Customer Value

Each requirement should carry a customer satisfaction and customer dissatisfaction rating. (See Figure 14.5.) The satisfaction rating measures how happy your client (or a panel of stakeholders) will be if you successfully deliver the requirement; the dissatisfaction rating measures how unhappy the client will be if you fail to deliver the requirement.

Figure 14.5.

The satisfaction and dissatisfaction scales measure your client's concern about whether requirements are included in the final product. A high score on the satisfaction scale indicates that the client is happy that the requirement will be successfully delivered; a high score on the dissatisfaction scales indicates that the client is very unhappy that the requirement is not to be included in the product.

The satisfaction and dissatisfaction ratings indicate the value of the requirement to your client. They are normally appended to each requirement, although you may elect to attach the ratings to each product use case as a measure of the client's value for the successful delivery of that part of the work.

The client normally determines the satisfaction and dissatisfaction ratings. If the client is paying for the development of the product, then it stands to reason that he should be the one to put a value on the requirements. Some organizations prefer to have a small group of the principal stakeholders assign the ratings.

The satisfaction and dissatisfaction ratings are the best mechanism your client has to let you know which requirements are the most valuable.

The satisfaction and dissatisfaction ratings are the best mechanism your client has to let you know which requirements are the most valuable. Use these ratings to communicate with your client or the other stakeholders and to encourage them to tell you the value they place on each requirement. If your client or your stakeholders have trouble assigning ratings to the requirements, then you must do it yourself and check their reactions. Naturally, the value you place on a requirement may be very different to that of your client. Ultimately, the stakeholders must bear the responsibility of the wrong requirements being implemented if they do not participate in this exercise.

Consider the value of a requirement after it has been rated. For example, if a requirement scores 5 for satisfaction and 5 for dissatisfaction, then your client really wants that requirement. However, if a requirement scores 2 and 2, then the client doesn't care if this requirement does not make it to the final product. Requirements with low values should be either dropped from the specification or put into the Waiting Room (section 26 of the specification template) until the next release of the product.

For more on customer value ratings, refer to Pardee, William J. To Satisfy and Delight Your Customer. Dorset House, 1996.