Schedule estimates, take 1

[wshaffer]

At work, we're planning a big project. I handed a coworker a batch of specs and asked him to estimate how long it would take a writer to document the features described. I made my own very crude calculation, trying to pad the numbers a bit to compensate for my known tendency towards optimism.

I came up with an estimate of x writer-weeks. My coworker came up with an estimate of 3x writer-weeks. Head, I'd like you to meet Desk. I know you'll get along famously.

I'm tempted to split the difference and turn in an estimate of 2x writer-weeks. But what I probably need to do is go back and re-examine the assumptions I used in my back-of-the-envelope calculation.

Comments

[wshaffer.livejournal.com]

The real kicker here is that we're not really trying to figure out how long the project is going to take. We have a deadline. What we're really trying to figure out is how many writers need to be assigned to the project in order for us to meet the deadline with a high-quality end product without anyone dropping dead of overwork.

We all know the folly of assuming that a piece of work that takes one writer 6 months will take 2 writers 3 months. But the person-week is the only established metric we've got.