AI Software Requirements Guide

Capture: (1) who produces the output, (2) who needs visibility or admin, (3) which stack tools must connect — Microsoft 365, the IDE, Creative Cloud, or meeting tools.

Worked example: Harbor Labs wrote “Engineers complete multi-file refactors in the editor; the lead needs SSO without chasing seats; legal needs a privacy mode we can point to.”

Columns: requirement, must/nice, evidence to collect in trial, qualifying plan/usage unit. Rows for LLM assistant, AI coding, image, video, meeting, writing, voice, presentations, website builder, ad creative, agents, integrations, admin.

This guide is the requirements surface for AI buyers on SoftwareGlimpse.

List day-one workflows for AI software in two columns: must work before go-live vs can wait until adoption proves out. Must-haves drive plan gates and integrations; nice-to-haves belong on a phase-two sheet so demos do not inflate scope.

Worked example: Harbor People Ops marks SSO and audit logs as must-have, AI summaries as phase-two. Demos that skip the must column get cut from the shortlist early.

Name systems that must sync or stay out of scope: identity, payroll, CRM, ecommerce, chat, or data warehouse. For each integration, note whether it is native, API, or manual export — and who owns the connection when it breaks.

Worked example: Northline Finance requires HRIS sync to payroll and refuses tools that need nightly CSV babysitting unless IT signs off.

Share the must-have sheet with finance, IT, and the team lead who owns the weekly job. Trials should test the signed sheet — not a fresh wishlist from each demo.

Next: /guides/how-to-choose-ai-software/

For AI Software Requirements Guide, list must-haves, owners, integrations, and the weekly ritual this purchase must improve. Share the sheet with finance and IT before you schedule a second demo.

1. Name the primary job in one sentence.
2. List must-have gates (plans, SSO, data residency, usage caps).
3. Name integrations that must work on day one.
4. Assign an admin owner and a weekly user champion.
5. Define non-admin proof — what a sceptic completes without rescue.

Worked example: Harbor Ops refuses demos until the checklist is signed — cutting evaluation time in half.

Common failures in ai: buying for brand familiarity, comparing entry tiles across different usage units, skipping a fair trial script, and adding scope before adoption proves out.

Run one trial script on every finalist the same week. Score on the same card. Write a one-paragraph decision memo that names what you are not buying yet.

When assumptions are frozen, continue on /best/ai-software/ with the same headcount, usage band, and must-have gates on every quote.

For AI Software Requirements Guide, list must-haves, owners, integrations, and the weekly ritual this purchase must improve. Share the sheet with finance and IT before you schedule a second demo.

1. Name the primary job in one sentence.
2. List must-have gates (plans, SSO, data residency, usage caps).
3. Name integrations that must work on day one.
4. Assign an admin owner and a weekly user champion.
5. Define non-admin proof — what a sceptic completes without rescue.

Worked example: Harbor Ops refuses demos until the checklist is signed — cutting evaluation time in half.

Common failures in ai: buying for brand familiarity, comparing entry tiles across different usage units, skipping a fair trial script, and adding scope before adoption proves out.

Run one trial script on every finalist the same week. Score on the same card. Write a one-paragraph decision memo that names what you are not buying yet.

When assumptions are frozen, continue on /best/ai-software/ with the same headcount, usage band, and must-have gates on every quote.