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Description

Functional Specifications: Capturing the Need, Expressing Functions and Running the Consultation

Two days to describe what the product must do without imposing the technical solution from the outset

  • 2 days — 14 h
  • In-person or virtual
  • Foundation
  • Up to 6 participants

Needs are often expressed directly as solutions. The requester describes the equipment or software already in mind and the supplier simply prices it. The real expectations remain implicit. The delivered product works but does not match the intended use, and late changes prove expensive.

These 14 hours teach participants to express a need in terms of functions and constraints rather than in terms of a solution. Participants analyse a real need, formulate the expected functions, rank them and attach an assessment criterion to each one. The resulting document then serves as the basis for the consultation and for comparing supplier offers.

Learning objectives

  • Distinguish the expression of a need from the description of a solution
  • Analyse the need with users and stakeholders
  • Formulate the expected functions and the constraints to be respected
  • Attach an assessment criterion and a target level to each function
  • Structure the document and use it to compare supplier offers

What makes this programme different

A real specification document drafted step by step throughout the session
Systematic reformulation of needs expressed as disguised solutions
A comparison grid for offers built from the selected functions

Programme

1Need and Use

Tracing the request back to the real requirement

  • Origin of the request and the objective pursued
  • Users and situations of use
  • Gathering the need through interviews and observation
  • Spotting solutions hidden inside the request

2Functional Analysis

What the product must do

  • Primary functions and constraint functions
  • Product environment and interactions
  • Formulating a function without presupposing the solution
  • Ranking the functions

3Criteria and Requirement Levels

Making the need verifiable

  • Assessment criterion attached to each function
  • Target level and acceptable flexibility
  • Binding requirements versus simple preferences
  • Pitfalls of requirements that cannot be verified

4Drafting and Consultation

From the document to the offers

  • Structure and style of the document
  • Validation by stakeholders
  • Issuing the document and answering bidders' questions
  • Comparing offers against the functions

Who is it for

Project owners, project managers, buyers and internal requesters responsible for expressing a need to internal or external suppliers.

Prerequisites

No prerequisites

Dates & locations

36 scheduled dates between November 2026 and December 2027. Seats are confirmed in the order enquiries are received.

November 2026

December 2026

January 2027

February 2027

March 2027

April 2027

May 2027

June 2027

September 2027

October 2027

November 2027

December 2027

None of these dates suit you? We open additional sessions on request, and any programme can be run privately for your team.

Practical details

Before the programme
Online positioning questionnaire. Your development objectives are shared with the trainer, who tailors the practical case studies to your context.
Teaching methods
Theoretical input, workshops and practical case studies. Digital course materials and method sheets provided.
Assessment
Multiple-choice tests and role-play exercises. Assessment of learning at the start and end of the programme, with immediate and 60-day follow-up evaluations.
After the programme
One year of access to the e-learning platform. Self-assessment of the skills acquired and a 30-day follow-up session with your trainer.
How to register
Registration online or on the basis of a quotation.
Lead time
11 working days after confirmation of registration.
Accessibility
Accessible to people of determination. Contact our accessibility coordinator to design a suitable solution: contact@mpf-academy.ae
Start dates
Rolling intake: in addition to the scheduled sessions, this programme can start on request.