The IEEE 610 standard defines a requirement as:

• (1). a condition or capability needed by a user to solve a problem or achieve an objective;
• (2). a condition or capability that must be met or possessed by a system or system component to satisfy a contract, standard, specification or other formally imposed documents;
• (3). a documented representation of a condition or capability as in (1) or (2)

The elicitation of requirements is an early but critical stage in the development of a project, involving many activities, with multiple techniques to capture the requirements of stakeholders in a project.