Determine Project Purpose (Process Notes 1.2.1)


This task is to ask, "What do we want this system for?", but not to say how we will achieve it. The system purpose is a clear, unambiguous, measurable statement of precisely what product your client wants to get at the end of the project. It should consist of a short statement, one or two sentences at most, or a few bulleted points.

The real intention of this task is to ask, "Is this project feasible?" If you cannot state the objective so that all stakeholders agree with it, then the project cannot achieve anything worthwhile. Similarly, you must be able to state the purpose such that you will know when you have achieved it. If your words demonstrate the criteria to be used to measure the purpose, then they will be strong and clear.

Failure to make a suitable statement of the system purpose means that you should seriously consider abandoning or deferring the project until your stakeholders can agree.

Each system purpose statement should contain the following:

  • A short description of the purpose (try to describe it in one sentence)

  • The benefit to be gained from the purpose (ask why the client has the purpose)

  • A measurement of the fit criterion that you will apply to determine whether the benefit, and thus the purpose, has been met




Mastering the Requirements Process
Mastering the Requirements Process (2nd Edition)
ISBN: 0321419499
EAN: 2147483647
Year: 2006
Pages: 371

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