Lists / Prioritization / Project Management / Requirements / Software requirements specification

Prioritizing requirements – three techniques

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Now that we’ve gathered all these requirements, how do we determine which ones to do first?

The less we know about our client’s business, the more the requirements appear to be equivalent. We’ll talk about three different approaches to prioritizing requirements.

1. Classical. Let stakeholders assign priority to the requirements.
2. Exhaustive. Explore every nuance of prioritization and its application to requirements.
3. Value-based. Let ROI drive the decisions. (hint: this is the best one – scroll down if you’re in a real hurry)
4. [bonus]. A look at how 37signals prioritizes features for their products.

Communication / Consulting / Lists / Presentation / Process Improvement / Requirements / Requirements gathering / Software requirements specification

Brainstorming – Making Something Out of Everything

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Previously, we talked about brainstorming as one of the best elicitation techniques for gathering requirements. Here are some details about how to facilitate a general brainstorming session with a group of people in 5 easy steps (and then another 5 easy steps). Seven to ten people is a good number […]

Communication / Consulting / Requirements / Requirements gathering / Software requirements specification

How To Interview When Gathering Requirements

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We previously stressed the importance of understanding why something is a requirement. Unfortunately, we can’t just ask “why why why?!” until we reach the end of the chain. This won’t be any more effective for us now than it was when we were in kindergarden. Eventually, our listeners will get frustrated, or worse, defensive.