You must first identify the traceability items between which you wish to establish traceability links. The most important traceability items, and the typical traceability between them, are described in Concept: Traceability.

The result is documented in a set of requirements traceability matrices, which are part of the Requirements Attributes work product.

Requirements Attributes are used to track information associated with a traceability item, typically for status and reporting purposes.  The essential attributes to track are Risk, Benefit, Effort, Stability and Architectural Impact, in order to permit prioritizing requirements for scope management and to assign requirements to iterations.

Traceability and attributes are general concepts that can apply to any work product or work product element.  However, a typical project will have scheduling and budgeting tools, design tools, requirements management tools, and configuration management tools.  These tools often provide and/or impose certain attributes and traceability.

For example, scheduling tools typically provide links between people and tasks, and manage attributes such as percent complete.  The link from task to requirement may be implicit via naming convention, or may be managed explicitly.

Design tools provide links between design elements using Unified Modeling Language (UML), and manage attributes such as "Description", "Persistency", and so on.

For guidance on linking information across tools, see associated tool mentors.

Requirements Management Plan describes the necessary input for an effective plan. The provided information is intended to serve as a guideline. The intent of each section should be addressed within the context of a given project/product. Detailed guidelines are provided by the following: Guideline: Requirements Management Plan.