Requirements definition

Requirements definition is the process of identifying and defining a client's procurement needs in enough detail to acquire the goods or services required. Library and Archives Canada treats it as an acquisition-services business process, and it involves identifying the requester's needs while complying with the applicable legal frameworks. Library and Archives Canada's acquisition services page sets out the activities that make up the process.

In practice, the output of requirements definition is the content a supplier reads in a solicitation: specifications, statements of work, mandatory requirements and the criteria used to evaluate offers. The Canada Revenue Agency describes the stage as the point where the client defines requirements in sufficient detail to facilitate timely acquisition, as set out in its contract bidding and awards process audit.

Activities within requirements definition

The principal activities are developing the business case, the statement of work or specifications, determining security requirements, assessing risk and seeking expenditure approvals. Each of these shapes what the buyer can ask for and how the solicitation is written.

• Business case: sets out the need the purchase is meant to meet.
• Statement of work or specifications: describes the goods or services to be acquired.
• Security requirements: identify any security conditions that apply to the work.
• Risk assessment: considers the risks attached to the acquisition.
• Expenditure approvals: secure authority to spend before the acquisition proceeds.

How goods and services are described

Federal procurement guidance states that requirements for goods are usually defined through performance or design specifications, while service requirements are defined through statements of work. This guidance appears in a federal publication on procurement.

CanadaBuys advises buyers to express requirements in operational terms rather than brand names or proprietary specifications where possible, which encourages broader competition. The buyer's guide on the importance of a clear procurement requirement also directs buyers to establish clear mandatory requirements and to promote competition and best value. CanadaBuys also publishes guidance on defining socioeconomic requirements, which sit alongside technical needs.

Where the stage sits in the procurement process

In Canadian federal procurement, requirements definition follows procurement planning or strategy and precedes acquisition and contract management. PSPC's targeted review of the Phased Bid Compliance Process identifies requirement definition as the first section of that process and uses it to determine whether the requirement exceeds the applicable monetary threshold.

The term also appears in contract documentation. The archived Standard Acquisition Clauses and Conditions Manual on CanadaBuys organizes clauses under a Requirements Definition category, including clause series beginning with M2000 and R1000.

The NATO equivalent: requirement definition

NATO uses the term requirement definition. Its procurement manual describes it as defining and describing what is needed and will be procured, then expressing it in technical specifications for goods and equipment or in statements of work for works and services. NATO states that these documents provide the technical basis for the solicitation and for evaluating offers, as set out in its procurement manual.

What requirements definition means for a supplier

For a supplier, the defined requirements are the standard against which a bid is judged. Federal guidance states that suppliers whose goods or services do not meet the defined requirements will not be considered. Bid teams should read the specifications, statement of work and mandatory requirements closely, and be ready to show compliance with each technical, performance, security and other condition in the solicitation.

Because buyers are directed to use operational rather than brand-specific terms where possible, suppliers can expect requirements to describe the outcome needed. A bid should respond to that stated need directly and address every mandatory element.