How To Pick Requirements Management Software
That Works With TFS Team Foundation Server™ |
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Are You a TFS Customer
Looking for Requirements Management Software?
Here's How You Can Pick the Right Requirements Software... |
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| This guide is targeted at organizations currently using TFS (Microsoft Team Foundation Server) and considering purchase of requirements management software - either right now or in the foreseeable future. |
Why Organizations Using TFS™ Look for
Requirements Management Software |
 Microsoft TFS (Team Foundation Server)™ is a popular tool that delivers source control, work item tracking, Team Foundation Build, team project web portal, and project management capabilities. In fact, it is one of the most widely used commercial tools in its category. Lots of organizations find TFS to be very effective in tracking and managing their work items, projects, source control and related activities.
Many organizations also use TFS to manage their requirements data - and find that they are able to successfully manage their requirements data using TFS.
As organizations grow, so do their requirements management needs. As a result, some organizations may start considering dedicated requirements management software tools to meet needs such as: |
- Define relationships and dependencies between requirements data
- Create linkable and hierarchical requirements
- Generate and analyze Requirements Traceability Matrix to ensure complete coverage
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- Implement requirements-specific versioning and change control
- Manage requirements through their entire lifecycle
- Export a set of requirements in a fully-formatted Word document (PRD, SRS)
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| Teams who have such needs then start evaluating dedicated requirements management software - i.e. software tools purpose-built for managing requirements. It seems reasonable to expect that requirements management tools can help meet most, if not all, of the needs listed above. But, teams are often in for a shock! |
The "Great" Marketing Hype
And How to Protect Yourself From It |
| Marketers at many Requirements Management Software vendors often make aggressive claims about what their software can do. For example: |
- One vendor claims that their tool reduces product development time by a whopping 80%.
- Another vendor claims that their software "eliminates" delays and "guarantees" on-time completion.
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Claims like these are so unrealistic, we can only conclude that these vendors are hoping you don't find out the real truth until after they cash your check!
Protect Yourself from This Marketing Hype:
Unsuspecting teams can fall prey to this type of marketing hype. This is especially the case when such hype is combined with aggressive selling tactics. How can you protect yourself from this hype?
 One easy way is by remembering this sage advice from Forrester Research:
"Be realistic about problems that a requirements management tool can address..." |
The fact is this. Good requirements management tools can help
you streamline and improve your requirements
management process. And they can help you meet many of the needs listed above, within reason - and work well with TFS. However, they cannot change the
world - although many vendors seem to promise
something pretty close!
That is bad enough.
But the worse news is this... |
Most Requirements Management Software
Just Don't Work... and Never Will. Here's Why |
Most requirements management software just don't work - and unlikely to ever work. In fact, a study conducted by Forrester Research shows that a shockingly high percentage of requirements software purchases end up as shelfware - i.e. users simply do not use them. Why is this the case?
We surveyed more than 100 companies - from Fortune 500 companies to startups - who use requirements management software. We interviewed nearly two dozen companies who experienced failed implementations. All of them had tried a requirements management tool for a year or longer before concluding it was a failure...
Here are the top-5 reasons given by these companies for their failed implementations: |
- Software was too hard to learn & use daily
- The vendor's promise of "feature packed" software was very enticing prior to purchase. After the purchase however, users found it too bloated - and hard to learn & use every day.
Note for TFS users: This is especially true for those familiar with TFS - as TFS is very easy to use once you get used to it.
- Software could not be customized to meet team's needs
- Software was either impossible to customize or extremely hard to customize (such as having to buy "consulting packages" from the vendor to customize it).
Note for TFS users: While TFS is easy to customize, most requirements software simply are not.
- No clear objectives established prior to purchase
- The team did not establish clear objectives and goals prior to purchase. As a result, the wrong tool was purchased - and the tool did not work out.
- Software was too expensive or had hidden costs
- Software had a lot of "hidden" costs and as a result was very expensive to maintain and use. This experience was more common at companies purchasing "on premise" software (as opposed to SaaS/hosted).
Note for TFS users: Integration with TFS can be very expensive for some requirements management tools. Make sure to ask the vendor about this at the beginning - and get the "Total Cost" for such integration.
- Demo looked great, but the software just did not work in "real world" use
- The tool looked great during the pre-purchase demo. As a result, the tool was purchased. However, when the team started using it in "real world" projects, the tool could not meet their needs.
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What Are Your Options Then? |
| We've outlined the reasons most requirements management tools just don't work. What are your options then? As you can imagine, there are two distinct paths you can take: |
| Option A: |
Continue using TFS for managing requirements. For some organizations - this, in fact, is the right approach! |
| Option B: |
Arm yourself with a good evaluation process - and pick the right Requirements Software. One that meets your needs -and- offers turn-key integration with TFS at an affordable price. |
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Here's the good news. A small percentage of requirements management tools out there can indeed work for your team - and are integrated with TFS. Which specific requirements management tool can help your team?
While that depends on your specific needs - you can follow a few best practices while selecting a requirements management tool for your team. These best practices can help you avoid the wrong tools and find the right tool. Here's a white paper that can help you do this... |
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| White Paper - Based on a Survey of Over 100 Companies |
5 Big Mistakes to Avoid When
Choosing Requirements Management Software |
 We surveyed more than 100 companies to understand the biggest mistakes they made when selecting requirements management software.
We've now put together a white paper based on this survey. This covers:
 The 5 biggest mistakes to avoid
Simple, practical steps you can take to pick the right software
This white paper can help you select the right tool for your team - while avoiding these 5 big mistakes... |
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P.S. |
When you submit the form above, the next page will share information about Accompa - a requirements management software that meets criteria described above -and- offers easy, comprehensive integration with TFS. |
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