04-journeys.md' workflowFile: '{workflow_path}/workflow.md' outputFile: '{planning_artifacts}/prd.md'

Task References

advancedElicitationTask: '{project-root}/_bmad/core/workflows/advanced-elicitation/workflow.xml'

partyModeWorkflow: '{project-root}/_bmad/core/workflows/party-mode/workflow.md'

Step 3: Success Criteria Definition

Progress: Step 3 of 11 - Next: User Journey Mapping

MANDATORY EXECUTION RULES (READ FIRST):

🛑 NEVER generate content without user input
📖 CRITICAL: ALWAYS read the complete step file before taking any action - partial understanding leads to incomplete decisions
🔄 CRITICAL: When loading next step with 'C', ensure the entire file is read and understood before proceeding
✅ ALWAYS treat this as collaborative discovery between PM peers
📋 YOU ARE A FACILITATOR, not a content generator
💬 FOCUS on defining what winning looks like for this product
🎯 COLLABORATIVE discovery, not assumption-based goal setting
✅ YOU MUST ALWAYS SPEAK OUTPUT In your Agent communication style with the config {communication_language}

EXECUTION PROTOCOLS:

🎯 Show your analysis before taking any action
⚠️ Present A/P/C menu after generating success criteria content
💾 ONLY save when user chooses C (Continue)
📖 Update frontmatter stepsCompleted: [1, 2, 3] before loading next step
🚫 FORBIDDEN to load next step until C is selected

COLLABORATION MENUS (A/P/C):

This step will generate content and present choices:

A (Advanced Elicitation): Use discovery protocols to develop deeper insights about success metrics
P (Party Mode): Bring multiple perspectives to define comprehensive success criteria
C (Continue): Save the content to the document and proceed to next step

PROTOCOL INTEGRATION:

When 'A' selected: Execute {project-root}/_bmad/core/workflows/advanced-elicitation/workflow.xml
When 'P' selected: Execute {project-root}/_bmad/core/workflows/party-mode/workflow.md
PROTOCOLS always return to this step's A/P/C menu
User accepts/rejects protocol changes before proceeding

CONTEXT BOUNDARIES:

Current document and frontmatter from previous steps are available
Executive Summary and Project Classification already exist in document
Input documents from step-01 are available (product briefs, research, brainstorming)
No additional data files needed for this step
Focus on measurable, specific success criteria
LEVERAGE existing input documents to inform success criteria

YOUR TASK:

Define comprehensive success criteria that cover user success, business success, and technical success, using input documents as a foundation while allowing user refinement.

SUCCESS DISCOVERY SEQUENCE:

1. Begin Success Definition Conversation

Check Input Documents for Success Indicators: Analyze product brief, research, and brainstorming documents for success criteria already mentioned.

If Input Documents Contain Success Criteria: "Looking at your product brief and research, I see some initial success criteria already defined:

From your brief: {{extracted_success_criteria_from_brief}}

From research: {{extracted_success_criteria_from_research}}

From brainstorming: {{extracted_success_criteria_from_brainstorming}}

This gives us a great foundation. Let's refine and expand on these initial thoughts:

User Success First: Based on what we have, how would you refine these user success indicators:

{{refined_user_success_from_documents}}
Are there other user success metrics we should consider?

What would make a user say 'this was worth it' beyond what's already captured?"

If No Success Criteria in Input Documents: Start with user-centered success: "Now that we understand what makes {{project_name}} special, let's define what success looks like.

User Success First:

What would make a user say 'this was worth it'?
What's the moment where they realize this solved their problem?
After using {{project_name}}, what outcome are they walking away with?

Let's start with the user experience of success."

2. Explore User Success Metrics

Listen for specific user outcomes and help make them measurable:

Guide from vague to specific: NOT "users are happy" → "users complete [key action] within [timeframe]"
Ask about emotional success: "When do they feel delighted/relieved/empowered?"
Identify success moments: "What's the 'aha!' moment?"
Define completion scenarios: "What does 'done' look like for the user?"

3. Define Business Success

Transition to business metrics: "Now let's look at success from the business perspective.

Business Success:

What does success look like at 3 months? 12 months?
Are we measuring revenue, user growth, engagement, something else?
What metric would make you say 'this is working'?

Help me understand what success means for your business."

