The Client's Requirements

Believe it or not, although all clients have their reasons to initiate a project, few actually knows the requirements of the new information system. This is analogous to a hungry child knows he/she is hungry and wants to eat, but he/she does not necessarily know how much of what type of food is best for his/her health.

As a result, a systems analyst must discuss with a client and specify the exact requirements. For instance, a client may initially say ``our information system must be faster at transaction processing than our competitors.'' The natural response is ``how much faster?'' If a client says ``the new information system must keep up with our growth'', then an analyst should ask ``what is the projected growth rate?''