How to Clean and Manage a Bloated Product Backlog
As a Scrum Product Owner, I am responsible for maintaining a neatly ordered and clean product backlog. I’m sure you’ve read the Scrum Guide and know what this entails. I won’t get into the specifics, as I assume you have a fundamental understanding of Scrum and the product backlog as an artifact.
Let me tell you a story. Forget about theory for a moment—you’ll learn how to deal with a bloated product backlog if you land a new role and inherit an enormous backlog that you must manage, organize, and defend.
This happened to me. I joined an awesome team but inherited a product backlog that was a complete mess—full of technical tasks with no priority, old product ideas from a former Product Owner, quick notes, and all sorts of random items. Some tasks were even written in a different language, not in English. Others had just a title that made no sense to me and were created by former employees—some of whom I had never met.
Now, let’s face it: you cannot move forward and do quality product work with a messy backlog that keeps accumulating random ideas and good user stories for implementation.
What do Santa’s long wishlist and your product backlog have in common?
Some stakeholders believe that the product backlog is where every single idea should go so that it’s not forgotten.
WRONG! I’m heartbroken every time I hear this. But that’s okay—remember, as a Product Owner, your job is to be a product ambassador and defend your product and its goals. This means educating stakeholders and coaching them where necessary.
I’d love to clear the air, so here are some common misconceptions you can use to educate your team—even in a way that your grandma would understand!
What is a Product Backlog?
The Product Backlog is one of the core elements in Scrum. It includes all the business-critical elements that have been identified to develop a software product. The backlog consists of prioritized product backlog items (PBIs) that contribute to the development and evolution of the product.
What is a Product Roadmap?
The Product Roadmap is a structured approach to organizing major implementation themes over time. It is closely tied to the product vision and strategy. If you don’t have a product vision, do yourself a favor—get to know your product inside out and work on crafting one.
A lack of a clear, inspiring product vision is the number one reason why product backlogs turn into chaos. Without a shared vision between the Product Owner, stakeholders, and development team, your backlog will be a dumping ground instead of a strategic tool. Evaluate every idea against the product vision, and only add backlog items that contribute to reaching that vision.
A product roadmap provides a strategic direction for the next quarter or year. It’s a tool that helps align stakeholders and development teams to define, build, and advance the product.
Why Do I Need a Product Backlog Then?
The Product Backlog is the bridge that translates your Product Roadmap into actionable development tasks. Note that I said "implementation" because it covers both UX/UI and development. Every item in your product backlog must have a Definition of Done (DoD) and should contribute a small increment of value to the product.
Common Misconceptions About the Product Backlog
Everything we want to do—whether from a workshop, a client request, or a manager’s whim—belongs in the backlog. WRONG! If you don’t defend this, you’ll constantly be cleaning up your backlog instead of focusing on real priorities.
All "green" ideas that need product discovery should go into the backlog. NO! Ideas requiring further validation belong in a separate product discovery backlog or idea repository.
The backlog should include technical debt, tasks, and confirmed development items. YES. However, random "Why not try X?" ideas should not be in your backlog until they are validated.
The Marathon Product Backlog Cleanup
When I first saw my inherited backlog, it had nearly 600 tasks! A mix of random ideas, outdated stories, and tasks with no context. How do you tame a beast like that?
1. Attack the Epics First
Group everything by epics and re-evaluate their value. If an epic’s purpose isn’t clear and the person who created it has left the company, purge it.
If an epic no longer aligns with the strategy, move it to your "ideas backlog." You can use a simple Trello board, an Excel sheet, or a platform like UserVoice to organize and track ideas separately.
2. Organize Ideas in a Centralized Repository
In B2B, stakeholders generate tons of ideas, just like customers do in B2C. These ideas will come from calls, chats, client meetings, and random conversations.
Your job is to manage the overflow of ideas, look for patterns, and extract valuable insights to help the business grow.
Educate stakeholders on where to submit ideas—whether it’s UserVoice, a Trello board, or an Excel sheet—so they know how ideas are tracked and what happens next.
3. Remove Tasks Without an Epic
If a task has no epic, check its context. If it was created by a former employee and is unclear, archive it.
If it was created 5 years ago, delete it. Use JIRA queries to filter and bulk-delete old, irrelevant tasks.
4. Technical Debt Cleanup
If technical debt tasks are scattered across your backlog, group them into an epic and review them with the engineering team. Decide what should be addressed, merged, or removed.
5. Product Backlog ≠ Personal To-Do List
Do not use JIRA for product discovery work or rough ideas. Keep rough ideas in Confluence and only create JIRA stories once they are confirmed for the next product releases.
6. Label Product Backlog Items for Better Prioritization
A well-ordered backlog is great, but labels add an extra layer of prioritization. Use labels like:
"Mid-term"
"Long-term"
"House on Fire" (critical issues that affect customers or revenue)
"Upcoming Release"
"Key Client"
Final Thoughts: Keep It Clean & Strategic
Categorize to "productize"—every backlog item must have a theme or function.
Use bulk delete for obsolete tasks.
Group technical debt and prioritize it appropriately.
Do not use the product backlog as a playground for random ideas.
Experiment and adapt until you find the best backlog management system for your team.
Don't be afraid to take control of your product backlog—clean it up, defend it, and own your role as a Product Owner!