4. Challenge Vague Metrics

Push for specificity on business metrics:

"10,000 users" → "What kind of users? Doing what?"
"99.9% uptime" → "What's the real concern - data loss? Failed payments?"
"Fast" → "How fast, and what specifically needs to be fast?"
"Good adoption" → "What percentage adoption by when?"

5. Connect to Product Differentiator

Tie success metrics back to what makes the product special: "So success means users experience [differentiator] and achieve [outcome]. Does that capture it?"

Adapt success criteria to context:

Consumer: User love, engagement, retention
B2B: ROI, efficiency, adoption
Developer tools: Developer experience, community
Regulated: Compliance, safety, validation
GovTech: Government compliance, accessibility, procurement

6. Smart Scope Negotiation

Guide scope definition through success lens: "The Scoping Game:

What must work for this to be useful? → MVP
What makes it competitive? → Growth
What's the dream version? → Vision

Challenge scope creep conversationally:

Could that wait until after launch?
Is that essential for proving the concept?

For complex domains, include compliance minimums in MVP."

7. Generate Success Criteria Content

Prepare the content to append to the document:

Content Structure:

When saving to document, append these Level 2 and Level 3 sections:

## Success Criteria

### User Success

[Content about user success criteria based on conversation]

### Business Success

[Content about business success metrics based on conversation]

### Technical Success

[Content about technical success requirements based on conversation]

### Measurable Outcomes

[Content about specific measurable outcomes based on conversation]

## Product Scope

### MVP - Minimum Viable Product

[Content about MVP scope based on conversation]

### Growth Features (Post-MVP)

[Content about growth features based on conversation]

### Vision (Future)

[Content about future vision based on conversation]

8. Present Content and Menu

Show the generated content and present choices: "I've drafted our success criteria and scope definition based on our conversation.

Here's what I'll add to the document:

[Show the complete markdown content from step 7]

What would you like to do? [A] Advanced Elicitation - Let's dive deeper and refine these success metrics [P] Party Mode - Bring in different perspectives on success criteria [C] Continue - Save success criteria and move to User Journey Mapping (Step 4 of 11)"

9. Handle Menu Selection

If 'A' (Advanced Elicitation):

Execute {project-root}/_bmad/core/workflows/advanced-elicitation/workflow.xml with the current success criteria content
Process the enhanced success metrics that come back
Ask user: "Accept these improvements to the success criteria? (y/n)"
If yes: Update content with improvements, then return to A/P/C menu
If no: Keep original content, then return to A/P/C menu

If 'P' (Party Mode):

Execute {project-root}/_bmad/core/workflows/party-mode/workflow.md with the current success criteria
Process the collaborative improvements to metrics and scope
Ask user: "Accept these changes to the success criteria? (y/n)"
If yes: Update content with improvements, then return to A/P/C menu
If no: Keep original content, then return to A/P/C menu

If 'C' (Continue):

Append the final content to {outputFile}
Update frontmatter: add this step to the end of the steps completed array
Load ./step-04-journeys.md

APPEND TO DOCUMENT:

When user selects 'C', append the content directly to the document using the structure from step 7.

SUCCESS METRICS:

✅ User success criteria clearly identified and made measurable ✅ Business success metrics defined with specific targets ✅ Success criteria connected to product differentiator ✅ Scope properly negotiated (MVP, Growth, Vision) ✅ A/P/C menu presented and handled correctly ✅ Content properly appended to document when C selected

FAILURE MODES:

❌ Accepting vague success metrics without pushing for specificity ❌ Not connecting success criteria back to product differentiator ❌ Missing scope negotiation and leaving it undefined ❌ Generating content without real user input on what success looks like ❌ Not presenting A/P/C menu after content generation ❌ Appending content without user selecting 'C'

❌ CRITICAL: Reading only partial step file - leads to incomplete understanding and poor decisions ❌ CRITICAL: Proceeding with 'C' without fully reading and understanding the next step file ❌ CRITICAL: Making decisions without complete understanding of step requirements and protocols

DOMAIN CONSIDERATIONS:

If working in regulated domains (healthcare, fintech, govtech):

Include compliance milestones in success criteria
Add regulatory approval timelines to MVP scope
Consider audit requirements as technical success metrics

NEXT STEP:

After user selects 'C' and content is saved to document, load ./step-04-journeys.md to map user journeys.

Remember: Do NOT proceed to step-04 until user explicitly selects 'C' from the A/P/C menu and content is saved!

step-03-success.md 10 KB Histórico Raw