Buying Complex IT Systems

Chapter 2 Functional Specifications

DOI: 10.4324/9781003427766-2

In this chapter, we are going to look at functional specifications. These are easily the most important part of your new IT system from the perspective that if you get this part wrong, you can do the most damage. However, they are quite difficult to produce, especially for people who would describe themselves as “not technical”. If you have a good functional specification, everything else that can go wrong in the project is considerably more manageable. If you have a poor functional specification, the project is pretty much doomed from the start. The functional specification informs everything – from the price, to the choice of solution, to the vendor selection, and to the day-to-day ...