MoSCoW

It is an acronym taken from each of four prioritization categories:

• Must have
• Should have
• Could have
• Would like but won't get

Used to prioritize requirements and deliver the most essential and urgent business needs early. This is essential when delivery timescales are crunching project development time.

The MoSCoW technique is usually used in business analysis, project management, and software development.

Procedures

• Must have - critical to the project's success.
• Should have - Important, but not necessary for delivery in the current schedule timeframes.
• Could have - Desirable requirements but no necessary.
• Won't have - Requirements that are least essential and will not be released.

1. Elicit requirements
2. Arrange for stakeholders to meet
3. Go through the entire unordered requirements list and classify each into one of the four categories above.
4. Release the list for further analysis
5. Get formal signoff on the final list from the sponsor

Some feel that by classifying a requirement as "nice to have" it make it no longer a requirement, but more of a nicety. Therefore it no longer fits the scope of the requirements document.