How to Break Down Requirements Without Being Misled by Business Needs

Introduction: The Trap of “Small Requests”

> “Add a button.”

> “Export a few more columns.”

Have you ever been worn out by these seemingly simple asks?

The feature goes live, and then the business says:

> “This isn’t what I wanted.”

Don’t panic — this guide will help you see through appearances, uncover the essence, and avoid being pulled around by unclear business requests.

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Common Loop in Daily Work

The business says:

• “Can you add a button here?”
• “Can you give me an Edit function?”
• “Can we export a few more columns?”

You think: “Easy tweaks.” You start:

• Write the PRD
• Sketch prototypes
• Schedule the release

Then after launch:

> “Hmm... not exactly what I wanted.”

You’re stunned, pressure rising — Are they messing with me?

In B-end product work, this happens almost daily.

Why? Because you may have solved a hypothesis, not the real problem.

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Role Clarity: Business = Problem Expert

New product managers often take the proposed solution at face value.

But in reality:

• Business sees part of the problem
• Their proposal is a solution hypothesis

Examples:

• “Add a button” → Root: Process is too complex; errors happen often
• “Need Edit function” → Root: Incorrect data cannot be corrected
• “Export more columns” → Root: Current reports lack flexibility for analysis

Your role is to find the root cause and design a solution that truly fixes the pain point.

Copying their approach without validating the need risks building the wrong solution.

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What Is “Demand” Really?

Official definition:

> Demand is the need for a certain good or service, under specific conditions and time, which people are willing and able to obtain.

Practical definition:

> Scenario + Pain Point + Ability to Address It = Real Demand

• “I want an Edit button” = Idea
• “When data is wrong, I need to correct it quickly to avoid reporting errors” = Demand

Demand Analysis = Reverse Excavation

• Start with the user’s stated idea
• Dig out goals, pain points, scenarios
• Convert into a targeted product plan

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Case Study: Avoid Literal Implementation

Scenario:

Operations head:

> “Allen, help me build an account balance monitoring function.”

Initial impulse: Write the PRD immediately.

But instead, I asked: “Why?”

Step-by-Step Clarification

• Problem: Many accounts, manual tracking, balances deplete unnoticed
• Current process: Calculate daily average spend → Estimate days remaining → Manual top-up before balance hits zero

Root issue:

Manual monitoring creates high risk of missed accounts → Zero balance → Potential client complaints

Proposed solution (validated):

• Configure accounts in system
• Auto-calculate average daily spend & remaining days
• Notify ops via Feishu and tag responsible staff

Outcome: Saves manual work. Ops can focus on strategy, not balance tracking.

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Reverse-Engineering Business Requirements

Core technique: Question assumptions. Capture the big picture.

Two Key Questions to Ask:

• What specific problem are we facing right now?
• Get the scenario and exact pain point
• How do we currently operate?
• Walking through the process often reveals design flaws, not just missing features

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Summary: Problem-Driven Thinking

• Business proposals = Fragments through their lens
• PM role = Return to core problem
• Drive solutions from problems
• Avoid adding “features that solve nothing”

Next time: When you hear “Add a button” or “Export more columns,”

✔ Identify essence behind the ask

✔ Validate before building

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What’s Next?

In the next article, we’ll cover:

• Judging if a need is worth doing
• Turning scattered issues into quantifiable product value
• Prioritization to maximize resources — critical tasks first, optional later

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Tool Tip: Ai-Assisted Problem Discovery

Platforms like AiToEarn官网 help PMs and creators move beyond surface-level requests.

AiToEarn enables:

• Multi-platform content generation (Douyin, Kwai, Bilibili, Facebook, etc.)
• AI-assisted publishing & analytics
• Monetization
• Systematic pain point capture & validation

Key takeaway: The right tool can streamline both problem discovery and value delivery.

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💡 Remember: Small feature requests are often symptoms. Your job is diagnosis — solve the disease, not just treat the symptom.