Product Owner: Validation

Router command that validates stories or features meet their requirements.

Key distinction: Validation verifies the implementation meets requirements (PO concern). Testing verifies it works correctly (Dev concern).

Routing

Input	Strategy
story <path>	Story Validation
feature <id>	Feature Validation
<path> (auto-detect)	Detect from path pattern

Path Detection

• .hefesto/features/*/stories/* → Story
• .hefesto/features/* (no /stories/) → Feature

---

Strategy: Story Validation

Trigger: po:validate story <path> or auto-detected story path

Prerequisites

• Story status must be dev_documented (dev has written technical docs)

Process

1. Load Requirements:

   • Read user-story.md for acceptance criteria
   • Read parent prd.md for context
   • Read dev-documentation.md for implementation details

2. Validate Each Acceptance Criterion:

   • Identify verification method (code review, test, manual)
   • Verify the criterion is met
   • Document evidence

3. Validate Scenarios:

   • Given → verify precondition can be established
   • When → verify action works
   • Then → verify outcome matches

4. Create Validation Report: {story_path}/po-validation.md

# PO Validation Report: {Story Title}

## Metadata
- **Story**: {story_id}
- **Validated By**: {validator}
- **Date**: {timestamp}
- **Result**: APPROVED / NEEDS_CHANGES

## Acceptance Criteria Validation

### AC-1: {Criterion Text}
- **Status**: ✅ PASS
- **Verification**: Manual check / Test review
- **Evidence**: {how verified}

### AC-2: {Criterion Text}
- **Status**: ❌ FAIL
- **Verification**: Manual check
- **Issue**: {what's wrong}
- **Recommendation**: {how to fix}

## Scenario Validation

### Scenario 1: {Name}
| Step | Expected | Actual | Status |
|------|----------|--------|--------|
| Given | ... | ✅ | PASS |
| When | ... | ✅ | PASS |
| Then | ... | ✅ | PASS |

## Issues Found

| Issue | Severity | Recommendation |
|-------|----------|----------------|
| ... | High/Med/Low | ... |

## Decision

**APPROVED** / **NEEDS_CHANGES**

{Rationale}

5. Update Status:
   • If approved: story status → po_validated
   • If needs changes: keep status, log issues

Output

✅ Story Validation: APPROVED

Story: {title}
Acceptance Criteria: 5/5 passed
Scenarios: 3/3 validated

Report: {story_path}/po-validation.md

→ Next (PO): po:document story {story_path}

---

Strategy: Feature Validation

Trigger: po:validate feature <id> or auto-detected feature path

Prerequisites

• All stories must be po_validated
• Feature must be feature_tested (dev integration tests passed)

Process

1. Load Feature Context:

   • Read feature.json
   • Read prd.md
   • Read all story validation reports

2. Validate PRD Requirements:

   • For each FR in PRD, verify implementation
   • Check all NFRs are met
   • Verify nothing is missing

3. Holistic Assessment:

   • User experience coherence
   • Error handling consistency
   • Edge case coverage

4. Create Feature Validation Report: .hefesto/features/{id}/po-feature-validation.md

# PO Feature Validation: {Feature Title}

## Metadata
- **Feature ID**: {id}
- **Validated By**: {validator}
- **Date**: {timestamp}
- **Result**: APPROVED / NEEDS_CHANGES

## Requirements Validation

### Functional Requirements

#### FR-001: {Name}
- **Stories**: 001, 002
- **Status**: ✅ FULLY MET
- **Evidence**: {verification}

#### FR-002: {Name}
- **Stories**: 003
- **Status**: ⚠️ PARTIALLY MET
- **Gap**: {what's missing}

### Non-Functional Requirements

| NFR | Specification | Actual | Status |
|-----|---------------|--------|--------|
| Performance | < 500ms | 120ms avg | ✅ |
| Security | Auth required | Verified | ✅ |

## Scope Assessment

### In-Scope Verification
- [x] All PRD items implemented

### Scope Creep
- None detected / {list extras}

### Gaps
- None detected / {list gaps}

## User Experience Review

- [ ] Feature feels cohesive
- [ ] Error messages are user-friendly
- [ ] Consistent with application style

## Decision

**APPROVED** / **NEEDS_CHANGES**

{Rationale and conditions}

5. Update Status:
   • If approved: workflow.feature_validated → true

Output

✅ Feature Validation: APPROVED

Feature: {title}
Requirements: 8/8 met
Stories: 5/5 validated

Report: .hefesto/features/{id}/po-feature-validation.md

→ Next (PO): po:document feature {id}

---

Validation vs Testing

Aspect	Testing (Dev)	Validation (PO)
Focus	Does it work?	Does it meet requirements?
Owner	Developer	Product Owner
Artifacts	Test results	Validation report
Criteria	Pass/Fail tests	Acceptance criteria