Software requirement prioritization using fuzzy multi-attribute decision making

Abstract

Although many approaches have been proposed to prioritize requirements in software projects, almost none has been widely adopted. This is mostly due to their complexity, time commitment, lack of consistency, or implementation difficulties. This paper proposes a novel approach to do so that is practical, easy to implement and can show a reasonable level of consistency. In addition, it takes in consideration the imprecise nature of requirements and quality attributes by modeling the latter as fuzzy variables. The problem of prioritizing requirements is formulated as a fuzzy multi-attribute decision problem in which the expected value operator is used to rank the alternatives listed in the problem formulation. This approach can be easily extended to include other quality attributes as well as customized to fit the needs of most software projects.