/stakeholder-requirements-gathering

Stakeholder Interview Guide

Use this question guide when eliciting requirements for a new analysis request. You don't need to ask every question — choose those relevant to the request complexity and decision type.

Aim for 20–30 minutes. Take notes; send a summary to the requestor afterward.

1. Understand the Business Context (5 min)

• "What's the business situation that prompted this request?"
• "What decision are you trying to make, or what action will this analysis support?"
• "Has anyone looked at this before? Is there existing work I should know about?"

Goal: Understand why this matters and whether the stated request is the real question.

2. Define Success (5 min)

• "What would a perfect output look like to you?"
• "If I handed you the analysis tomorrow, what would you do with it?"
• "What would make you say 'this didn't answer my question'?"
• "Is there a number, chart, or format you've seen elsewhere that you'd like this to be similar to?"

Goal: Surface concrete acceptance criteria.

3. Scope and Constraints (5 min)

• "Which customers / products / time periods should be included?"
• "Are there any segments that should definitely be excluded?"
• "Are there any data sources you trust or don't trust for this question?"
• "What is the latest this can be delivered and still be useful?"

Goal: Draw boundaries to prevent scope creep and align on timeline.

4. Audience and Format (3 min)

• "Who will see this output — just you, or will it go to others?"
• "Will this be presented or read? What format works best for that context?"
• "Are there technical people who will review the methodology, or is this for a non-technical audience?"

Goal: Determine the right depth and format for the output.

5. Assumptions and Known Issues (5 min)

• "Are there any assumptions you've already made that I should build into this?"
• "Is there anything about the data or the business context that I need to know that might not be obvious?"
• "Has a similar analysis been done and found to be wrong or misleading? What happened?"

Goal: Surface hidden constraints and avoid known failure modes.

6. Closing (2 min)

• "Is there anything else that would be useful for me to know?"
• "After I send you a written summary of requirements, would you have 10 minutes to confirm before I start?"

Post-Interview Checklist

After the interview, within 24 hours:

• Write up the requirements doc (requirements_doc_template.md)
• List any open questions that still need answers
• Send the draft to the requestor for review
• Confirm the delivery date is feasible given scope
• Flag any data access blockers to the requestor