The global skills and competency framework for the digital world

Requirements definition and management REQM

The definition and management of the business goals and scope of change initiatives. The specification of business requirements to a level that enables effective delivery of agreed changes.

Levels

Defined at these levels: 2 3 4 5 6

Requirements definition and management: Level 1

This skill is not typically observed when working at this level of responsibility.

Requirements definition and management: Level 2

Uses established techniques as directed to identify current problems and elicit, specify and document business functional, data and non-functional requirements for simple subject areas with clearly-defined boundaries. Assists in more complex requirements activities and with the processes for establishing agreed baselines for change and managing the assessment and application of requested changes to those requirements.

Requirements definition and management: Level 3

Defines scope and business priorities for small-scale changes and may assist in larger scale scoping exercises. Elicits and discovers requirements from operational management and other stakeholders. Selects appropriate techniques for the elicitation of detailed requirements taking into account the nature of the required changes, established practice and the characteristics and culture of those providing the requirements. Specifies and documents business requirements as directed, ensuring traceability back to source. Analyses them for adherence to business objectives and for consistency, challenging positively as appropriate. Works with stakeholders to prioritise requirements.

Requirements definition and management: Level 4

Facilitates scoping and business priority-setting for change initiatives of medium size and complexity. Contributes to selection of the most appropriate means of representing business requirements in the context of a specific change initiative, ensuring traceability back to source. Discovers and analyses requirements for fitness for purpose as well as adherence to business objectives and consistency, challenging positively as appropriate. Obtains formal agreement by stakeholders and recipients to scope and requirements and establishes a base-line on which delivery of a solution can commence. Manages requests for and the application of changes to base-lined requirements. Identifies the impact on business requirements of interim (e.g. migration) scenarios as well as the required end position.

Requirements definition and management: Level 5

Facilitates scoping and business priority setting for large or complex changes, engaging senior stakeholders as required. Selects the most appropriate means of representing business requirements in the context of a specific change initiative. Drives the requirements elicitation process where necessary, identifying what stakeholder input is required. Obtains formal agreement from a large and diverse range of potentially senior stakeholders and recipients to the scope and requirements, plus the establishment of a base-line on which delivery of a solution can commence. Takes responsibility for the investigation and application of changes to programme scope. Identifies the impact on business requirements of external impacts affecting a programme or project.

Requirements definition and management: Level 6

Determines policy on discovery, analysis and documentation of requirements. Defines requirements standards and quality targets for an organisation in agreement with key stakeholders. Organises scoping and business priority setting for strategic business changes involving business policy-makers and direction setters.

Requirements definition and management: Level 7

This skill is not typically observed when working at this level of responsibility.