Requirements Elicitation
Purpose
Extract complete, unambiguous requirements from user specifications, identifying what needs to be built while clarifying unclear or missing information.
When to Use
- •Analyzing new feature requests
- •Processing enhancement specifications
- •Breaking down large features into components
- •Identifying missing information in requirements
Key Capabilities
- •Extract Requirements - Identify functional and non-functional requirements
- •Clarify Ambiguities - Flag unclear specifications and ask targeted questions
- •Identify Constraints - Find technical, business, and resource limitations
Approach
- •Read entire specification thoroughly
- •Extract explicit requirements (stated clearly)
- •Identify implicit requirements (assumed but not stated)
- •Flag ambiguities and inconsistencies
- •Document acceptance criteria for each requirement
Example
Context: Feature request to "add export functionality"
Approach:
- •What formats? (CSV, JSON, PDF?)
- •What data to export? (All fields or subset?)
- •Who can export? (All users or admins only?)
- •Size limits? (Max rows, file size?)
- •Output: Clear requirements with acceptance criteria
Best Practices
- •✅ Ask "what" questions, not "how"
- •✅ Document assumptions explicitly
- •✅ Create testable acceptance criteria
- •❌ Avoid: Making technical implementation decisions