Why You Should Never Underestimate Technical Specification

Why You Should Never Underestimate Technical Specification

If your objective is to develop an application, a product, or a system, there is a document for that. This is referred to as a Technical Specification.

It is vital to define requirements at the start of the project – regardless of whether you work on development or technical design.

This article is priceless because it conveys vital information without too much explanations. The technical specification is not a closed list in Agile projects. Nonetheless, it should be a living document – a space for sharing and debating experiences. It's an excellent place to start when it comes to feature development. Of course, additional analysis and feedback are always necessary to ensure the highest possible quality product.

So, What Makes It Essential?

People may change – but a project’s qualities must stay the same.

Thus, specifications are vital because they provide developers, stakeholders, and other participants with the information necessary to comprehend a project's best characteristics. This can include business requirements, internal standards, and recommended practices.

By now, you're probably familiar with the document's title – it goes by several different names. A technical design document is also referred to as a software design document or an engineering design document.

Outlining the project's specifications is critical to the development process in general. While I appreciate its purpose, it is not a rigid instruction manual. Indeed, it is more of a set of guidelines for implementing the associated functionalities. Additionally, it is not fixed in stone! This document will need to be revised as circumstances change. The best solution is to create this document in an editable format that is accessible to everyone on the team and all stakeholders.

Who Writes It?

The engineer is the primary author of such a document. Of course, they are the ones who will develop the solution for you, but they are not the only ones qualified to create this document. They will, however, be the point of contact for anyone seeking information about the project's implementation.

Technical specifications can be written by technical leads, project leads, senior engineers, analysts, or even product owners on larger projects. That is critical to know when hiring a new software development team, and the author is not who you might expect!

The document should be written in such a way that team members can successfully implement the described functionalities even in the absence of the creator. While the initial draft can be created by a single person, it should be revised and discussed by the entire team – including stakeholders – to ensure the product is of the highest quality.

Benefits for the Client

• Stability: When it comes to projects, circumstances change and new people become involved – both on the development and client sides. A technical specification document provides the stability necessary to ensure the project's consistency. With this level of detail, you'll have no difficulty communicating concise instructions. You can provide insight into the solution's development and performance measurement. Consider it a global document or reference point. You, the reader, should be able to quickly distinguish between quality and standards. Without it, accumulating technical debt, miscommunications, and potential interruptions to the project's flow would be difficult to avoid.
• Simplification: Technical specifications do not merely summarize the components of a project. For stakeholders interested in navigating the exact scope of the project, they can view the entire project, which speeds up the process of requesting and implementing changes. This allows for the centralization of specifications, user stories, acceptance criteria, testing scenarios, risk management solutions, and mock-ups. Projects are similar to puzzles; it can be challenging to make consistent changes across all game pieces. The process becomes much easier with such a document. You will be able to modify it concurrently with the testing scenarios.
• Consistency: Inconsistent acceptance criteria can result in the release of a flawed application. What makes this document particularly compelling is its ability to ward off such confusion. Perhaps you are unaware, but you (and your development team) will rely on the technical specification document to ensure consistency between various aspects of the requirements analysis. Clients generally appreciate the level of detail contained within the document, as it aids in the evaluation of the work as a whole. This can be used as a reference tool for comparing competitor prices, which is especially useful when working with a Client Requirements Document. Additionally, this serves as a gesture of openness and provides the assurance necessary to avoid vendor lock.

What to Expect when Requesting Technical Specification

What is critical is that the table of contents is complete. Your software development team should assist you in determining which information should be included in the document based on the characteristics of the project. Each project has its own set of technical requirements; consequently, some information may be irrelevant for one project but critical for another. The table of contents assists readers in navigating the guidelines and provides an overview of the materials.

Begin by describing the business context before outlining the rationale for and scope of the development and associated changes. Following that, you can discuss the dependencies and subsequent definitions. This is your opportunity to include form field descriptions, mock-ups, iterative designs, user stories, testing scenarios, and functional requirements.

The appearance of your project is entirely dependent on the form agreed upon. It can be created directly within the project management program, Azure DevOps, or the 'Confluence' add-on in some cases. Additionally, it is prudent to request updates to your technical specification document throughout the course of the venture, as it is assumed to change.

When writing the content, keep the communication simple and free of jargon. It is ideal when stakeholders are given the opportunity to express their needs plainly. For instance, customs, cultural events, and days of worship should be included in the technical specification, particularly if they have a direct impact on the final product's features. As a result, it's a good idea to describe the user's culture if it differs from the development team's.

Conclusion

Finally, universal input into the document will result in a better outcome. That being said, as a client, you should devote time to this document in order to articulate your requirements and vision for the final product. As long as both parties are as detailed and transparent as possible, your project should soar!