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.
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| Conventional Requirements Model Flaw Misses REAL Business Requirements.pdf | 158.75 KB |
REAL business requirements are whats that solve a problem
The business need is to solve a problem, take an opportunity (which usually means solving someone else’s problem), or meet a challenge (which becomes a problem if not met).
The first step is accurately identifying the REAL problem. Most people are much poorer at this than they realize, which is one of the main reasons they keep having creep and don’t improve appreciably. Convetional wisdom tells them to focus on their solution rather than getting the problem right. The discipline of the Problem Pyramid™ helps to define the REAL problem accurately and in the process often reveals just how hard it is to do so.
Business/user requirements are the deliverable business whats that when delivered/accomplished/satisfied/met provide value by solving the REAL business problem. Business requirements are not generated but rather must be discovered. They exist within the business (using the term broadly) environment. There usually are many possible ways of meeting the REAL business requirements. A product or system (again using the term broadly) is one of the possible ways.
Telephones, radios, and computers all represent products/systems which provide value if and only if they meet REAL business requirements, such as inter-personal communication, broadcasting, and storing and manipulating data. For each of these successful products, consider how many equally fine products never caught on because they either didn’t meet a REAL business requirement or the people with said requirements never identified the product as appropriate for them.
For example, the dot.com bust occurred largely because there was never any apparent value (i.e., no REAL business requirements being satisfied) from going to their wonderful websites. Much of advertising starts with creating awareness/articulation of one’s REAL business requirements and then positioning the product as a way to satisfy the requirements. What does the presence of pretty girls in an ad tell us about what REAL requirements drinking a particular brand of beer is supposedly satisfying?