Raw Estimation: How to Estimate IT Projects? | fireup.pro

In our company teams are practicing Scrum, a well-established way of handling a project. Below you can find a simple explanation of how we perform backlog items estimation.

In our company teams are practicing Scrum, a well-established way of handling a project. Below you can find a simple explanation of how we perform backlog items estimation.

Various methods are used in raw estimation to ensure accuracy and reliability. Engineering plays a crucial role in cost estimation, particularly in the field of cost engineering, where it is a fundamental activity.

There is a precondition that has a serious impact on the quality of the estimates. The story should meet the DOR (Definition Of Readiness) criteria. It should also answer questions: why and what? Especially the “why” is quite important to software developers because it explains the whole context of the story.

Basics of Estimation

Estimation in IT projects is not just about predicting the time required to complete tasks; it’s about understanding the scope, complexity, and resources needed. The foundation of effective estimation lies in breaking down the project into manageable components and assessing each part’s requirements. This involves defining clear objectives, understanding stakeholder expectations, and using historical data to inform your estimates. By focusing on relative estimation, as we do at fireup.pro, you can compare tasks based on their complexity rather than time, leading to more accurate and meaningful estimates.

What do we do during the Refinement meeting?

• The Product Owner presents and explains the story
• The development team gets familiar with the scope of a story and stakeholders expectations
• There is a space for Grooming (questions, clarification, doubts discussion)
• The Product Owner gets feedback from the development team (effort, raw estimation, the readiness of the story to be developed, split suggestion)
• The team can discover tiny things to do before Sprint Planning and thanks to that speed the next sprint planning meeting up, eg: check additional specification details, contact other teams to get desired “know-how”, check dependencies to other stories released by another team and do a quick basic technical research

There is a tradeoff between the estimation accuracy and the time spent on estimation. The more precise estimation is the more time it requires, making it crucial to manage account statuses accurately during this process. Additionally, providing a final assessment during the refinement meeting is significant for ensuring comprehensive project evaluations.

How do we perform estimation?

We do the estimation either during Refinement or Sprint planning (if it’s done during refinement then we just verify it during the Sprint planning).

The most important thing is that we do the estimation in relative terms instead of absolute terms. It’s a fundamental rule. This includes the estimation of the raw materials needed for various tasks. Additionally, the size of project components significantly impacts the estimation process and overall project efficiency.

Relative estimation is the process of estimating task completion, not by units of time, but rather by how items are similar to each other in terms of complexity.

Considering Risks and Uncertainties

No project is without its risks and uncertainties. These factors can significantly impact the accuracy of your estimates if not properly accounted for. At fireup.pro, we emphasize the importance of identifying potential risks early in the project lifecycle. This includes technical challenges, resource availability, and external dependencies. By conducting thorough risk assessments and incorporating contingency plans, you can mitigate the impact of unforeseen issues. Additionally, using techniques like Monte Carlo simulations can help quantify uncertainties and provide a range of possible outcomes, giving you a more robust estimation framework.

Tools and Techniques Supporting Raw Estimation

To enhance the accuracy and efficiency of project estimation, various tools and techniques can be employed. At fireup.pro, we utilize a range of methodologies tailored to the specific needs of each project. Tools like JIRA and Trello help in tracking progress and managing tasks, while techniques such as Planning Poker and T-shirt Sizing facilitate team collaboration and consensus-building. Additionally, leveraging historical data and machine learning algorithms can provide predictive insights, further refining your estimates. By integrating these tools and techniques into your estimation process, you can achieve more reliable and actionable results.

Benefits of using story points in Fibonacci-like style (1,2,3,5,8)

• it helps with relative estimation,
• you don’t have to focus on how much time does it take to deliver a story,
• it’s quick (estimation is related to already completed Product Backlog Items),
• this keeps team members focused on delivering value, not on the time they spend on it,
• helps to illustrate the velocity of a team,
• it’s impossible to play politics using velocity as a weapon,
• it’s accurate enough to plan sprints ahead,
• story points reward team members for solving problems based on difficulty, not time spent.

We are using the Planning poker technique. It triggers the team’s activity, starts grooming discussion, and therefore allows bringing a better picture of the story to the team. In the case of raw estimation sometimes we use the Big/Uncertain/Small estimation just to quickly give feedback to the Product Owner

At fireup.pro we work with you to recognize, understand, and help you achieve your goals. We create a feedback loop to improve quickly and effectively. We’re concerned about both the customer and employee sides of the applications you implement. For us, it’s the only way anyone can be successful in business.