ISO/IEC 15289:2006 was developed to assist users of systems and software life cycle processes to manage information items (documents). It is based on the life cycle processes specified in ISO/IEC 15288 or ISO/IEC 12207:1995/AMD 1:2002/AMD 2. Information items are essential to preserving what transpired when using system life cycle processes, and may be identified as deliverable documents.

ISO/IEC 15289:2006 identifies the purpose and content of all identified systems and software life cycle information items as required for the various life cycle processes. The information item contents are defined according to generic document types (which may be referred to as information item types) and the specific purpose of the document.

ISO/IEC 15289:2006 may be applied to any of the activities and tasks of a project, system or software product, or service life cycle. It is not limited by the size, complexity or criticality of the project. It may be applied to all forms of information items, information item content, and document delivery media. Information items may be combined or subdivided as needed for project or organizational purposes. The nomenclature for information items, document titles and contents is informative.