Mastering the Requirements Process, 4th Edition

Part V

Writing Good Requirements and Stories

Think of your developers as housebuilders. To get the house you want—whether they are building it from scratch or renovating an existing structure, and whether they are using traditional construction materials or putting together a modular home—you must tell them exactly what you want. If you don’t specify where you want the windows and doors, how high the roof should be, and what ready-made fittings (windows, floor coverings, heating, etc.) you want, the builders will build pretty much whatever they want, and it almost certainly will not be what you want. It is obviously not practical to let them build something and if you don’t like it, have them demolish it and start over. Yet that is close to ...