specificatiemanagement

Specification management, occasionally rendered as specificatiemanagement in informal usage, is the systematic process of creating, organizing, controlling, and communicating specifications for products and systems throughout their lifecycle. It encompasses capturing stakeholder needs, defining functional and nonfunctional requirements, and translating them into design and test specifications. The goal is to ensure consistency, traceability, and controlled evolution of all specifications as projects progress.

Key activities include requirements capture and formal specification development, version-controlled baselining, change control, configuration management, and release management. Change impact analysis, traceability from requirements to design to verification, and approval workflows are essential. Baselines provide a stable reference point for development and testing.

Common artifacts include requirement specifications, interface and design specifications, test and validation specifications, and change logs or revision histories. A robust specification management system maintains bidirectional traceability between sources of needs, design decisions, and verification results, enabling impact assessment and regulatory compliance.

Relations to other disciplines: specification management is closely linked to requirements management and configuration management. It supports systems engineering, software engineering, and quality assurance by ensuring that every requirement and design decision is documented and auditable. Standards such as ISO 10007 provide guidance on configuration and specification control.

Tools range from document and requirements management systems to integrated ALM and PLM platforms. Effective practice often involves a governance structure such as a change control board, documented naming and version conventions, and automated workflows to propagate changes across related artifacts.

Benefits include improved consistency, reduced rework, better regulatory compliance, and clearer communication among stakeholders. Common challenges are handling changing requirements, maintaining terminologies across teams, and managing large volumes of specifications across multi-year programs. Best practices emphasize baselining, traceability, regular reviews, and integration with development and testing processes.