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Requirement
CREATED BY ANONYMOUS, CREATIVE COMMONS LICENSEDragon1 Definition for
Requirement:
A requirement is an explicit description of a need, demand, or expectation from a stakeholder, used as a basis for the design, implementation, validation, and management of a system, process, or architecture within an organization.
Let us define Requirements
What is a requirement, and are there types of requirements? How do you visualize requirements? Please read it here!
Definition
A requirement is an explicit description of a need, demand, or expectation from a stakeholder, used as a basis for the design, implementation, validation, and management of a system, process, or architecture within an organization.
Requirements specify what a solution must achieve and under which conditions, without immediately defining how to realize it. They are fundamental for guiding design decisions, setting priorities, and validating outcomes.
Common types of requirements include:
- Business Requirements: Strategic organizational goals.
Example: Increase customer satisfaction by 20% within six months.
- User Requirements: Needs and expectations of end users.
Example: The user must be able to edit their profile.
- Functional Requirements: Specific functionalities the system must perform.
Example: The employee must be able to search for customers.
- Non-functional Requirements: Quality attributes like performance, security, and availability.
Example: The system must respond within 2 seconds.
- Architecture Requirements: Constraints and guidelines derived from architecture principles.
Example: The system must be compatible with the existing ERP infrastructure.
Effective requirements are usually defined using the SMART principle: Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, and Time-bound.
Dragon1 Requirement Map linking business goals to requirements, and requirements to capabilities and IT systems.
Usage
Requirements are used to:
- Validate and guide architecture designs
- Trace business needs to technical solutions
- Support the practical application of architecture principles
- Justify visual models and architecture decisions
Requirements are documented, for example, in an Architecture Repository and linked to entities like actors, processes, capabilities, and systems. This ensures traceability and consistency throughout the architecture development process.
Typical visualizations in Dragon1 involving requirements include:
- Requirement Maps
- Capability Maps
- Enterprise Architecture Diagrams
Requirement Visualizations
Visualization Example:
The system must maintain an uptime of at least 99.5% per month.
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