Search Results

Documents authored by Steghöfer, Jan-Philipp

Document
Emerging Results, Vision & Reflection Track Paper
DOI: 10.4230/LIPIcs.ESEM.2026.71
Prompts Blend Requirements and Solutions: From Intent to Implementation

Authors: Shalini Chakraborty and Jan-Philipp Steghöfer

Published in: LIPIcs, Volume 394, 20th International Symposium on Empirical Software Engineering and Measurement (ESEM 2026)

Abstract
AI coding assistants are fundamentally reshaping software development by shifting developers' effort from writing code toward specifying intent through natural language prompts. In emerging chat-based development practices such as vibe coding, prompts mediate the transformation of human intent into executable software. While Requirements Engineering (RE) emphasizes capturing, validating, and evolving requirements, current prompting practices remain informal and ad hoc. In this vision paper, we argue that prompts represent lightweight, evolving requirements artifacts that combine expressions of user needs with varying degrees of solution guidance. We use an existing conceptual model that decomposes prompts into three interrelated dimensions: Functionality and Quality (capturing intended system requirements), General Solutions (capturing architectural strategies and technology choices), and Specific Solutions (capturing implementation-level constraints and directives). Building on this conceptualization, we formulate four research hypotheses concerning (i) the evolution of prompts over time, (ii) the influence of user characteristics on prompt evolution, (iii) the relationship between prompt content and requirements validation and verification activities, and (iv) the impact of prompt characteristics on requirements and resulting software quality. We envision an empirical research agenda combining real-world AI-assisted development data, corpus analysis, and controlled experimentation to investigate these hypotheses and derive evidence-based practices for requirements-aware prompt engineering. By reframing prompts through the lens of RE, we position prompting not merely as an interaction mechanism with AI systems, but as a central software engineering concern requiring systematic study.
Cite as

Shalini Chakraborty and Jan-Philipp Steghöfer. Prompts Blend Requirements and Solutions: From Intent to Implementation. In 20th International Symposium on Empirical Software Engineering and Measurement (ESEM 2026). Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs), Volume 394, pp. 71:1-71:14, Schloss Dagstuhl – Leibniz-Zentrum für Informatik (2026)

Copy BibTex To Clipboard

@InProceedings{chakraborty_et_al:LIPIcs.ESEM.2026.71,
  author =	{Chakraborty, Shalini and Stegh\"{o}fer, Jan-Philipp},
  title =	{{Prompts Blend Requirements and Solutions: From Intent to Implementation}},
  booktitle =	{20th International Symposium on Empirical Software Engineering and Measurement (ESEM 2026)},
  pages =	{71:1--71:14},
  series =	{Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs)},
  ISBN =	{978-3-95977-450-5},
  ISSN =	{1868-8969},
  year =	{2026},
  volume =	{394},
  editor =	{Feldt, Robert and Paasivaara, Maria and Mendez, Daniel and Wagner, Stefan and Bar\'{o}n, Marvin Mu\~{n}oz},
  publisher =	{Schloss Dagstuhl -- Leibniz-Zentrum f{\"u}r Informatik},
  address =	{Dagstuhl, Germany},
  URL =		{https://drops.dagstuhl.de/entities/document/10.4230/LIPIcs.ESEM.2026.71},
  URN =		{urn:nbn:de:0030-drops-280393},
  doi =		{10.4230/LIPIcs.ESEM.2026.71},
  annote =	{Keywords: Requirements Engineering, Vibe Coding, Prompts, AI}
}
Document
Software Engineering in Practice Track Paper
DOI: 10.4230/LIPIcs.ESEM.2026.91
Faster Than the Team, Faster Than the Customer: Tool Integration, Collaboration, and Organisational Lag in AI-Assisted RE

Authors: Jan-Philipp Steghöfer

Published in: LIPIcs, Volume 394, 20th International Symposium on Empirical Software Engineering and Measurement (ESEM 2026)

Abstract
The impact of applying generative AI tools to requirements engineering (RE) in industrial practice remains poorly understood. This paper examines how AI-assisted RE tools are used in industrial practice at XITASO, a medium-sized enterprise for high-tech software engineering, and how they reshape workflows, tool integration, and PO-developer relationships. We combine a 2024 company-wide use-case survey with two rounds of semi-structured interviews with eight product owners (POs) in late 2025 and spring 2026, covering an in-house chatbot and seven commercial AI tools. We identify 15 distinct use cases across four categories: product backlog management, tender management, requirements and domain understanding, and document and artifact creation. Three findings emerge. First, the effect of AI on PO-developer interaction is mixed: the prevailing single-user interaction model can substitute for collaborative dialogue, and developers do not always welcome AI-generated artefacts. Second, tool integration - not tool capability - is the binding constraint: where integration is in place, time savings are dramatic; where it is missing, POs fall back on manual workarounds. Third, AI advances faster than the surrounding organisational systems, so its benefits accrue to individual POs while team processes and customer readiness remain the bottleneck. The empirical GenAI-RE literature remains dominated by early-stage, lab-oriented evaluations of isolated tasks while practice has moved into territory it has not yet studied: practitioners are already assembling cross-tool integrations, navigating customer governance, and renegotiating role boundaries. From these patterns we derive a set of questions practitioners considering AI-assisted RE may ask of their own situation.
Cite as

