microsoft/hve-core
Publicmirrored fromhttps://github.com/microsoft/hve-coreAvailable
docs/agents/github-backlog/sprint-planning.md
121lines · modecode
| 1 | --- |
| 2 | title: Sprint Planning Workflow |
| 3 | description: Organize triaged issues into milestones with priority sequencing and capacity awareness |
| 4 | author: Microsoft |
| 5 | ms.date: 2026-02-12 |
| 6 | ms.topic: tutorial |
| 7 | keywords: |
| 8 | - github backlog manager |
| 9 | - sprint planning |
| 10 | - milestones |
| 11 | - github copilot |
| 12 | estimated_reading_time: 5 |
| 13 | --- |
| 14 | |
| 15 | The Sprint Planning workflow organizes triaged issues into milestones, sequences work by priority, and produces execution-ready handoff files that map issues to their target sprint. |
| 16 | |
| 17 | ## When to Use |
| 18 | |
| 19 | * 📅 Starting a new sprint or release cycle and need to assign issues to milestones |
| 20 | * 🎯 Issues have been triaged but lack milestone assignments |
| 21 | * 🔄 Rebalancing work across milestones after scope changes or team adjustments |
| 22 | * 📋 Creating milestone structure for a new project or repository |
| 23 | |
| 24 | ## What It Does |
| 25 | |
| 26 | 1. Reads triage output to understand issue classification and priority levels |
| 27 | 2. Discovers existing milestones or recommends new ones based on issue patterns |
| 28 | 3. Maps issues to milestones considering priority, dependencies, and grouping |
| 29 | 4. Sequences work within each milestone based on priority assessment and blocking relationships |
| 30 | 5. Produces a sprint plan with milestone assignments and a handoff file for execution |
| 31 | |
| 32 | > [!NOTE] |
| 33 | > Sprint planning does not create milestones automatically. It recommends milestone assignments in a handoff file that the execution workflow applies after your review. |
| 34 | |
| 35 | ## Milestone Discovery |
| 36 | |
| 37 | The workflow follows a structured approach to milestone management: |
| 38 | |
| 39 | 1. Queries the repository for existing open milestones with due dates |
| 40 | 2. Maps triaged issues to milestones by area label and priority |
| 41 | 3. Identifies issues that fit no current milestone and recommends creating new ones |
| 42 | 4. Checks milestone capacity using issue count and priority distribution |
| 43 | 5. Flags milestones that appear overloaded relative to their due date |
| 44 | 6. Produces a milestone map showing current and recommended assignments |
| 45 | |
| 46 | This process ensures sprint plans build on existing repository structure rather than creating parallel tracking systems. |
| 47 | |
| 48 | ## Output Artifacts |
| 49 | |
| 50 | ```text |
| 51 | .copilot-tracking/github-issues/sprint/<milestone-kebab>/ |
| 52 | ├── sprint-analysis.md # Milestone mapping and capacity review |
| 53 | ├── sprint-plan.md # Recommended assignments and sequencing |
| 54 | └── handoff.md # Execution-ready handoff with checkboxes |
| 55 | ``` |
| 56 | |
| 57 | The sprint plan includes reasoning for each milestone assignment, making it possible to adjust recommendations before execution applies them. |
| 58 | |
| 59 | ## How to Use |
| 60 | |
| 61 | ### Option 1: Prompt Shortcut |
| 62 | |
| 63 | ```text |
| 64 | Plan the next sprint for microsoft/hve-core using my latest triage results |
| 65 | ``` |
| 66 | |
| 67 | ```text |
| 68 | Assign milestones to all triaged issues without milestone assignments |
| 69 | ``` |
| 70 | |
| 71 | ### Option 2: Direct Agent |
| 72 | |
| 73 | Start a conversation with the GitHub Backlog Manager agent and reference your triage output. The agent reads the triage analysis and handoff files, then builds a sprint plan based on current milestone structure. |
| 74 | |
| 75 | ## Example Prompt |
| 76 | |
| 77 | ```text |
| 78 | Plan sprint assignments for microsoft/hve-core. Use the v2.1 milestone for |
| 79 | high-priority bugs and the v2.2 milestone for enhancements. Create a new |
| 80 | "documentation-refresh" milestone for any docs-area issues without a milestone. |
| 81 | ``` |
| 82 | |
| 83 | ## Tips |
| 84 | |
| 85 | ✅ Do: |
| 86 | |
| 87 | * Run triage before sprint planning so issues have consistent labels and priorities |
| 88 | * Review milestone capacity recommendations before approving assignments |
| 89 | * Use the sequencing output to identify blocking chains within a milestone |
| 90 | * Adjust milestone assignments in the handoff file before passing to execution |
| 91 | |
| 92 | ❌ Don't: |
| 93 | |
| 94 | * Plan sprints without triaged issues (issues that lack triage metadata produce unreliable plans) |
| 95 | * Ignore capacity warnings for milestones approaching their due date |
| 96 | * Create milestones through sprint planning when they should be created through repository settings |
| 97 | * Assume the workflow sees private milestones (verify MCP token permissions) |
| 98 | |
| 99 | ## Common Pitfalls |
| 100 | |
| 101 | | Pitfall | Solution | |
| 102 | |----------------------------------------|-------------------------------------------------------------------------| |
| 103 | | Issues assigned to closed milestones | The workflow flags these for reassignment; review before execution | |
| 104 | | Milestone names don't match repository | Verify milestone names in the handoff match existing milestones exactly | |
| 105 | | Priority conflicts within a milestone | Review the sequencing recommendations and adjust priority labels first | |
| 106 | | Too many issues for a single milestone | Split across milestones or re-prioritize lower-priority items out | |
| 107 | |
| 108 | ## Next Steps |
| 109 | |
| 110 | 1. Review the sprint plan and handoff file for accuracy |
| 111 | 2. Proceed to the [Execution workflow](execution.md) to apply milestone assignments |
| 112 | |
| 113 | > [!TIP] |
| 114 | > For teams with fixed sprint cadences, create milestones in advance through repository settings. Sprint planning works best when it maps to existing milestones rather than recommending new ones. |
| 115 | |
| 116 | --- |
| 117 | |
| 118 | <!-- markdownlint-disable MD036 --> |
| 119 | *🤖 Crafted with precision by ✨Copilot following brilliant human instruction, |
| 120 | then carefully refined by our team of discerning human reviewers.* |
| 121 | <!-- markdownlint-enable MD036 --> |
| 122 | |