Many teams work with well-written User Stories and still run into uncertainty, delays, or hidden dependencies. A story can be perfectly structured – and still not feasible.
Feasibility is an often overlooked quality criterion in agile product development. It describes whether a team can reliably carry a story – technically, professionally, organizationally, and socially. Feasibility exists when a team has created the conditions to take responsibility, deliver outcomes, and handle risks consciously.
To close this gap, the ZEIG Framework was created. It makes feasibility visible and complements established models like INVEST with a systemic perspective.
What does feasibility mean?
Feasibility answers a simple but crucial question:
Can our team deliver this story in a real, imperfect work environment?
A story is feasible when:
- the team has access to knowledge, people, and systems,
- the decisive factors are within the team’s influence,
- the meaning of the story is understood,
- risks and boundaries are visible.
These four conditions form ZEIG.
What is ZEIG?
ZEIG is a German acronym and literally means “show.” It stands for four conditions that determine whether a team can truly carry a User Story:
- Z – Zugang (Access)
- E – Einfluss (Influence)
- I – Interpretation
- G – Grenzklarheit (Boundary Clarity)
The model was created in German, and the English terms in brackets are the closest equivalents. ZEIG invites teams to “show” that a story is feasible before committing to it.
ZEIG: Four conditions for feasible User Stories
Z – Zugang (Access)
A story is feasible only when all necessary access exists:
- to knowledge and information
- to stakeholders and decision-makers
- to systems, tools, and environments
- to relevant organizational areas
If access is missing, uncertainty grows. The team works in the dark.
E – Einfluss (Influence)
A team can only carry what it can influence. Influence means:
- the key factors are within the team’s reach,
- delivery does not rely on uncontrolled external dependencies,
- decisions are accessible,
- risks are manageable.
Influence is real-world agency – not theoretical independence.
I – Interpretation
Understanding is a prerequisite for feasibility. The team must know:
- what the story actually means,
- what outcome it should create,
- which assumptions are embedded,
- where misunderstandings could arise.
G – Grenzklarheit (Boundary Clarity)
Teams work in real systems with risks, dependencies, and constraints. Boundary Clarity means:
- risks are visible,
- limits are named,
- assumptions are explicit,
- dependencies are understood.
How ZEIG extends INVEST
INVEST is a strong framework for well-formed User Stories:
- Independent
- Negotiable
- Valuable
- Estimable
- Small
- Testable
INVEST answers the question:
“Is this story well written?”
ZEIG answers another question:
“Can the team truly deliver this story?”
A story can meet all INVEST criteria and still fail – because access is missing, influence is weak, meaning is unclear, or risks stay hidden.
ZEIG adds the dimension of real feasibility to INVEST. INVEST creates structure. ZEIG creates realism.
Independent (INVEST) is not Influence (ZEIG)
These two terms often get mixed up, but they address different levels.
Independent describes the logical decoupling of a story. It can stand alone and be delivered on its own.
Influence (Einfluss) describes the team’s actual ability to execute. A story may be logically independent and still not feasible because decisions are blocked, people are unavailable, or organizational limits restrict action.
In short: INVEST makes stories good. ZEIG makes them doable.
The ZEIG Check
Teams can evaluate any story with one question:
“Is this story ZEIG-compliant?”
Z – Zugang (Access)
Do we have access to the required information, people, and systems?
E – Einfluss (Influence)
Can we shape the essential factors ourselves?
I – Interpretation
Do we understand what the story really means?
G – Grenzklarheit (Boundary Clarity)
Are risks, dependencies, and assumptions visible?
Possible outcomes:
- fully feasible
- feasible with conditions
- not feasible
Conclusion
ZEIG reveals whether a story is truly feasible. It extends INVEST with a new dimension: real-world deliverability.
- Zugang (Access)
- Einfluss (Influence)
- Interpretation
- Grenzklarheit (Boundary Clarity)
Four simple criteria. One coherent framework. ZEIG helps teams make honest commitments, handle risks consciously, and deliver more reliably.
INVEST shapes the story. ZEIG ensures the team can carry it.
Related Posts
High-Performance Teams Thanks to Agile Transformation
In an era when companies must constantly face new challenges, effective teamwork plays a crucial role. Here is where Yes and Why GmbH comes in, a consultancy that specializes in transforming less effective teams into high-performance teams through agile transformation. Want to learn more about what an agile mindset truly means? Read our detailed article…
The hidden costs of „Calender-Tetris“
TL;DR If your agile transformation feels like “even more meetings,” that’s often not a mindset problem. It’s a structural one. Frequent context switching creates switching costs. People are busy, but delivery slows down. Scrum can improve this—but only if you don’t pile it on top of project governance. The lever is calendar and coordination design:…
Prime Directive 2025: A modern foundation for safe and effective retrospectives
Modern teams need a Prime Directive that goes beyond good intentions. The new version creates real learning space: safe, confidential and grounded in clear ethics.
ZEIG: A New Framework for Truly Feasible User Stories
Many teams work with well-written User Stories and still run into uncertainty, delays, or hidden dependencies. A story can be perfectly structured – and still not feasible. Feasibility is an often overlooked quality criterion in agile product development. It describes whether a team can reliably carry a story – technically, professionally, organizationally, and socially. Feasibility…
Subscribe Here!