Requirements Elicitation

Requirements Elicitation Skill

Purpose

This skill enables AI assistants to conduct professional requirements elicitation sessions, gathering comprehensive business requirements from stakeholders across various project types (Web, Mobile, ERP, CRM, CDP, E-commerce) using industry-standard techniques.

When to Use This Skill

• Starting a new project or feature development
• Conducting discovery or inception phases
• Gathering requirements for system enhancements
• Understanding business problems and opportunities
• Preparing for BRD/FRS documentation

Core Elicitation Techniques

1. Stakeholder Interviews

Best for: Deep dive into individual perspectives, sensitive topics, executive input

Approach:

• Preparation: Research stakeholder background, role, and pain points
• Structure: Use semi-structured format (prepared questions + flexibility)
• Duration: 45-60 minutes per session
• Question Framework: Use 5W1H (Who, What, When, Where, Why, How)

Question Types:

• Open-ended: "Can you walk me through your current process for...?"
• Probing: "Why is that important to your team?"
• Clarifying: "When you say 'real-time', what timeframe do you mean?"
• Hypothetical: "If you could change one thing about the current system, what would it be?"

STAR Technique (for process understanding):

• Situation: "Describe a typical scenario when you..."
• Task: "What are you trying to accomplish?"
• Action: "What steps do you take?"
• Result: "What's the outcome? What could be better?"

2. Requirements Workshops

Best for: Cross-functional alignment, brainstorming, consensus building

Approach:

• Participants: 6-12 stakeholders from different departments
• Duration: 2-4 hours
• Facilitation: Use visual aids (whiteboards, Figma, Miro)
• Techniques:
  • Brainstorming sessions
  • Affinity mapping (group similar ideas)
  • Dot voting (prioritization)
  • Process walkthroughs

Workshop Agenda Template:

1. Introduction & objectives (10 min)
2. Current state review (30 min)
3. Pain points identification (30 min)
4. Future state visioning (45 min)
5. Requirements brainstorming (45 min)
6. Prioritization exercise (30 min)
7. Next steps & action items (10 min)

3. Document Analysis

Best for: Understanding existing systems, compliance requirements, historical context

Documents to Review:

• Existing system documentation
• Business process manuals
• User guides and training materials
• Compliance and regulatory documents
• Analytics reports and dashboards
• Support tickets and bug reports
• Competitive analysis reports

Analysis Approach:

• Identify gaps between documented and actual processes
• Extract business rules and constraints
• Understand data structures and relationships
• Note assumptions and dependencies

4. Observation & Job Shadowing

Best for: Understanding actual workflows, identifying undocumented processes

Approach:

• Shadow users in their work environment
• Observe without interrupting (take notes)
• Note workarounds and pain points
• Follow up with clarifying questions
• Document the "as-is" process flow

Focus Areas:

• Frequency of tasks
• Time spent on activities
• Tools and systems used
• Handoffs between teams
• Error-prone steps

5. Surveys & Questionnaires

Best for: Gathering input from large user groups, quantitative data

Best Practices:

• Keep surveys short (10-15 questions max)
• Use mix of question types (multiple choice, rating scales, open-ended)
• Ensure anonymity when appropriate
• Set clear deadline for responses
• Analyze and share results

Question Examples:

• Rating: "On a scale of 1-5, how satisfied are you with the current checkout process?"
• Multiple choice: "Which payment methods do you use most frequently?"
• Open-ended: "What's the biggest challenge you face when processing orders?"

6. Prototyping & Mockups

Best for: Validating UI/UX requirements, visual requirements

Approach:

• Create low-fidelity wireframes (Figma, sketches)
• Present to stakeholders for feedback
• Iterate based on input
• Use clickable prototypes for user testing
• Document feedback and requirements

Requirements Categorization

Functional Requirements

Definition: What the system should do

Examples by Domain:

• E-commerce: "System shall allow users to add products to cart", "System shall calculate shipping costs based on destination"
• ERP: "System shall generate purchase orders from approved requisitions", "System shall support multi-currency transactions"
• CRM: "System shall track lead sources and conversion rates", "System shall send automated follow-up emails"
• CDP: "System shall unify customer data from web, mobile, and CRM", "System shall create audience segments based on behavior"
• Mobile/Web: "App shall work offline and sync when connected", "Website shall load in under 3 seconds"

Non-Functional Requirements

Categories:

• Performance: Response time, throughput, scalability
• Security: Authentication, authorization, data encryption
• Usability: User experience, accessibility (WCAG compliance)
• Reliability: Uptime, error handling, disaster recovery
• Compatibility: Browser support, device support, integrations
• Compliance: GDPR, CCPA, SOX, industry regulations

Examples:

• "System shall support 10,000 concurrent users"
• "All sensitive data shall be encrypted at rest and in transit"
• "System shall achieve 99.9% uptime"
• "Mobile app shall support iOS 15+ and Android 12+"

Constraints

Types:

• Technical: Must use existing infrastructure, specific technology stack
• Business: Budget limitations, timeline constraints
• Regulatory: Must comply with specific regulations
• Organizational: Must integrate with existing systems

Domain-Specific Considerations

E-commerce Projects

Key Areas to Explore:

• Product catalog management (variants, attributes, inventory)
• Shopping cart and checkout flow
• Payment gateway integration and security
• Order management and fulfillment
• Customer accounts and profiles
• Promotions and discount rules
• Search and filtering capabilities
• Product recommendations
• Multi-channel selling (web, mobile, marketplace)

Critical Questions:

• "How do you handle inventory across multiple warehouses?"
• "What payment methods must be supported?"
• "How should abandoned carts be handled?"
• "What's the return and refund process?"

