One of the first tasks when managing a project is the cost estimate. A cost estimate must be accurate, transparent and reliable. These factors are particularly important for a small business because ...

Two key features of a project are on-time and on-budget delivery. The project manager can only fulfill these objectives if the estimates leading to the project schedule and budget are accurate.

Once you understand the effort that’s required for a project, you can assign resources to determine how long the project will take and estimate labor and non-labor costs. Here’s a process you can use ...

The purpose of the estimate is two-fold. First, it allows the contractor to enter into a contractual agreement with confidence. Second, it provides an organized, detailed plan to execute the project ...

Let’s start with some estimate definitions – The first type of estimate is called an “order of magnitude” estimate. This is usually a guess that some upper-level has determined is the right amount of ...

Project work estimation has three components: the initial first cut, commonly known as a SWAG (scientific wild-ass guess), tracking the estimate against the actual numbers, and using the schedule to ...

Once you understand the effort that’s required, you can assign resources to determine how long a project will take (duration) and then you can estimate labor and non-labor costs. There are three early ...