Specification

Project and task specifications are clear and well-defined.

What makes a specification "clear and well-defined"?

A clear and well-defined specification provides all the necessary information for developers to understand what they need to build, why they're building it, and how success will be measured. Good specifications:

• Articulate the problem being solved and the desired outcome
• Include acceptance criteria that are measurable and testable
• Provide context about user needs and business goals
• Clarify dependencies and constraints
• Use consistent terminology and avoid ambiguity
• Are accessible and easily referenced by the team

As one engineering leader noted, unclear specifications often stem from inconsistent terminology:

"Business analysts often struggle to express requirements clearly. While we aim to use domain-driven design, analysts frequently skip important steps like establishing consistent terminology. When writing requirements, they tend to use multiple terms for the same concept or employ undefined or ambiguous language."

Chief API Officer at Digital Banking Software Provider

Clear specifications don't necessarily mean exhaustive documentation. Rather, they provide the right level of detail at the right time, enabling developers to work efficiently and with confidence.

Why are clear specifications crucial for developer experience?

Clear specifications are foundational to a positive developer experience for several reasons:

1. They reduce cognitive load and frustration

When specifications are unclear or constantly changing, developers waste mental energy trying to fill in gaps or reconcile contradictions rather than solving the actual technical challenges. This leads to frustration and burnout.

2. They minimize rework and context switching

As one developer described:

"In our case, it's about gathering all the documentation, not just project documentation as we used to call it at the university. We have collected user stories that need implementation, but we can't clearly state when delivery will begin because questions keep arising and the business stakeholders aren't able to provide answers."

Engineering Manager at Digital Credit Solutions Provider

When specifications are unclear, development frequently stalls as questions arise, leading to multiple iterations and costly rework. Clear specifications reduce this back-and-forth and allow developers to maintain flow state.

3. They enable accurate estimation and planning

Teams with clear specifications can better estimate effort and plan their work, which creates predictability and reduces stress caused by unrealistic deadlines or constant priority shifts.

4. They improve code quality and maintainability

When developers understand the full picture, they can make better architectural decisions and write code that's more maintainable and aligned with business needs.

5. They enhance collaboration and trust

Clear specifications foster better collaboration between business and technical teams by creating shared understanding and expectations, building trust across the organization.

What are the most common challenges in creating clear specifications?

Creating clear specifications is difficult for several reasons:

1. Communication gaps between business and technical teams

One of the most common challenges is bridging the knowledge and language gap between business stakeholders and development teams:

"The reality is that the business team, when exploring and checking various options, doesn't fully know what they want to achieve. When a developer asks specific implementation questions like 'Should I branch the logic this way or that way? Should I create an else condition?' If you can't give me clear direction, I simply can't solve the problem."

Engineering Manager at Digital Credit Solutions Provider

Business stakeholders may not understand technical constraints, while developers may not grasp business context and priorities.

2. Balancing detail with flexibility

Too little detail leaves developers guessing, but too much can be overwhelming and restrict innovation:

"With the team building our new product, we work closely together. We use picture sizing for feature estimation because there's still significant discovery happening and many unknowns in the project."

Head of Engineering at Software Development Company

Finding the right balance is especially challenging for innovative or exploratory work.

3. Handling evolving requirements

Requirements often change as projects progress and stakeholders gain new insights:

"It's more waterfall than not. I need to know everything before I can code it properly. Until I have answers to all my questions, I won't start because I can't create good architecture or properly structure the code."

Engineering Manager at Digital Credit Solutions Provider

Managing these changes while maintaining clear specifications requires deliberate processes.

4. Organizational silos and complex stakeholder landscapes

When multiple teams or departments are involved in a project, aligning on specifications becomes more difficult:

"The reality is that our approach has evolved over time. Previously, we had multiple layers of delegation with top-down requirements where teams had little influence on final specifications, which was very time-consuming. Now we're focusing on bringing teams closer to the business side and fostering tight collaboration with business owners and product owners."

Director of Software Engineering at Mobile Games Developer and Publisher

5. Time pressure

When teams are under pressure to deliver quickly, specification clarity is often sacrificed:

"I have a situation where my developer simply needed to add some events to the codebase. It should have been a two-hour task at most, but they spent three weeks just trying to compile the code—and ultimately failed. Essentially, I lost three weeks of developer time with nothing to show for it."

Developer Productivity & Platform at Software Development Company

How can engineering leaders measure specification clarity?

Measuring specification clarity is essential to identify areas for improvement. The Network Perspective DevEx Survey includes a specific question about this: "Project and task specifications are clear and well-defined." Responses to this question can reveal whether specification clarity is a problem in your organization.

Beyond surveys, engineering leaders can measure specification clarity through:

1. Quantitative indicators

• Frequency of clarification questions during development
• Number of requirement-related changes after development begins
• Rework percentage attributed to misunderstood requirements
• Variance between estimated and actual development time

2. Qualitative feedback

• Regular retrospectives focused specifically on specification quality
• One-on-one discussions with developers about pain points
• Analysis of comments in code reviews and pull requests

3. Process metrics

• Time spent in refinement meetings
• Lead time from initial request to development readiness
• Consistency of acceptance criteria across projects

4. Warning signs of specification problems

• Frequent task switching or blocked work
• Inconsistent understanding among team members
• Recurring conflicts between business and technical teams
• Developers working in isolation rather than collaboratively

"For instance, when timelines are identified as a blocker, our AI analyzes comments to determine specific issues—like unrealistic deadlines or rework caused by bugs and incomplete acceptance criteria."

Advisor at Tech Investment Bank

What processes help create clearer specifications?

