Baking Quality In with Definition of Done and Nonfunctional Needs

Nonfunctional requirements—like speed, security, or usability—are often tucked away in long specs, only to surface at the last minute with catastrophic defects. Scrum flips the script: you bake these quality needs into every increment via a Definition of Done.

First, you identify global constraints—your product’s must-have qualities, such as “page loads under 300ms” or “all data encrypted at rest.” You turn each into a constraint card in the backlog. Then, with your team and ScrumMaster, you craft a Definition of Done checklist: unit tests pass, performance benchmarks met, documentation updated, UI sketches approved.

Now, every sprint begins and ends with these nonfunctional needs in view. During grooming you flag stories requiring special attention—an image-filter algorithm under 50ms or a login flow meeting accessibility guidelines. At sprint review you verify each against your definition. Anything left unfinished goes back for immediate refinement, never buried until the end.

This practice prevents late-stage rewrites, crippling tech debt, and brand damage. It transforms nonfunctional requirements from invisible landmines into visible guardrails, guiding your team to consistently ship shippable, high-quality increments.

You’ll list your system’s global quality constraints, work with your team to write a Definition of Done, and attach each constraint to the relevant backlog stories. Then at every sprint review you’ll tick off each criterion before calling any story complete. Give it a try in your next grooming session.