Successfully completing a project necessitates thorough evaluation and planning. Accurate project estimation is crucial for both customers, who use it to budget and compare outsourcing options, and outsourcing teams, who rely on it to distribute workloads effectively.
It’s important to leverage an outsourcing team’s extensive experience to provide precise estimates for software and hardware projects. In this article, we’ll be touching upon some ins and outs of estimating software projects.
Key elements
Initial estimate: Usually it starts with a rough estimate to give the customer an idea of the project’s time frame and cost.
Detailed estimate: Specialists create a detailed table showing minimum and maximum labor hours for each project stage.

Factors
Project specifications: Clear objectives and scope aid developers in accurate estimation.
Project size and complexity: Larger, more complex projects require comprehensive evaluation by the whole team.
Team experience: Familiarity with similar projects and tools helps in making precise estimates.
Estimation techniques
- Analogous estimating: Comparing a project with similar past projects.
- Top-down estimating: Estimation based on expert opinions.
- Bottom-up estimating: Detailed assessment of each task.
- Three-point estimating: Using optimistic, pessimistic, and most likely scenarios based on calculation formulas.
- Wideband delphi: Peer assessments and discussions.
- Agile method: T-shirt sizing. Used to estimate the relative size or effort of tasks in project management. Tasks are categorized into sizes resembling T-shirt sizes (XS, S, M, L, XL) based on their complexity or effort required.
- Scrum method: Planning poker. Team members use cards with numbers (typically from the Fibonacci sequence) to propose estimates for a task.
Approach
A combination of aforementioned techniques might be employed for project estimation, depending on the project’s complexity and familiarity. In this case, each estimate has to be validated by technical leads and the CTO before sharing it with the customer.
Common issues and solutions
Accurate project estimation is challenging but essential. Misunderstandings, extended task durations, and changes in requirements can alter estimates. Note that thorough initial evaluations and clear communication help mitigate these risks.

Conclusion
Precise estimation is vital for project success and customer satisfaction. Our experience and methodological approach at Integra Sources ensure reliable project estimates. Share your ideas with us, and we’ll provide a detailed estimation of the time and cost involved.
For a deeper dive into our software estimation process and to learn more about qt software development, visit Integra Sources website’s blog.

Jason is the Marketing Manager at a local advertising company in Australia. He moved to Australia 10 years back for his passion for advertising. Jason recently joined BFA as a volunteer writer and contributes by sharing his valuable experience and knowledge.
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