FIRMa: A Framework to Support the Requirements Management Process Based on Information Management Tools

Some of the fundamental activities of the software development process relate to the discipline of Requirements Engineering. Their objectives are to discover, analyze, document, verify and manage the requirements that will be part of the software. The requirements are the system's characteristics, which are identified based on information provided by users or experts in the field. The effective management of this information is essential to ensure that the system meets the needs of those who will use it. Considering that the requirements are information, we carried out research to propose a framework contemplating a set of tools used by the information management to assist the requirements management process's activities. This article aims to present the FIRMa - Framework based on Information Management to Requirements Management, and the results of an evaluation carried out by a group of eighteen specialists in Requirements Engineering, who gave their opinion about the tools contemplated by the framework, as well as defined steps and the guidelines elaborated for its use. The evaluation results showed that FIRMa could contribute to the requirements management process's activities and increase the project's chances of success.