Presented at ACCU 2014 (accu.org)
Are estimates an essential part of project planning and delivery or a waste of everybody's time? As is so often the case the answer is neither and both. In this session we discover that there is more than one kind of estimate and examine how they are typically used in an agile context.
We look at what some of the great minds have said on the subject, from Steve McConnell to Demarco and Lister. We'll also consider the need for estimates from the viewpoint of the business people who have to decide whether a project proposal should receive budget. Picking up the 'No Estimates' discussion from Twitter, we'll see if there's a case to be made for always refusing to provide estimates or whether there are times that some sorts of estimation is valuable.
I may not change your mind, but I intend to widen your perspective.
57. There are known knowns; there are things we
know that we know.
There are known unknowns; that is to say there
are things that, we now know we don't know.
But there are also unknown unknowns
– there are things we do not know we
don't know.
Tuesday, 15 April 14