Requirements management involves establishing and maintaining agreement between customer and developer on both technical and non-technical requirements. This agreement forms the basis for estimating, planning, performing, and tracking project activities throughout the project and for maintaining and enhancing developed software. Studies have shown that 30-35% of software development effort is spent on rework, over 50% of software defects are attributed to requirement errors and over 80% of rework effort is spent on requirements related defects. Getting requirements management right pays huge dividends in delivering software solutions to your customers in a time frame that satisfies them.
Agile requirements follow an iterative planning cycle. From conceptualization, to review, and through edits, requirements evolve into a plan for development. It is from this point, when the requirement is handed over to the development team, that the requirement becomes Agile.
What is Agile development? It is an interactive method used to determine requirements for development projects. It is highly flexible and interactive, allowing the project scope to change rapidly and frequently. There are many tools on the market that enable and enhance the Agile development cycle.
Atlas, with its Requirement management, Whiteboards, and Plan development, is a perfect tool to use in an Agile environment. Integrating with Agile tools enables project managers to link Requirements to Stories and view progress for each iteration. Atlas provides the ability for project managers to recognize scope creep and react quickly. Also, they can determine from the Status tab or TRACK perspective, whether a change to a Requirement will negatively impact the delivery dates.
Additionally, open communication between team members and project stakeholders is essential to the success of an Agile team. Atlas's Discussion functionality provides this critical ability to all members of the team, allowing rapid changes to the project as it evolves.