Short note: Requirement gathering methods

Requirement gathering (elicitation) is the activity of finding out what the users and stakeholders need from the system. Common methods are:

1. Interviews - Direct questions to users and managers, structured or open. Gives detailed and personal information, but is time-consuming.
2. Questionnaires/Surveys - Written questions to many users. Good for large groups and statistics; answers are less detailed.
3. Observation (Ethnography) - Watching users do their work in the real setting. Shows what people actually do, including things they forget to say.
4. Document analysis - Studying existing forms, reports, manuals, rules and the old system.
5. Joint Application Development (JAD) / Workshops - Structured meetings of users, analysts and developers to agree on requirements quickly.
6. Brainstorming - A group generates many ideas freely and filters them later.
7. Prototyping - A quick working mock-up is shown to users; their feedback clarifies unclear requirements.
8. Use cases and scenarios - Describe interactions between actors and the system step by step; the standard way in OOA.
9. Domain/market study and focus groups - Compare similar systems and discuss with a selected group of users.

A mix of methods is normally used. The results are written as use cases and a Software Requirements Specification (SRS), and are checked with the stakeholders (validation).