Giving Estimates

[Moscow Mule]

In such a creeping scope environment you should probably tell them your estimate is likely to be 80-200% of the final cost.

[b0redom]

Don't forget to factor in supplier timescales. For example I was originally hired to do a 3 month contract @ my current place setting up some Solaris gear. The gear only turned up 4 months later...... If you're having to deal with 3rd parties, you need to add a lot more padding....

[Zippy]

I wasn't entirely clear. When I talk about solution 1 and 2, these are options. Option 1 is the intial idea because they thought (haha) it could be done in the 4 weeks remaining on my contract. Option 2 has become the desirable but will take much longer.

Oh OK, I'll let you off then

If option 2 is desirable for cost saving/revenue reasons (it must be, surely?) do make a big deal about it and give the client some figures.

[Platypus]

2) Give a best and worst case scenario

Humm... IMO people only ever see the best case scenario (i.e. they ignore the worst case scenario).

I agree with the poster who said give a range. I'd make the low end of the range my "real" estimate (i.e. not the "best case") and the top end = real + 30%

[oracleslave]

Humm... IMO people only ever see the best case scenario (i.e. they ignore the worst case scenario).

Public sector?

[Platypus]

Public sector?

Nope, commercial. You tell client it will cost between X and Y, then they expect to get it for X even on a T&M project.

Best to caveat the SOW to death, then PCR the client when it all goes t*ts up!

Surely this is common?

[oracleslave]

Nope, commercial. You tell client it will cost between X and Y, then they expect to get it for X even on a T&M project.

Best to caveat the SOW to death, then PCR the client when it all goes t*ts up!

Surely this is common?

I agree. If you have caveated in the first place and also manage expectations correctly you will be easily able to reinforce the reasons for the change requests as you present them to the client and reason why it now costs Y as opposed to the initial utopia price of X.

[Fred Bloggs]

Fixed price is a potential financial disaster with such a woolly scope. Endless arguments about what was in scope and what was out of scope.

[TheFaQQer]

Fixed price is a potential financial disaster with such a woolly scope. Endless arguments about what was in scope and what was out of scope.

Fix the scope at the start, and then fleece them on change control.

Seems to work fine for certain large companies supplying the government.

[Fred Bloggs]

Fix the scope at the start, and then fleece them on change control.

Seems to work fine for certain large companies supplying the government.

Not going to disagree. Sounded like the poor old OP hadn't got a hope of fixing a scope for a (6 month???) project and presenting a tender to the client.

Tender in haste, repent at leisure. Myself I'd have declined to tender on the limited info presented here. I'd have put forward a "best guess" plan with key deliverables, milestones, projected end date and offered a day rate for the duration. It's upto the client then. Anything else would be too risky without a detailed spec to tender against from the client.