Joint Application Design
History
Started in the late 1970’s at IBM Toronto, Joint Application Design (JAD) gained general approval
in the 1980s. JAD was defined (by its inventors) as an interactive system design concept in
discussion groups in a workshop setting. Valiant Information Systems used Joint Requirements
Planning (JRP) to obtain requirements definitions and JAD to just define the user and application
interfaces for a specific component of the project. As the popularity of JAD, it usage expanded
into functions other than requirements gathering in the system development lifecycle (SDLC). It
has even been used as a management process to help information systems (IS) people work
effectively with users to develop information technology solutions. It is now used in all phases of
the SDLC and is defined as a system development method.
Other Names
Joint Application Development, Facilitated Information Gathering Session, Joint Requirements Planning
Guidelines for Successful JAD
Use experienced and skilled facilitators
Get Executive Sponsor’s commitment and support
Get the right people to participate, predefine their roles and responsibilities
Set clear defined, well understood and obtainable goals and objectives
Plan detailed agenda and stick with it
Define deliverables clearly in advance
Keep technical jargon to a minimum
Produce final documents quickly
Key Players
The Facilitator
Document Expert (Scribe)
The Executive Sponsor
The Project Manager
Business Users
System Experts
Observers
Benefits
Build consensus and ownership
Reduced system development time
Improved system quality and productivity
Improved design quality
Reduced system cost
Enhanced communication and relationship between business end-users and IT personnel
Reduced scope creep
References
Mei C. Yatco, Joint Application Design/Development, www.umsl.edu/~sauter/analysis/JAD.html, 1999
Bill Jennerich, Joint Application Design Business Requirements Analysis for Successful Re-engineering,
www.bee.net/bluebird/jaddoc.htm, 2003
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