Confirming the Effectiveness of the Requirements Generation Model

Groener, M.K. and Arthur, J. (2002) Confirming the Effectiveness of the Requirements Generation Model. Technical Report TR-02-06, Computer Science, Virginia Tech.

Abstract

Product quality is directly related to how well that product meets the customer’s needs and intents. It is paramount, therefore, to capture customer requirements correctly and succinctly. Unfortunately, most development models tend to avoid, or only vaguely define the process by which requirements are generated. Other models rely on formalistic characterizations that require specialized training to understand. To address such drawbacks we introduce the Requirements Generation Model (RGM) that (a) decomposes the conventional “requirements analysis” phase into sub-phases which focus and refine requirements generation activities, (b) constrains and structures those activities, and (c) incorporates a monitoring methodology to assist in detecting and resolving deviations from process activities defined by the RGM. The results of an industry-based study are also presented and substantiate the effectiveness of the RGM in producing a better set of requirements.