Developing an Energy Information System: Rapid Requirements Analysis

This article describes a simple method of evaluating the importance of specific energy information system (EIS) requirements. This method helps organizations that have identified a need to develop an EIS but can't find the time to define the complex requirements. It is a method intended to speed up the process without sacrificing the quality of the process. Energy management teams typically know a lot about the need for each requirement, but very little about the cost or effort to produce it. On the other hand, information technology (IT) development teams know more about costs and effort than the relevant importance of each of the requirements. Therefore, the conditions are set for confusion, and the likelihood of disagreements is high. Our goal in using this method of requirements definition is to prevent cost evaluation from tainting the need evaluation of any one of the proposed features of the EIS. This method breaks the requirements definition down into manageable tasks, evaluates the best balance between need and cost for each of the requirement tasks, and then produces a priority of work document to guide the development team.