ERP Projects

Key Areas to Explore:

• Module scope (Finance, HR, Supply Chain, Manufacturing, etc.)
• Master data management strategy
• Inter-module workflows and integration
• Approval hierarchies and workflows
• Reporting and analytics requirements
• Multi-company/multi-currency needs
• Role-based access control
• Compliance requirements

Critical Questions:

• "What approval levels are required for purchase orders?"
• "How do you handle inter-company transactions?"
• "What financial reports are required for compliance?"
• "How should employee data be structured?"

CRM Projects

Key Areas to Explore:

• Lead capture and qualification process
• Sales pipeline stages and criteria
• Contact and account hierarchies
• Marketing campaign management
• Customer service ticketing
• Integration with email, phone, marketing tools
• Sales forecasting methodology
• Reporting and dashboards

Critical Questions:

• "What defines a qualified lead?"
• "What's your sales process from lead to close?"
• "How do you measure customer satisfaction?"
• "What integrations are needed with existing tools?"

CDP Projects

Key Areas to Explore:

• Data sources (web, mobile, CRM, e-commerce, offline)
• Customer identity resolution strategy
• Data governance and privacy compliance
• Segmentation and audience building
• Real-time vs. batch processing
• Data activation channels
• Analytics and reporting needs
• Integration with marketing tools

Critical Questions:

• "How do you identify the same customer across channels?"
• "What customer attributes are most important?"
• "What marketing channels will consume this data?"
• "How will you handle consent management?"

Mobile/Web Projects

Key Areas to Explore:

• Platform requirements (iOS, Android, Web, PWA)
• Responsive design needs
• Offline functionality requirements
• Performance expectations
• Push notification strategy
• Deep linking and app navigation
• Authentication and security
• App store requirements
• Analytics and tracking

Critical Questions:

• "What features must work offline?"
• "What devices and OS versions must be supported?"
• "How will users authenticate?"
• "What analytics events need to be tracked?"

Elicitation Best Practices

1. Prepare Thoroughly

• Research the business domain
• Review existing documentation
• Prepare questions in advance
• Identify right stakeholders
• Schedule adequate time

2. Listen Actively

• Don't interrupt
• Take detailed notes
• Ask clarifying questions
• Paraphrase to confirm understanding
• Watch for non-verbal cues

3. Ask the Right Questions

• Start broad, then drill down
• Use open-ended questions
• Avoid leading questions
• Challenge assumptions
• Ask "why" multiple times (5 Whys technique)

4. Document Immediately

• Capture requirements in real-time
• Use templates for consistency
• Record decisions and rationale
• Note assumptions and dependencies
• Share notes for validation

5. Validate and Confirm

• Review requirements with stakeholders
• Check for completeness and clarity
• Resolve conflicts and ambiguities
• Get formal sign-off
• Maintain traceability

6. Handle Conflicts

• Acknowledge different perspectives
• Focus on business objectives
• Use data to support decisions
• Escalate when necessary
• Document trade-offs

Common Pitfalls to Avoid

❌ Assuming you understand the domain - Always verify your understanding ❌ Accepting vague requirements - Push for specificity and measurability ❌ Skipping non-functional requirements - They're critical for success ❌ Ignoring edge cases - Ask "what if" questions ❌ Not documenting assumptions - Make implicit knowledge explicit ❌ Talking more than listening - 80/20 rule: listen 80%, talk 20% ❌ Jumping to solutions - Understand the problem first ❌ Not validating requirements - Always confirm understanding

Tools for Hybrid Methodology

Lark

• Use Docs for interview notes and requirements documentation
• Use Base for requirements tracking and traceability
• Use Meetings for recording sessions
• Use Tasks for action items

Notion

• Create requirements database with properties (priority, status, owner)
• Use templates for consistency
• Link requirements to user stories and test cases
• Create stakeholder directory

Figma

• Create wireframes and mockups during elicitation
• Use FigJam for workshop collaboration
• Prototype user flows for validation
• Share designs for feedback

Output Artifacts

After requirements elicitation, you should produce:

1. Requirements Register: Comprehensive list of all requirements
2. Interview Notes: Detailed notes from stakeholder sessions
3. Workshop Outputs: Diagrams, prioritization results, decisions
4. Process Maps: Current state and future state flows
5. Assumptions Log: Documented assumptions and constraints
6. Stakeholder Matrix: Who provided which requirements
7. Open Questions List: Items requiring follow-up

Next Steps

After completing requirements elicitation:

1. Organize and categorize requirements
2. Prioritize using MoSCoW or RICE (see requirements-prioritization skill)
3. Validate requirements with stakeholders
4. Create BRD (see brd-creation skill)
5. Develop detailed FRS (see frs-creation skill)

References

• BABOK® Guide (Business Analysis Body of Knowledge) - Requirements elicitation techniques
• IIBA Standards - Professional BA practices
• Agile Extension to BABOK® Guide - Elicitation in Agile contexts
• IEEE 29148 - Requirements engineering standard