Have you ever thought, before you went buying a kitchen what your requirements really were? You need to prepare a lunch and dinner, eat maybe, drink a glass of wine after you have come back from work. The kitchen could be a place in which you share different activities. Now, how do you explain this to the kitchen supplier?

Requirements are part of information management. In information management you have the so-called demand-side and supply-side. This separation is established because of the similarities with architecture. The architect operates on behalf of the sponsors' demand. Before building a house or a shopping mall the architect defines the requirements. After they are visualized and when the project is agreed on, the construction can start. This is normally not the same party but someone from "supply". The provider.

In information management this comparison between demand and supply is more difficult and grey rather than black and white. What is the same is the fact that when implementing a new system, a new business (development) or even a new partnership, you should think about – and this is for small business as relevant as for larger companies – what you need and what you should make or buy in order to fulfill these requirements.

In larger companies this is a complex question. What do we need? Therefore this question is split up in (business) analysis, architecture and design. In such complex environments it requires serious investigation about the current situation and the goals to achieve. “Can we continue in this way?” Probably you can, but a change is also welcome.

Then the question is what are the real requirements and where do you get them from.

Visiting the kitchen manufacturer helps a lot in finding out your real requirements. Faster than in any other way you get clear what you really want (and whether it fits your budget). The only thing you will not be able to do is find out if the showroom kitchen –- including the individual design -- really fits with the rest of the interior design.

In business you should do both, visit the showroom, observe all the functionality available in the market and in the mean time map these on your business requirements you have gathered. Its speeds up the requirement process.

© 2006 Hans Bool

Hans Bool is the founder of Astor White a traditional management consulting company that offers online management advice. Astor Online solves issues in hours what normally would take days. You can apply for a free demo account

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