Requirements Management

This chapter starts by defining the concepts of requirements and stakeholders. Then we describe what types of requirements can exist in a project. The relationships between these requirements are presented in the form of a pyramid. The concept of traceability is introduced (which require-ment is derived from which). Characteristics of a good requirement are presented. Examples of problematic requirements are given, together with some guidelines on how to fix them. General steps in requirements management (RM) during the project lifecycle are shown. The main steps navigate through the requirements pyramid from top to bottom. 1.1 Definition of a Requirement and a Stakeholder A requirement is defined as “a condition or capability to which a system must conform. ” It can be any of the following: • A capability needed by a customer or user to solve a problem or achieve an objective • A capability that must be met or possessed by a system to satisfy a contract, standard, specification, regulation, or other formally imposed document • A restriction imposed by a stakeholder Let’s define a concept of a stakeholder because this word occurs many times in this book.