• Inch-Pebble Project Scheduling: Managing Concerns

  September 7, 2008

  
  

• Governance Thinking - Structure of Program Management Governance

  September 6, 2008

  
  

• Effects of Project Risks on Organization

  September 6, 2008

  
  

• Risk Management Process

  September 6, 2008

  
  

• Initiating Phase - Feasibility Study Request and Report

  September 6, 2008

  
  

• Build Training Time Into The Schedule

  September 5, 2008

  
  

• Powering Past the Post-PMP® Syndrome

  September 5, 2008

  
  

• Definition of Crashing (In Project Management Terms)

  September 5, 2008

  
  

• Project Resource Requirements

  September 5, 2008

  
  

• Initiating Phase - Project Specifications Request

  September 5, 2008

  
  

Managing Requirements

April 3, 2008 | Author: admin | Filed under: Scope Management, Communications Management, Project Scope Management, Requirements Management

Managing Requirements
By Manny Sequeira

“Analysts report that as many as 71% of software projects that fail do so because of poor requirements management, making it the single biggest reason for project failure” - CIO magazine

Managing requirements on software development projects has always been critical to the success of these types of projects. The tools and methods around these are well documented (try Google-ing “Requirement Management Tools”). However, Managing Requirements is rarely appears as an activity on system implementation projects.

System implementation methodologies will include the definition of requirements. For example, the SAP ASAP methodology (now incorporated in SAP Solution Manager) includes this during the Blueprinting Phase. However, this and most other implementation methodologies, assume that these requirements will not change. And in a perfect world, they will not, and you can design, develop, test and implement a business solution based on these stated requirements.

However, the world is not perfect!

People change their minds for many reasons, and do so on a regular basis. They’ll be working with an existing system and realize that they missed a requirement. Or, during system build they’ll realize that what they asked for really isn’t what they want after all. If you try to “freeze” the requirements early in the lifecycle you pretty much guarantee that you won’t build what people actually need, instead you’ll build what they initially thought they wanted. That’s not a great strategy for success.

Requirements management involves establishing and maintaining agreement between the business and the project team on both system and business related requirements. This agreement forms the basis for estimating, planning, performing, and tracking project activities throughout the project and for maintaining and enhancing the developed solution. Key activities include:

• planning the requirements phase
• establishing the requirements process
• controlling requirements changes
• minimizing the addition of new requirements (scope creep)
• tracking progress - tracing built-to requirements against original requirements
• resolving issues with customers and developers
• holding requirements reviews

Ensuring that requirements are managed in projects assures that the system that is implemented most closely supports business requirements; and thus has the greatest chance of success.

Manny Sequeira is a project manager with Clarkston Consulting with significant international experience in project management and ERP systems implementation, primarily in consumer products, process manufacturing & retail industries. Clarkston Consulting has offices across North America and Europe and focus on Consumer Products and Life Sciences verticals. Manny runs Improve Your Business containing, a blog containing a selection of articles, ideas and scribblings of interest to people who want to improve their businesses with talented people, world class processes and appropriate technologies - no matter what size the business.

Related Articles

• Managing Scope
• Managing Small Projects
• Managing Change to Estimates
• Managing Project Risks and Issues
• Managing the Thing: Project Definition Part 1

This entry was posted on Thursday, April 3rd, 2008 and is filed under Scope Management, Communications Management, Project Scope Management, Requirements Management. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

feel free to leave a comment

Comment Guidelines: Basic XHTML is allowed (a href, strong, em, code). All line breaks and paragraphs are automatically generated. Off-topic or inappropriate comments will be edited or deleted. Email addresses will never be published. Keep it PG-13 people!

XHTML: You can use these tags: <a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <code> <em> <i> <strike> <strong>

All fields marked with " * " are required.

Name: *
Email (will never be displayed): *
URL:
Your comments: *
Remember my information for the next time I visit.

• Agile Project Management
• Certification
  •  >> CAPM
  •  >> ITIL
  •  >> PMP
• Change Management
• Communications Management
  •  >> Communications Planning
  •  >> Information Distribution
  •  >> Performance Reporting
  •  >> Project Closure
• Computer Based Information Systems
  •  >> Project Collaboration
• Concepts
  •  >> Project Lifecycle Phases
  •  >> Project Stakeholder Mgmt
  •  >> Role of the Project Manager
• Corporate Transformation
• Cost Management
  •  >> Cost Estimating
  •  >> Economic Evaluation
• Critical Chain Project Management
• Delegation
• History
• HR Management
  •  >> Organizational Structures
  •  >> Team Building
• Implementing Project Management
  •  >> PM Implementation Plan
• Integration Management
  •  >> Change Control
  •  >> Project Management Framework
  •  >> Project Plan Development
• Lessons Learned
• Management
• Miscellaneous
• People Issues
  •  >> Conflict Management
  •  >> Leadership
  •  >> Motivation
• PMBOK
• PRINCE2
• Procurement Management
  •  >> Contract Administration & Close-out
  •  >> Procurement Plannning
  •  >> Solicitation & Source Selection
• Program Management
• Project Management Advantages
• Project Management Best Practices
• Project Management Charts
• Project Management Definitions
• Project Management Ethics
• Project Management for Beginners
• Project Management Musings
• Project Management Office
• Project Management Proposals
• Project Management Templates
• Project Portfolio Management
• Project Workforce Management
• Quality Management
  •  >> Principles
  •  >> Techniques
• Requirements Management
• Risk Management
  •  >> Risk Identification
  •  >> Risk Quantification & Analysis
  •  >> Risk Response & Control
• Scheduling
  •  >> Normal and Crash Costs
  •  >> Project Plan Refinement
  •  >> Resource Constrained Projects
  •  >> Resource Leveling
• Scope Management
  •  >> Process of Change Control
  •  >> Project Scope Management
  •  >> Scope Change Control
• SCRUM
• Soft Management
• Time Management
  •  >> Activity Definition
  •  >> Activity Duration Estimate
  •  >> Activity Sequencing
  •  >> Critical Path
  •  >> Network Planning
  •  >> Project Milestones
• Training
• Uncategorized