Jan-Philipp Steghöfer. Faster Than the Team, Faster Than the Customer: Tool Integration, Collaboration, and Organisational Lag in AI-Assisted RE. In 20th International Symposium on Empirical Software Engineering and Measurement (ESEM 2026). Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs), Volume 394, pp. 91:1-91:20, Schloss Dagstuhl – Leibniz-Zentrum für Informatik (2026)

Copy BibTex To Clipboard

@InProceedings{steghofer:LIPIcs.ESEM.2026.91,
  author =	{Stegh\"{o}fer, Jan-Philipp},
  title =	{{Faster Than the Team, Faster Than the Customer: Tool Integration, Collaboration, and Organisational Lag in AI-Assisted RE}},
  booktitle =	{20th International Symposium on Empirical Software Engineering and Measurement (ESEM 2026)},
  pages =	{91:1--91:20},
  series =	{Leibniz International Proceedings in Informatics (LIPIcs)},
  ISBN =	{978-3-95977-450-5},
  ISSN =	{1868-8969},
  year =	{2026},
  volume =	{394},
  editor =	{Feldt, Robert and Paasivaara, Maria and Mendez, Daniel and Wagner, Stefan and Bar\'{o}n, Marvin Mu\~{n}oz},
  publisher =	{Schloss Dagstuhl -- Leibniz-Zentrum f{\"u}r Informatik},
  address =	{Dagstuhl, Germany},
  URL =		{https://drops.dagstuhl.de/entities/document/10.4230/LIPIcs.ESEM.2026.91},
  URN =		{urn:nbn:de:0030-drops-280591},
  doi =		{10.4230/LIPIcs.ESEM.2026.91},
  annote =	{Keywords: Requirements Engineering, RE in Practice, AI assistance, Backlog Management, Collaboration in RE}
}
Document
DOI: 10.4230/DagRep.5.11.127
Social Concepts in Self-organising Systems (Dagstuhl Seminar 15482)

Authors: Ada Diaconescu, Stepehn Marsh, Jeremy Pitt, Wolfgang Reif, and Jan-Philipp Steghöfer

Published in: Dagstuhl Reports, Volume 5, Issue 11 (2016)

Abstract
This report documents the program and the outcomes of Dagstuhl Seminar 15482 "Social Concepts in Self-organising Systems". The seminar brought together researchers from computer sciences (in particular from the fields of multi-agent systems and self-organisation) and from social sciences to discuss the impact of the use of social concepts in technical systems as well as the interaction between technical and social systems. In an engaging and interactive setting, the problem was illuminated from a technical as well as a philosophical and legal point of view. The talks, discussions, and working groups identified a growing body of work in the field, a number of interesting and promising research avenues, as well as a set of open issues for future investigation.
Cite as

Ada Diaconescu, Stepehn Marsh, Jeremy Pitt, Wolfgang Reif, and Jan-Philipp Steghöfer. Social Concepts in Self-organising Systems (Dagstuhl Seminar 15482). In Dagstuhl Reports, Volume 5, Issue 11, pp. 127-150, Schloss Dagstuhl – Leibniz-Zentrum für Informatik (2016)

Copy BibTex To Clipboard

@Article{diaconescu_et_al:DagRep.5.11.127,
  author =	{Diaconescu, Ada and Marsh, Stepehn and Pitt, Jeremy and Reif, Wolfgang and Stegh\"{o}fer, Jan-Philipp},
  title =	{{Social Concepts in Self-organising Systems (Dagstuhl Seminar 15482)}},
  pages =	{127--150},
  journal =	{Dagstuhl Reports},
  ISSN =	{2192-5283},
  year =	{2016},
  volume =	{5},
  number =	{11},
  editor =	{Diaconescu, Ada and Marsh, Stepehn and Pitt, Jeremy and Reif, Wolfgang and Stegh\"{o}fer, Jan-Philipp},
  publisher =	{Schloss Dagstuhl -- Leibniz-Zentrum f{\"u}r Informatik},
  address =	{Dagstuhl, Germany},
  URL =		{https://drops.dagstuhl.de/entities/document/10.4230/DagRep.5.11.127},
  URN =		{urn:nbn:de:0030-drops-57954},
  doi =		{10.4230/DagRep.5.11.127},
  annote =	{Keywords: computational justice, multi-agent sytems, norms, organic computing, reputation, self-organisation, social capital, socio-technical systems, sociologically-inspired computing, trust}
}

Any Issues?
X

Feedback on the Current Page

CAPTCHA

Thanks for your feedback!

Feedback submitted to Dagstuhl Publishing

Could not send message

Please try again later or send an E-mail
© 2023-2026 Schloss Dagstuhl – LZI GmbH Schloss Dagstuhl – LZI GmbH About DROPS Imprint Privacy Contact