Requirements: Elicit Them from Stakeholders, Do Not Assume Them
Vague requirements are a leading source of change and rework.
- Elicit — Collect from sources
- Analyze — Remove conflicts and prioritize
- Document — Clear testable wording
- Validate and trace — Confirm with owners and link to deliverables
Requirements are what the project must deliver to meet stakeholder needs. They pass through elicitation from their sources, analysis and prioritization, documentation in clear testable form, and validation with their owners. Vague or unagreed requirements are a leading source of change and rework. They are traced via a traceability matrix linking each requirement to its source and deliverable.
Assuming requirements instead of eliciting them from stakeholders. Instead, collect and validate them with their owners.
Elicit requirements, document them clearly, then validate them.
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Requirements are a bridge between stakeholder need and project deliverable, and controlling them prevents the biggest cause of change. It starts with elicitation through interviews, workshops, observation, and surveys, then analysis to remove conflicts, prioritize, and distinguish essential from desirable. Then documentation in clear, measurable, testable wording that avoids ambiguity. Then validation with owners to ensure it truly expresses their need. A requirements traceability matrix links each requirement to its source and corresponding deliverable, ensuring full coverage and preventing items with no reference. This discipline reduces later change and rework.
Frequently asked questions
What are requirements?
What the project must deliver to meet stakeholder needs.
How are requirements collected?
Through interviews, workshops, observation, surveys, and document analysis.
What is a requirements traceability matrix?
A tool linking each requirement to its source and deliverable to ensure coverage.
Why document requirements clearly?
Ambiguity causes change and rework; clear testable wording reduces both.
What is the difference between an essential and a desirable requirement?
Essential is needed for project success; desirable is an enhancement prioritized later.