{"id":2144,"date":"2020-03-05T14:55:27","date_gmt":"2020-03-05T19:55:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/polarion\/?p=2144"},"modified":"2026-03-26T05:40:31","modified_gmt":"2026-03-26T09:40:31","slug":"adding-agility-to-your-requirements-management","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.sw.siemens.com\/polarion\/adding-agility-to-your-requirements-management\/","title":{"rendered":"Adding Agility To Your Requirements Management"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Software development in general is a complex process, as such it must be developed in accordance to expectations, needs and ultimately the requirements of the product. However, when it comes to defining and managing these requirements, traditional waterfall and v-model approaches to software development differ quite significantly in comparison to Agile methods. The Agile manifesto<\/a>, the corner stone of Agile software development puts an emphasis on reducing documentation. Subsequently, organizations leveraging Agile methodologies put less of an importance on requirements definition and management. However, this is how things fall apart Christopher Lindquist states in CIO Magazine, \u201cFixing the Requirements Mess,\u201d \u201cAs many as 71% of (embedded) software projects that fail, do so because of poor requirements management, making it the single biggest reason for project failure.\u201d Project failure leads to wasted investments, excess cost, and lost revenue. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

With this knowledge in hand, let’s examine at how to do requirements management the Agile way i.e. right way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

TRY OUT POLARION FOR FREE<\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Agile Vs Traditional Software Development<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

As outlined above,\none of the core principles of the Agile manifesto<\/a> states that working software is imperative\nover comprehensive documentation, it never states that documentation or\nplanning is not required or useful for software development. As a result, real\nworld implementations of Agile methodologies use an adaptive planning method\nwhile the traditional methods of software development require planning and\ndocumentation to prepared weeks, and sometime months in advance of development.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Documentation<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

As such, the\nentire purpose of agile requirements management in comparison to traditional\nrequirements management should be to eliminate excess documentation that\nhindering the process and leave only what\u2019s essential and adds value to the\nproduct development process.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, what\u2019s\nessential and how do you define requirements?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Defining Requirements<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The bare minimum\nin defining requirements is to have a simple product requirements document (PRD)<\/a>. This document should address what is\nto be developed, its features, functionalities and how it\u2019s supposed to behave.\nBut what good is a document that sits somewhere and does nothing. The key to\nAgile software development is collaboration and communication. Agile methodologies\nplace an emphasis on a shared understanding between stakeholders and technical\nteams. If both sides understand each other, it becomes easier and more seamless\nto get the requirements right. Therefore, you need a platform where you can\neasily facilitate communication between stakeholders and development on the PRD.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

COLLABORATE WITH STAKEHOLDERS IN POLARION<\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Defining requirements is the first step, next comes managing requirements. Once you have your requirements defined, how do you manage them? How do you ensure communication with all stakeholder on changes? because changes happen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Communication<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Agile software\ndevelopment focuses on developing working software pieces during predefined period\ntime, usually in 2 weeks cycles aka sprints.  These software pieces can be reviewed by\nanyone involved, including the stakeholders\/product owners themselves.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This brings us to\nanother important distinction between Agile and traditional methodologies. Stakeholder\nare involved in the development process right from the start and remain involved\nthroughout the entire development process unlike traditional v-model or\nwaterfall approaches to software development. As such stakeholder input is consistently\nfed into the development process to help the development team understand the requirements\nregarding software functionality and what it should do. This constant\ncommunication and incremental revision of the requirements during the development\nprocess ensures that what is developed is correct.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

COMMUNICATE BETTER WITH POLARION<\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Another aspect of\nAgile methodologies that fosters increased communication are product backlogs\naka requirements backlogs. These backlogs consist of user\nstories<\/a>,\nwhich are crucial parts of the requirements. In essence they describe software\nfunctionality and amount of time it would take to develop said functionality.\nThe prioritization of this backlog is where stakeholders come in and this is\ncrucial aspect of Agile software development where stakeholders determine\nprioritization of tasks that need to be completed based on their strategy and\nobjectives. The management of requirements in such a way fosters deep communication\nbetween stakeholders and development teams. In other words, requirements are\nbeing added and prioritized to the product backlog in a such a way that\neveryone understands their impact on the upcoming work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"User<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
MANAGE YOUR BACKLOG WITH POLARION<\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n

This way\ndevelopment teams clearly understand the requirements and determine the best\nway to implement them. By further grooming the backlog, technical teams also\nimprove communication and collaboration between themselves. Furthermore, when\nyou consider that stakeholders are always involved, it becomes easier to\ncapture and refine requirements along the way. That way you can guarantee that\nthe project won’t end up in disarray due to the misunderstandings of project\ngoals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Summary<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Agile methodologies\nhave been at the forefront of software development for a long time now and have\nalready proven themselves. Software development is a dynamic process, traditional\nmethods simply lack the transparency needed for product requirements to be\nintegrated seamlessly. This can easily lead to unnecessary delays and increased\ncosts. Moreover, the lack of adaptive flexibility in traditional methods makes\nit difficult for a project to shift from its current course once it’s well\nunderway.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On the other\nhand, the Agile approach fosters ongoing improvements, specific time frames for\ndevelopment cycles and quicker delivery of value to the end users, which makes\nit more appealing. With that in mind, the value from Agile methodologies is a\ndirect result in most part by the clarity and excellence of requirements that\nare fed into the development process and how over time they are clarified\nthrough stakeholder involvement. With an agile approach to requirements early\nin the software lifecycle, the entire process can be made more seamless, to\nbegin with.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

STREAMLINE YOUR PROCESS<\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n

When it comes to agile requirements management, requirements management takes on a new approach that’s focused on value rather than documentation. It focuses on a collaborative environment that will ensure that everyone is on the right page at the right time with the right information regarding software piece that needs to be delivered.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you want to learn more about how to modernize your legacy requirements management tool chain click the button below.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Modernize Your Legacy RM Tool Chain<\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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