An Awesome Guide To Requirements Elicitation: What To Do Before The Event

To Elicit Is To…

Listen, not dictate

Probe, not interrogate

Discuss, not assume

Observe, not accept, and

Evoke, not suppress,

in order to find out what the business truly needs.

Organising or facilitating a requirements elicitation event is one of the most critical phases of any software implementation project, no matter how big or small. Where requirements are not comprehensive, complete or accurate, the project will most certainly not deliver on anticipated benefits and will fail to meet the expectations of business stakeholders from day one. To avoid project failure, it is extremely important to plan for elicitation events effectively so that any anticipated difficulties can be nipped in the bud.

What makes requirements elicitation so difficult?

A snapshot representing the difficulties of requirements elicitation from the perspectives of stakeholders and analysts is shown in the diagram below:

Typical Challenges of Requirements Elicitation

Typical Challenges of Requirements Elicitation

One key aspect of effective planning is visualization - the exercise of seeing the success in your mind including the fine details of how to get there.

For quick tips on how to increase the chances of your requirements elicitation event (Brainstorming sessions, workshop sessions, etc) through effective planning and visualisation, download BAL’s first ebook: