Conventional Requirements Model Flaw Misses REAL Business Requirements
by Robin F. Goldsmith, JD
A fundamental flaw in the widely-held conventional model of requirements creates much of creep and other requirements difficulties. This flaw involves misunderstanding of the nature and role of REAL business requirements. The term “REAL” relates to requirements in two ways. The first way is widely recognizable and is represented in lower-case. People think they know what the requirements are and then learn differently and must revise their requirements definition. Thus, the “real” requirements are what one ends up with, as opposed to what one may have thought initially.
The second use of “REAL” warrants distinguishing with upper case because it represents breakthrough awareness that REAL requirements are business requirements, which are in business terms and are what must be delivered to provide value.
| Attachment | Size |
|---|---|
| Conventional Requirements Model Flaw Misses REAL Business Requirements.pdf | 158.75 KB |
Did the pencils have erasers on the end?
OK, no one has to answer that, really...
Its about this point in discussions where I am still sure I am producing useful outputs that say what a solution must do to be effective for the business paying for it, without specifying that solution... but that (for a moment or two, maybe more) I have no idea what to call that output anymore. I repeat my favourite back-up definition of a Requirement: "I know one when I see one."
Now, for what I do most of the time, I will slightly contradict myself when I say it is Information System Requirements I am producing. That does already presume that an Information system is what you want, but certainly does not dictate what form that system will take given the myriad technology and product choices available these days. I humbly suggest that most of what we talk about at this RQNG site is Information System Requirements.
But if you have not made the assumption that you are going deliver an Information System, then you do need another adjective to stick in front of 'Requirements'. 'Business' works for me, at least at this moment(!).
Here's a related plug for which I gain no direct benefit: as I said earlier, I have access to Robin's book on-line, through a service my company pays for called Books 24-7, from a company whose name is Skillport. No russian novels, its a business site, lots of IT and general business titles, like Wieger's requirements books. Skillport is also an e-learning company, again a mix of IT and general topics. So, check it out. Don't know what it costs, but we still have it, so it can't be extravagant.
David Wright
Member, IIBA
"It is difficult to get a man to understand something when his salary depends upon his not understanding it.." ...Upton Sinclair