This post covers various aspects of Requirements Analysis, such as requirements analysis definition, its process, and various requirements analysis techniques.
What is Requirements Analysis?
Requirements Analysis is the process of defining the users’ expectations for an application to be built or modified. It involves all the tasks conducted to identify the needs of different stakeholders. Therefore, requirements analysis means analyzing, documenting, validating, and managing software or system requirements.
High-quality requirements are documented, actionable, measurable, testable, and traceable, help to identify business opportunities, and are defined to facilitate system design.
Requirements Analysis Process
The software requirements analysis process involves the following steps/phases:
- Eliciting requirements
- Analyzing requirements
- Requirements modeling
- Review and retrospective
1- Eliciting requirements
The process of gathering requirements by communicating with the customers is known as eliciting requirements.
2- Analyzing requirements
This step helps to determine the quality of the requirements. It involves identifying whether the requirements are unclear, incomplete, ambiguous, or contradictory. These issues are resolved before moving to the next step.
3- Requirements Modeling
In Requirements modeling, the requirements are usually documented in different formats, such as use cases, user stories, natural-language documents, or process specifications.
4- Review and retrospective
This step is conducted to reflect on the previous iterations of requirements gathering to improve the process in the future.
Requirements Analysis Techniques:
There are different techniques used for business Requirements Analysis. Below is a list of different business Requirements Analysis Techniques:
- Business process modeling notation (BPMN)
- UML (Unified Modeling Language)
- Flowchart technique
- Data flow diagram
- Role Activity Diagrams (RAD)
- Gantt Charts
- IDEF (Integrated Definition for Function Modeling)
- Gap Analysis
1- Business process modeling notation (BPMN)
This technique is similar to creating process flowcharts, although BPMN has its symbols and elements. Business process modeling and notation are used to create graphs for the business process. These graphs simplify understanding of the business process. BPMN is widely popular as a process improvement methodology.
2- UML (Unified Modeling Language)
UML consists of an integrated set of diagrams created to specify, visualize, construct and document the artifacts of a software system. UML is a valuable technique while creating object-oriented software and working with the software development process. In UML, graphical notations are used to represent the design of a software project. UML also helps in validating the architectural design of the software.
3- Flowchart technique
A flowchart depicts the sequential flow and control logic of a set of activities that are related. Flowcharts are in different formats, such as linear, cross-functional, and top-down. The flowchart can represent system interactions, data flows, etc. Flow charts are easy to understand and can be used by technical and non-technical team members. The flowchart technique helps in showcasing the critical attributes of a process.
4- Data flow diagram
This technique is used to visually represent systems and processes that are complex and difficult to describe in text. Data flow diagrams represent the flow of information through a process or a system. It also includes the data inputs and outputs, data stores, and the subprocess through which the data moves. DFD describes various entities and their relationships with the help of standardized notations and symbols. By visualizing all the elements of the system, it is easier to identify any shortcomings. These shortcomings are then eliminated in a bid to create a robust solution.
5- Role Activity Diagrams (RAD)
Role-activity diagram (RAD) is a role-oriented process model representing role-activity diagrams. Role activity diagrams are high-level view that captures an organization’s dynamics and role structure. Roles are used to group activities together into units of responsibilities. Activities are the essential parts of a role. An activity may either be carried out in isolation or require coordination with other activities within the role.
6- Gantt Charts
Gantt charts are used in project planning as they provide a visual representation of scheduled tasks and timelines. The Gantt charts help to know what is scheduled to be completed by which date. The start and end dates of all the tasks in the project can be seen in a single view.
7- IDEF (Integrated Definition for Function Modeling)
The integrated definition for function modeling (IDEFM) technique represents the functions of a process and their relationships to child and parent systems with the help of a box. It provides a blueprint for gaining an understanding of an organization’s system.
8- Gap Analysis
Gap analysis is a technique that helps to analyze the gaps in the performance of a software application to determine whether the business requirements are met. It also involves the steps that are to be taken to ensure that all the business requirements are met successfully. A gap denotes the difference between the present state and the target state. Gap analysis is also known as need analysis, need assessment, or need-gap analysis.
Summary
For the success of a project, it is of utmost importance to analyze project requirements when they are gathered as well as throughout the lifecycle of the project. Software Requirements analysis helps to keep the requirements in line with the need of the business. A good project requirements analysis process will render a software application that caters to the business’s objectives.