Several processes can help teams create clearer specifications:

1. Collaborative specification development

Involve developers early in the specification process to identify technical challenges and ambiguities:

"We're bringing teams closer to the business side and fostering tight collaboration with business and product owners across all departments. We've streamlined communication channels to minimize the number of people involved in the process."

Director of Software Engineering at Mobile Games Developer and Publisher

2. Iterative refinement

Break down the specification process into stages, with increasing detail as development approaches:

"After establishing our collaboration framework, we move to the third phase where we deliver iteratively through sprints. Our development team may be a mix—perhaps five developers from our side and five from the client's side. Throughout this process, we maintain measurement systems to provide feedback to the client and receive input in return."

CTO at Software Development Company

3. Definition of Ready criteria

Establish clear criteria that all specifications must meet before development begins, such as: - All acceptance criteria defined - Dependencies identified - Design requirements clarified - Edge cases considered

4. Standardized templates

Create templates for specifications that ensure consistent structure and prompt for all necessary information:

"Of course, we faced issues with our strangely configured JIRA where metrics weren't calculating correctly. Eventually, we started cleaning and simplifying our processes. Now we have an extremely streamlined workflow—simply marking tasks as 'started' or 'in progress,' which makes it very easy to measure cycle time."

CTO at Online Booking Platform

5. Shared language and glossary

Develop and maintain a glossary of domain terms to ensure consistent terminology:

"With our package called Domo, or DevOps Maturity Assessment, we're creating a more structured framework around how to properly implement these processes."

Global Head of DevOps at Software Development Company

How should teams handle specifications in agile vs. traditional environments?

The approach to specifications varies based on development methodology:

In Agile environments:

• Focus on just-in-time specifications with progressive elaboration
• Emphasize face-to-face communication to clarify requirements
• Use user stories with clear acceptance criteria
• Plan for refinement sessions to evolve specifications
• Maintain a living documentation that evolves with the product

In more traditional environments:

• Develop more comprehensive upfront specifications
• Create detailed documentation that serves as a reference
• Implement formal change management processes
• Focus on clear handoffs between phases

The key is adapting the level of detail and formality to the context:

"Initially, many people who aren't accustomed to deeply analyzing team dynamics and behavior are instinctively wary of metrics. They worry that they'll be reduced to mere numbers and evaluated solely based on these measurements."

Head of Engineering at Software Development Company

Even in agile environments, some level of specification is necessary. The difference is in how specifications evolve and how they're documented.

What tools and techniques improve specification clarity?

Several tools and techniques can help improve specification clarity:

1. Visual representations

• User journey maps
• Wireframes and mockups
• Flow diagrams and state machines
• Entity-relationship diagrams

2. Specification frameworks

• Behavior-Driven Development (BDD)
• Example Mapping for discovering edge cases
• Domain-Driven Design for consistent terminology

3. Collaborative tools

• Shared documentation platforms
• Requirements management tools
• Digital whiteboards for visual collaboration

4. AI-powered assistance

Modern tools like the Network Perspective DevEx Survey use AI to identify specification issues and suggest improvements:

"When timelines are identified as a blocker, our AI analyzes comments to pinpoint specific issues—such as unrealistic deadlines or rework caused by bugs and incomplete acceptance criteria. The system then automatically generates recommended actions to address these issues, like improving your acceptance criteria."

Advisor at Tech Investment Bank

How can organizations improve their specification practices over time?

Improving specification practices requires a deliberate approach:

1. Build specification skills

Train both technical and business teams in effective specification writing:

"We implemented guidelines for code organization and application architecture, outlining our vision for future evolution. This helps us balance the need for rapid continuous integration while maintaining a strong focus on overall code quality."

Director of Engineering at Cloud Observability Platform

2. Create feedback loops

Regularly evaluate the effectiveness of specifications and adjust processes:

"When you enter the planning phase, you have specific aspects to evaluate: how clear are the objectives, how good is the specification, the size of tasks, priorities, and timeline considerations."

Team & Culture Director at Video Game Developer and Publisher

3. Foster a culture of clarity

Encourage questions and challenge ambiguity at all levels:

"We first identify the pain points, then brainstorm potential solutions. The team reviews these ideas, selects the most promising one, refines it as needed, and proceeds with implementation."

COO at Software Development Company

4. Implement incremental changes

Start with small improvements rather than complete process overhauls:

"We maintain a global quarterly task list for each team and platform group. For example, if one of my teams needs to develop an authentication standard for internal back-office tools, I could quickly draft something and tell them 'In three months, here's how you'll integrate with the cloud and use this library.' But would that actually be useful? Instead, we use an iterative communication model with other teams, constantly gathering feedback throughout the process."

Engineering Teams Manager at Online Trading and Investment Platform

How can the Network Perspective DevEx Survey help diagnose specification issues?

The Network Perspective DevEx Survey includes a specific question about specification clarity as part of its "Planning and Clarity" section. This question helps organizations:

1. Identify specification pain points: Low scores on this question indicate that specification clarity is a problem worth addressing.

2. Compare across teams: Different scores across teams can reveal where specification practices are working well and where they need improvement.

3. Track improvements over time: Regular surveys can show whether process changes are improving specification clarity.

4. Generate targeted recommendations: The survey tool provides specific, actionable recommendations based on the feedback received:

"Here are the results, which we generate in real-time using our tool. One significant advantage for customers is that as participants complete the survey, they can immediately see the results. Many teams complete the entire feedback loop—gathering data, reviewing results, and discussing insights—all within a single retrospective meeting."

Key Account Manager at Software Development Company

By regularly measuring specification clarity through the DevEx Survey, organizations can track progress and ensure that improvements are having the desired impact on developer experience.

Clear and well-defined specifications are foundational to a positive developer experience. By addressing specification challenges, engineering leaders can improve productivity, quality, and developer satisfaction.