Requirement

Intro

A requirement is a need to be met by an architecture or work package. In EA, clear requirements guide design decisions and scope.

Key points:

• Defines testable criteria for success.
• Aligns stakeholders and prevents scope creep.
• Common use cases across EA/BPM/Data/App/Tech include functional needs, nonfunctional constraints, and compliance mandates.
• Pitfall: vague requirements that cannot be verified.

Examples:

• System must process 1,000 orders per minute.
• Data retention must meet regulatory timelines.
• Process must support multilingual customer communications.

In practice:

Capture requirements with owners and acceptance criteria; trace them to designs, tests, and outcomes.

Related terms: Objective; Architecture; Governance

FAQs:

Q: Are requirements only technical?
A: No; they span business, process, data, and technology needs.

Q: How do we manage changes?
A: Use change control and re‑validate impacts across traceability.

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