How To Reach Close To Accurate Estimates On Projects
Project estimation is the process where factors such as resources, cost and the timeline are calculated which further helps in the management of tasks and increased efficiency. Each new project is unique and comes with its own set of challenges and the process of estimating the project helps both the client and developers to streamline the process through sound planning. Additionally, it is highly advantageous for business owners to estimate the particulars of a project beforehand as they can use this data to make smart financial choices when budgeting the project.
Benefits of project estimation:
- It allows for the smoother execution of the development process which allows for the project to be completed without any glitches.
- Estimating the timeline of the project and planning tasks ahead allows for flexibility to integrate last minute changes.
- As with window shopping, business owners can analyse the cost behind collaborating with a company based on which they can make an informed decision.
- Reaching close to accurate estimates on projects also helps in preventing any unforeseen overhead costs which may arise later on.
- Project estimation also leads to increased client-partner collaboration as the objective behind the process is to give both parties a complete picture of what the development process would entail.
- Prevents the phenomenon of overpromising and under delivering as developers are given a definitive plan for the developing the application.
- Estimating the scope of the project prior to the development process also leads to better management of resources as well as the job schedule.
- App development companies can also benefit from project estimation as it instills more confidence in potential clients when an accurate approximation is provided which helps with lead conversion.
How do we accurately estimate projects?
While we are known for our technical expertise and the supreme quality of work that we have delivered in the past, this was only made possible by our dedication to offer only the best to our partners. We, at GeekyAnts, have developed a carefully planned project estimation technique which has helped us to build strong relationships with our clients. Our goal is to provide quotes that detail every aspect necessary to bring the project to life and in turn provide a great experience of collaboration to our partners. Here’s what the process looks like:
1. Discovery call- It starts off with our expert business development team who reach to our clients for an elaborate discovery call. The discussion in this discovery call centers around the idea of the project with the purpose of understanding particulars such as the intended audience for the application and the feasibility of the idea with topics such as technology expectations and budget constraints also being touched upon.This helps us to understand if the requirements are checking the specified criteria based on which the business development team can collude with the partner to lay out the optimum plan to take the process forward.
2. Business analysis- Following this, a thorough business analysis conducted after gathering the requirements wherein our in-house team try to understand the app and try to visualise the end goal of the project by defining the requirements and what its all about, i.e. number of screens, the features to be developed, the required modules, etc, which makes it easy to disseminate the information that we received and start the estimation process.
3. Ballpark estimation- Next, we arrive at a ballpark estimation along with an approximate range for the timeline and the cost involved which we share with the client based on which they can make an informed decision about whether they want to go ahead with the project.
4. Final estimation- Once we receive the go-to from the client, we get going with the next step which is to come up with the second and final round of estimation. We conduct a thorough component-wise, feature-wise and screenwise evaluation to come up with an accurate estimate which is broken down to the last detail. Unlike the first ballpark estimate, the latter differs and is more functional as it is exact to the last hour and unit of money that will be involved during the development process while also making sure that the second estimate comes as close to the first as possible unless any drastic changes were involved.
To ensure maximum collaboration, we follow an agile process where the sprints or the milestones that are involved are preset during the estimation process with various tasks assigned to team members while also keeping the client in loop. We submit the proposed plan to our partner for approval before getting started with the project while also maintaining continuous communication about the progress on the project to instill maximum confidence in the venture.
Conclusion
Project estimation is an intricate process that requires experience and knowledge as well the ability to understand the client's requirements and translate them into a plan. While there are various techniques to do this, our dedication towards providing nothing but the best services to our clients has led the innovators at GeekyAnts to create an in-house platform to estimate, execute and automate the process; the platform is in the form of a self-sufficient app which can receive and analyse the data digitally. I hope this article has helped you to understand the importance of project estimation while also giving you an idea about the GeekyAnts way of doing it!
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