Requirements gathering
Defining a shared understanding of your requirements across your teams is a key foundation for project success.
Why technology projects go wrong early
You know something needs to change.
You might be drowning in spreadsheets, relying on manual workarounds, or struggling to get reliable information from systems that no longer fit how your organisation operates. But before you look at suppliers or solutions, there is a more fundamental challenge.
Without clear, agreed requirements, technology projects often fail before they really begin.
Common risks when requirements are unclear or poorly defined:
- The wrong system: Buying technology that doesn’t reflect how your organisation actually works.
- Wish lists instead of real needs: Capturing everything people would like a system to do, rather than what is actually required to achieve your objectives.
- Lack of detail & clarity: High-level ideas that leave too much room for interpretation.
- Lack of alignment to strategy: Requirements that don’t support organisational priorities.
- Focus on features, not outcomes: Selecting technology based on what it can do, rather than the problems it needs to solve.
- Conflicting expectations: Different teams having different views on what success looks like.
- Scope creep and rising costs: Requirements being defined too late, once contracts are signed.
- Technology-led decisions: Letting technology partners shape the solution because you cannot articulate your needs clearly.
Requirements gathering reduces these risks by creating clarity and alignment upfront.
You need requirements gathering if
- You are about to replace or review a major system
- Suppliers/technology partners are asking questions that your teams are answering differently
- Internal discussions keep looping without decisions being made
- Previous technology projects have underdelivered
- You want confidence before committing time, budget and credibility
- You need agreement on the scope, scale and priorities of your project
How this fits with other Hart Square Services
Requirements gathering is often the first step in a wider change journey.
Depending on your situation, it may be followed by or run alongside:
We will help you understand what is needed next and what can wait.
How much does it cost
We believe in transparency. Requirements gathering investment varies based on your organisation's size, complexity and specific needs.
Projects typically start from £5,000 for focused work, scaling up for multi-system implementations with complex requirements.
The best way to understand your specific investment is through a brief conversation about your needs.
What we do
We help you get clarity and agreement before you commit to technology or partners.
Our requirements gathering service focuses on understanding what your organisation genuinely needs, not what a particular system can do.
We work with you to:
- understand your current processes, pain points and constraints
- engage stakeholders across teams to capture different perspectives
- define functional and non-functional requirements
- prioritise what matters most versus what is optional
- document requirements in a way suppliers can respond to consistently
The result is a clear, practical requirements document that puts you back in control of the process.
What you get
Stakeholder workshops
Structured sessions to capture needs, surface risks and build alignment
Requirements document
A clear, prioritised list of requirements that can be used to brief technology partners and prepare for an Invitation to Tender.
Assumptions and constraints
Visibility of what is fixed, flexible or still unknown
ITT foundation
A consistent basis for conversations, proposals and comparisons
Who this is for
This service is designed for organisations across the NFP sector, including charities, membership bodies, associations, unions and education providers planning a technology change.
It is particularly useful for:
- Project leads who need to bring different teams into alignment
- Leadership teams who want clarity before approving next steps
- Organisations that want to reduce risk before engaging suppliers
What makes Hart Square different
We are 100 percent independent, do not sell software, and have supported over 550 non-profit technology projects over 17 years.
Frequently asked questions
How long does requirements gathering take?
Depending on the scope, requirements gathering can take anywhere between 2 and 10 weeks. Speak to us to understand what your timeline might look like.
We are a small team. Is this still relevant?
Yes. We work with organisations of all sizes. Smaller teams often benefit most from early clarity, as mistakes are harder to absorb later.
Can we do this without a full business case?
Yes. If you have already decided to go to market, starting with requirements is often the best use of time. Requirements gathering can stand alone, or feed directly into a separate business case if needed. Hart Square can provide cost and options analysis, so you get the best of both worlds.
How much does it cost?
We believe in transparency. Requirements gathering investment varies based on your organisation's size, complexity and specific needs.
Projects typically start from £5,000 for focused work, scaling up for multi-system implementations with complex requirements.
The best way to understand your specific investment is through a brief conversation about your needs.