MRD, BRD & URD — Requirements Sources Track

0.1.2 Mar 25, 2026

This release introduces the Sources Track — three new vision document types that capture where your requirements come from before you formalize them.

Improvements

New mrd document type — market analysis covering TAM/SAM/SOM, competitive landscape, market needs, and timing
New brd document type — business justification covering objectives, ROI, stakeholders, budget, and constraints
New urd document type — user needs covering personas, journeys, usability requirements, and acceptance criteria
implements relations linking source documents to ISO/IEC/IEEE 29148:2018 specifications — brs implements mrd, brs implements brd, strs implements urd
Improved prompts and templates for all three new types

Meet the Sources Track — where requirements come from

The Sources Track is the second of three requirement tracks in Archcore’s vision layer. It captures the discovery work that happens before formal requirements: who needs this, why the business should build it, and what market conditions make it viable.

Flow: mrd (market landscape) → brd (business justification) → urd (user needs)

Each source document is informal and discovery-oriented. When you’re ready to formalize, source documents link to ISO/IEC/IEEE 29148:2018 specifications via implements relations — market and business needs flow into brs, user needs flow into strs.

When to use it:

Aligning stakeholders on why something should be built before defining what to build
Running product discovery across market, business, and user dimensions
Building an audit trail from market signal to formal requirement
Working with multiple teams that need shared context on business drivers

Quick test: “Do I need to capture where this requirement came from — market data, business case, or user research?” If yes — you need the Sources Track.

Example — building the sources for a new product initiative:

archcore mcp
# Then ask your agent:
# "Create an MRD for the enterprise collaboration market"

Your agent creates .archcore/enterprise-collab.mrd.md with a structured template covering market size, competitive landscape, needs, and timing. Then continue the discovery:

# "Create a BRD for our enterprise collaboration product based on the MRD"
# "Create a URD with personas and journeys for enterprise collaboration"

Archcore automatically links the chain: your brd references the mrd, your urd captures the user dimension. When you’re ready to formalize, ask your agent to create a brs and it picks up the implements relations — market and business needs flow into formal business requirements.

MRD vs BRD vs URD vs PRD:

If the content…	Use
Analyzes the market — size, competitors, timing	`mrd`
Justifies the business case — ROI, budget, stakeholders	`brd`
Captures user needs — personas, journeys, acceptance criteria	`urd`
Defines the product — features, scope, user stories	`prd`

Which track do you need?

Track	Documents	Best for
Product (simple)	`prd`	Individual features, small teams, rapid prototyping
Sources (discovery)	`mrd` → `brd` → `urd`	Product discovery, stakeholder alignment
ISO (decomposition)	`brs` → `strs` → `syrs` → `srs`	Regulated systems, multi-team projects

All three tracks coexist. Start with a prd for speed. Add the Sources Track when you need stakeholder alignment. Add ISO when you need formal traceability.

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