Which of the following is NOT a recommended requirement gathering method?

• A. Form a hypothesis about the requirements and perform experiments with users and subject matter experts to confirm
• B. Shadow prospective users of your application as they perform their typical duties
• C. Have prospective users answer short questions about what they do and what challenges they face
• D. Ask users and subject matter experts to describe their duties and pain points in detail

Answer: (A)

Requirement gathering works best when you directly observe how work is done and listen to users describe their tasks and challenges. Forming a hypothesis about what is needed and then running experiments with users to confirm it biases you toward a predefined solution before you’ve fully explored real needs. This narrows the discovery process to validating assumptions rather than uncovering actual requirements, making it less suitable for initial requirement gathering. The other methods align with gathering authentic input: shadowing lets you see real workflows and pain points in action; quick questions capture a broad sense of what users do and where they struggle; and asking users and SMEs to describe their duties and pain points in detail yields rich, actionable information to shape requirements. In short, forming hypotheses and testing them as the primary requirement-gathering activity is not the best approach.