Elicitation technique selection: How do experts do it?

Requirements elicitation techniques are methods used by analysts to determine the needs of customers and users, so that systems can be built with a high probability of satisfying those needs. Analysts with extensive experience seem, to be more successful than less experienced analysts in uncovering the user needs. Less experienced analysts often select a technique based on one of two reasons: (a) it is the only one they know, or (b) they think that a technique that worked well last time must surely be appropriate this time. This paper presents the results of in-depth interviews with some of the world's most experienced analysts. These results demonstrate how they select elicitation techniques based on a variety of situational assessments.