What is the benefit with patterns and templates when working with business requirements?

We could raise our view from the IT sector and instead look on the wide screen. When going to a cinema or viewing on-line, films are grouped by genres to make it simpler for the audience to find what they want. Would you like to see an action movie like Dark Night or a musical as La La Land today?

If you want to write a script for a feature film, you will be far better off if you start with a standard plot. Whether you follow Christopher Booker’s The Seven Basic Plot, Blake Snyder’s Save the Cat! or Ronald Tobias 20 Master Plots doesn’t matter.

With business requirements, the same is true. If you use TM Forums work for telcos or HL7 for healtcare, you are using the experiences of other people to speed up your work and avoid common mistakes.

However, using a template doesn’t mean that you don’t need the skill for the craft. Reading Save the Cat! wouldn’t result in an Oscar nomination unless you put down a lot of hard work and talent.

If you want to write a manuscript, start learning the genres and an basic plots used in them. If you want to write business requirements, learn the frameworks in the industry you are working in.

When writing a manuscript, use the tool you like and could afford, but follow the industry standard structure for a screenplay.

When writing business requirements, use the tool you like and can afford, but follow best practices who to write business processes and business requirements. You will not win an Oscar, but there are other ways to measure success in IT.

1) What is story? http://www.scriptmag.com/features/craft-features/what-is-story-story-types-plot-types-themes-genres
2) TM Forum - http://www.tmforum.org
3) Health Level Seven International - http://www.hl7.org

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