Good cloud-based requirement management and evolution solution, with room to improve processes
Updated February 13, 2025
Good cloud-based requirement management and evolution solution, with room to improve processes
Score 8 out of 10
Vetted Review
Verified User
Overall Satisfaction with Jama Connect
Jama Connect is the source of truth for requirements within the SKA Organisation (SKAO). We have used internally within SKAO to communicate between Engineering, Operations, and Scientists, but also to do requirement reviews with external consortia, to get their input. We are also using it for requirement flow-down and traceability, and using several report tools. With the SKAO being a non-profit organization, the main goal is delivering maximum value for the system being designed and later implemented, and having an agile way of dealing with requirements helps us. I have now additionally added the usage of Jama Connect to the Joint ALMA Observatory, where we are also using it as the source of truth for requirements. We have been introducing the system to different stakeholders, which are linking their subsystem requirements to the ALMA System Technical Requirements.
Pros
- Having access to requirements from everywhere in the world.
- Requirement reports for document-centric parts of the development.
- Support for online reviews and discussions.
- Incorporation of different kinds of documents which requirement information.
Cons
- Cloud-based installations don't have full access to all reporting tools.
- Online reporting templates are not too customizable.
- Glossaries are not first-class citizens in Jama; it should be possible to link to glossary entries directly from requirements, and vice-versa.
- We do not measure the Return of Investment. We have moved past the Critical Design Review and moving into construction.
- We expect to be able to measure ROI in the form of increased contingency in the next phase.
- Engagement with the tool has not been universal; we had many people relying on the exported Word/PDF documents instead of providing feedback on Jama Connect directly or through reviews. Also many people are using Xray to manage testing of requirements in Jama, and need to integrate with it, currently testing a third-party tool for that.
- We have been able to apply for a non-for-profit license for JIRA and Confluence; we don't seem to have such a possibility with Jama.
Easy management of requirements with integration to the Engineering Change Process. We have somewhat been successful in that, by creating reviews on sets of comments, and later importing the feedback into the system, but it is not too clear. Being able to link testing outcomes and testing plans with similar structures in Jama is the next step of the plan.
At ALMA, we are using Jama Connect for Change Requests (CREs; same as SKAO's ECPs), and the different teams are using it as they see fit.
At ALMA, we are using Jama Connect for Change Requests (CREs; same as SKAO's ECPs), and the different teams are using it as they see fit.
The internal model for Jama is sound, and traceability and suspect links are some of the best tools that we have. However, interoperability is not the best, and many times the requirements being provided by other parties needed a lot of massaging before being able to be imported in Jama. The inclusion of the Jama Interconnect option makes it more easy to integrate with other parts of the organization.
I am also familiar with ReqIF Studio, and the NoMagic DataHub for requirement management. Jama requires no installation, and the use of floating licenses is quite useful. As long as your workflow can be kept in Jama, everything works OK. However, interoperability is the weak link, and DOORS has better interoperability. ReqIF Studio's support of the ReqIF standard is another good point, but collaboration requires a merging workflow that is cumbersome.
Do you think Jama Connect delivers good value for the price?
Yes
Are you happy with Jama Connect's feature set?
Yes
Did Jama Connect live up to sales and marketing promises?
Yes
Did implementation of Jama Connect go as expected?
Yes
Would you buy Jama Connect again?
Yes
Using Jama Connect
60 - At SKAO, the main users of Jama Connect are the Systems Engineering, Project Engineering, and Mission Assurance teams. In addition, also the System Scientists, and the domain specialists outside of SKAO also make use of it. The number is a rough estimate… but we have ~60 fixed seats, and around 500 floating seats.
For ALMA, the main users of Jama Connect are the JAO Development System Engineer (myself), the SEG Systems Engineers, the differnet development team members at the ALMA Executives, and other stakeholders. We are managing with just 1 fixed seat, and 4 floating seats (pluss 500 stakeholder licenses).
For ALMA, the main users of Jama Connect are the JAO Development System Engineer (myself), the SEG Systems Engineers, the differnet development team members at the ALMA Executives, and other stakeholders. We are managing with just 1 fixed seat, and 4 floating seats (pluss 500 stakeholder licenses).
5 - For SKAO, the System Engineering team is the main supporter of Jama Connect for the rest of the organisation.
For ALMA, I'm the main admin, and other colleagues provide fractional FTEs for support.
For ALMA, I'm the main admin, and other colleagues provide fractional FTEs for support.
- Requirements Management
- Compliance to requirements through testing evidence
- Checking progress of system verification
- Creating a custom REST API client for certain kinds of reporting
- We plan to joining Jama and Jira to make sure that the software teams can more easily track their progress in system verification.
Evaluating Jama Connect and Competitors
- Cloud Solutions
- Ease of Use
- Other
Previous knowledge of Jama Connect, and need to move from document-based to database-backed requirements management.
I would not change it. The other options were more costly, and less powerful in terms of requirements management, although they provided more support for other systems engineering tasks.
Jama Connect Implementation
- Implemented in-house
- Third-party professional services
The third-party professional services are included in the Jama price, and helped with the initial setup, and also provided training.
Change management was minimal - The way Jama was implemented at ALMA, we introduced it gradually, and integrated it with existing change management, but without requiring the raise of any change.
For SKAO, it was implemented from the beginning, to assist with change management of requirements, but initially there was no change management required.
For SKAO, it was implemented from the beginning, to assist with change management of requirements, but initially there was no change management required.
- Lack of time allocation to start with the migration
- Need to have resources for creating a more "import friendly" version of the initial set of requirements
Jama Connect Training
- Online Training
- No Training
Jama can be picked up by experimentation, and there are official and unofficial resources that can be used. However, given that Jama comes with included service credits, I recommend using them for training every so often.
Configuring Jama Connect
You should look at what item types you might need, but try to reuse existing types. For specifications that are intended to become complex documents, that might include glossaries, or other entries, try to use components instead of a single Set of <ItemType>.
Some - we have done small customizations to the interface
No - the product does not support adding custom code
Jama Connect Support
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
Quick Resolution Good followup Knowledgeable team Problems get solved Kept well informed No escalation required Support understands my problem Quick Initial Response | None |
Not Sure
Yes - It was recognised as a bug, and a timeline for the release of the solution was provided.
They were able to diagnose a difficult fault… because the problem had been human generated without our knowledge. They were able to pinpoint the result, and provide a way of reverting a manual operation that, from the manual, could result in definitive loss of data. The data was recovered, and a new feature added for the future.
Using Jama Connect
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
Like to use Relatively simple Easy to use Technical support not required Well integrated Consistent Quick to learn Convenient Feel confident using Familiar | None |
- All steps of requirements management
- Getting existing specifications into Jama
- Importing and exporting requirements
- Managing large glossaries and keeping them sorted
Jama Connect Reliability
Integrating Jama Connect
- Jira with Tasktop
I have not participated directly in the SKAO Jama <--> Jira integration through Tasktop
- Jira
For now it is a plan, but we intend to integrate several Jira projects with Jama, mostly for the benefit of the ALMA Integrated Computing Team.
- File import/export
- API (e.g. SOAP or REST)
- AppExchange or similar marketplace
At SKAO, we used Tasktop. For ALMA, we plan to use the Jama Interconnect Hub
None in particular.
Relationship with Jama Software
Not at liberty to discuss.
None, it is very easy to work with Jama Software, both regarding sales, training, engineering consultations, and support.
Upgrading Jama Connect
Yes - Yes, it is done automatically, with no impact.
- Stability
- Introduction of Jama Interchange Hub
- Not clear what the roadmap is
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