Latest Requirements Buzz

Engineering Security Requirements
Most requirements engineers are poorly trained to elicit, analyze, and specify security requirements, often confusing them with the architectural security mechanisms that are traditionally used to fulfill them. They thus end up specifying architecture and design constraints rather than true security requirements.

Gathering Software Requirements - Identify the Right Approvers
We mentioned previously in this section that a Statement of Work (SOW) embedded in the contract for a project will serve as the master blueprint for your requirements. Although we haven't consistently stated this disclaimer everywhere in this section it should be understood that no requirement, no matter how you gathered it, no matter who contributed it, no matter who approves it, can be a part of the required product unless it's stated or implied in the SOW! Keep this fact in mind when you identify the approvers of your requirements.

Requirements Visualization: A New Trend?


Requirements Gathering - Choosing the Right Tools
The intent of this section is to offer you some insight into the various requirements gathering tools available and the factors you need to consider when choosing which to use for your project. You'll need to take training in the use of these tools before becoming proficient in their use. The nature of the software application or web site your project will deliver will influence your decision on which requirements gathering tools to use. Other factors that will influence your decision are the number and type of business users, customer service reps, and maintenance people and their locations....

Eliminating Ambiguity from Your Requirements
From a developer's standpoint, few things are more frustrating than having to make lots of calls and research to learn what to create because the requirements are ambiguous. From an analyst's view, few things are more frustrating than having your requirements misunderstood. Yet so often, requirements are ambiguous to their readers, despite the writer's best efforts.

Creating a Software Requirements Document
 In order to successfully evaluate and select a packaged software application you must first clearly identify the functionality that you are looking for in the product. A Software Requirements Document specifically identifies and documents the overall business purpose for the software and includes a more detailed listing of the functional modules, and the general and technology requirements for the software.

Business Requirements Should Drive Technology Investments
A business-driven technology strategy articulates the capabilities required for the success of an organization. To align your business-technology investments with your business strategy, you should focus on the type of value you want to create Decisions on business-technology investments require structured thinking about what the business wants to achieve. This clear understanding of business requirements dictates the business-technology plans and investments needed to execute the company’s business strategy.  

Ensuring Requirements Gathering Success in an Agile Environment
Quality requirements contribute to the success of agile and traditional project management projects. The requirements definition process followed in a traditional project management framework and the features-based storyboarding that is typical of agile approaches are different, but they also have many similarities. The actual process used to define and gather requirements may be different, but the criteria for quality requirements remain constant. What are these similarities and differences in the process of gathering requirements? What happens to the role of the business analyst in an agile ...

Customer Requirements Creep
The cancellation of the presidential helicopter brought everyone out of the wood work. The article's key point was "failure to manage requirements on the part of the government is a key cause of the cancellation." What started out as a $6.8B program grew to a $13B program. The president was quoted as saying "The helicopter I have now seems perfectly adequate."

4th International Workshop on Visualization in Requirements Engineering
Topics of interest include experience papers, formal methods, emerging technologies, best practices, research proposals, evaluations and comparisons that focus on visualization techniques for requirements engineering activities.