Prioritizing Requirements
How are the requirements prioritized?
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Prioritizing requirements is required because not all Business Requirements are created equal. Once you have gathered, written, and classified your Requirements, you must decide which ones have to be implemented and which ones could be dropped. This will not be an easy task, since each stakeholder will have his own views on which Requirements are most important (and some will vow that all Requirements are essential to the project). When prioritizing requirements, categories might look like this:
Mandatory, of course, refers to Requirements that must be implemented. They will be addressed prior to any consideration of the other categories. If the government institutes a new export tax, for example, you must comply and implement the change in your Business Requirements. Desirable refers to Requirements that will be implemented as long as funding allows. These options would be sub-prioritized in order to address the most important items first. For instance, new product notification to customers may be considered more important than order verification. If funding holds out through the Desirable Requirements, Optional Requirements will be implemented. Optional refers to any aspect of Business Requirements that do not impact the functionality of the process. Sub-prioritization may also occur within this category. Prioritization must be a joint effort among all stakeholders. There will be disagreements, but you have to find a way to reach a consensus through Stakeholder Negotiation. Overall, it is essential that you give serious thought to your priorities and work from the top down when implementing Business Requirements.
ClearlyPUT's Requirementing process uses
prioritizing requirements
in it's process. Summary
Once you have gathered, written, and classified your Requirements, you must decide which ones have to be implemented and which ones could be dropped if there should be a shortage of funds. Prioritization is divided into three main groups: mandatory, desirable, and optional. Get input from all stakeholders on what your priorities should be. Work from the top down to implement the most important Business Requirements first.
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