Why selecting requirement is the first criteria for software development?

Without knowing the requirements, it is not possible to test software and its workings. How can you test something without knowing the requirements of doing a work? Requirements are always the first criteria but it often goes unnoticed and undocumented. Different software has different requirements. The rest of the process will continue only after the requirements are documented.

Reasons why requirements are essential for software development:

Requirements are the first criteria for software development. Below mentioned are some of the reasons why it is important. Undocumented requirement poses a lot of risks in software development. There are always risks associated with undocumented requirements. Assumptions are made during the testing and development phase if the documents are not properly documented. Requirement management can take place once there is a clear cut understanding of the requirements and suitable requirement management softwares can be used for the same. Let us now see why it is important to document the requirements.

• Testers will have no idea on what to test– It is highly essential for the testers to devote their attention and time to search for the requirements which are hidden. Once you spend time on planning the requirements, you can save more time and cost during the process of testing.
• Developers will have no idea on what is termed as complete – The developers have to draw on certain questions like- is it enough if ‘delete’ simply gets deleted? Is it mandatory for the delete function to show a confirmation on deleting? Is there a need to send notifications via email? Will it be possible for the all the users to use this delete function? These decisions cannot be taken without properly documenting the requirement.
• Customers will not be aware of what they can expect– The requirements of software development are to create a settlement between the customers and the team regarding what the software application is supposed to perform. Therefore, without defining the features that the software should have and the way how it should work, it is not possible for the users to understand whether the software is perfect match with the needs or not.

Conclusion

Therefore, having sufficient time to document the requirements is important because that will save both time and cost for the whole team. There is no compulsion for having a very detailed document on requirements, but at least there should be a document where requirements are listed in some form.