Do you think story points are truly useful or just a formality for managers?

Story points are a tool for estimating the complexity and volume of work in Agile, helping teams plan sprints and forecast timelines.

Benefits of story points:

• Separation of estimation from time. Instead of hours, the relative complexity of a task is estimated, reducing pressure and increasing planning accuracy.
• Accounting for uncertainty. Story points consider not only the volume of work but also risks, unknowns, and difficulty.
• Comparative analysis. They allow comparing tasks with each other and tracking team performance (velocity).

However, if story points become a formality, for example, when estimates are made formally without discussion, or are used only for reporting to managers, their value diminishes.

Ultimately, story points are truly useful if the team understands their meaning and uses them to improve planning and communication. If they are just bureaucracy, they lose their meaning and become a formality.