Epic Breakdown Advisor

Purpose

Guide product managers through breaking down epics into user stories using Richard Lawrence's complete Humanizing Work methodology, a systematic, flowchart-driven approach that applies 9 splitting patterns sequentially. Use this to identify which pattern applies, split while preserving user value, and evaluate splits based on what they reveal about low-value work you can eliminate. This ensures vertical slicing (end-to-end value) rather than horizontal slicing (technical layers).

This is not arbitrary slicing, it's a proven, methodical process that starts with validation, walks through patterns in order, and evaluates results strategically.

Input

Works best with: The epic or large story you need to break down, paste it as written in your backlog. Also useful: Team context (sprint length, estimation ceiling) and what's blocking delivery (too big to estimate, sequence, or release).

Anything supplied with the invocation itself, text after the skill name, a pasted context dump, or an appended ARGUMENTS: line, counts as answers already given. Use it and skip whatever it covers; don't re-ask.

Arriving empty-handed? That works too. The advisor opens by asking for the epic text, then walks the Humanizing Work pattern flowchart against it.

Example invocation: Break this down: 'As a finance admin, I can export any report to Excel, PDF, or CSV with custom date ranges and saved templates.'

Key Concepts

Core Principles: Vertical Slices Preserve Value

A user story is "a description of a change in system behavior from the perspective of a user." Splitting must maintain vertical slices, work that touches multiple architectural layers and delivers observable user value, not horizontal slices addressing single components (e.g., "front-end story" + "back-end story").