COEPD – Center of Excellence for Professional Development Happy Learning
Requirement Traceability Matrix or RTM is simply means a document or tool to map and track different types of proposed project requirements like business requirement, UI requirement, user requirement, technical requirement , functional and non-functional requirements. The purpose of this document is to demonstrate compliance with requirements. It typically contains information about requirements, tests, test results, and issues.
When we develop a product or a service we want to make sure that the output should be matches with the users’ needs and expectation. RTM verifies all the requirements weather they are connected with the test cases or not. Primarily a traceability matrix is used to keep tabs on requirement, ensure fulfilment of the project requirements. RTM demonstrates how the requirements are related to artefacts.
Purpose of RTM-
1. Achieving project goal
RTM starts at the beginning of the projects and continues through the fulfilment of the requirements, which make sure that requirements matching with original goals.
2. Running the Right tests.
Requirement traceability helps (QA) team understand what needs to be tested which establishes complete test coverage by mapping test cases against each requirement. A traceability matrix helps in filtering defects linked to crucial requirements, along with defect severity, priority, and more.
3. Making better Decisions
Traceability can also be used for decision-making throughout product development. In case of any change requirement or enhancement comes it will be able to understand and analyse the impact of that change across development.
- In Projects management
Traceability is useful for managing projects by tracking progress in each stage of development .RTM is created at the beginning of the project and updated regularly during the project progress which help the project team to understand the project scope requirements by linking with the test cases.
- Projects remain in line- The traceability matrix is, essentially, a tool that helps to ensure that the purpose, requirements and results of the project remain in line with what was initially agreed.
- Concentrate on Documentation
A traceability matrix can help in the effort to provide proper and consistent documentation for team. From test cases to wireframes to user stories, a TM allows us to see if a requirement is fully documented or not. A requirement traceability matrix can also trace any missing requirements.
- Handling Defects properly
RTM allows us to determine which requirements are generating the most defects during the testing process.
8. Release quality provide on time – During the testing ,RTM helps to cut down the unnecessary testing time on less priority features instead of it helps to examine the most important and top priority features. This helps to delivers quality product on time that meets client’s expectations.
Conclusion-The purpose of the RTM is to provide a clear and concise overview of the project requirements and how they are being addressed. It helps project managers and team members understand the scope of the project and ensure that all requirements are being properly addressed. It also helps identify any gaps or overlaps in the requirements and allows for corrective action to be taken.
