Estimating Task Completion Time

⏰ How To Improve Your Time Estimates (https://lnkd.in/egWd45RF), an honest article of lessons learned from going massively over on a fixed-price contract — with action points on what our estimates typically miss, how to estimate better and how to be prepared when things go sideways. By Dave Stewart. ✅ “Planned work” may be as little as 20% of the total project effort. ✅ “Extra work” increases proportionally to the complexity of the work. ✅ Account for changes (20%) and unexpected slowdowns (15%). ✅ Access to data, docs, tools, people is a huge estimate trap. ✅ Run postmortems on past projects to anchor yourself to reality. ✅ Estimate with at most 6–6.5 productive hours per day. ✅ Always estimate in ranges, and never in precise numbers. ✅ Safe way to estimate better is to estimate smaller units of work. ✅ Always add at least 15–20% of buffer time: you will need them. ✅ Every new team member speeds up the work by 1.5–1.8×. 🚫 Troubles start when designers aren’t involved in estimates. 🚫 Stakeholders rarely know what causes delays and extra costs. ✅ Re-iterate that late changes are expensive and cause delays. ✅ Life is full of surprises: budget too much, not too little. ✅ When in trouble, raise a hand, rather than doubling down. As Dave has rightfully noted, much of the work we do is actually happening “around the work” — on the fringes of the project, before, between and beyond actual design work. It covers everything, from daily routine tasks (emails, meetings, reports) to complex dependencies, unknowns and legacy limitations. In the past, I was always trying to underpromise and overdeliver. I was thinking that ultimately that would put me in a good light — appearing as accountable, reliable and committed to quality work, despite the initial scope. Yet it has also resulted in poor estimates, delays, late night work and overlapping projects. So instead, I started dedicating time into drafting a very detailed scope of work to estimate better. Typically it includes: 1. That’s how we understood the problem, 2. That’s what we believe the solution requires, 3. That’s the breakdown of tasks we’ll do, 4. That’s the assumptions we make, 5. That���s dependencies we uncovered, 6. That’s data, docs, tools, people need to be involved, 7. That’s how we are planning to solve it, 8. That’s when stakeholder’s (timely) input will be needed, 9. That’s milestones and timelines we commit to, 10. That’s the fixed scope of our final delivery, 11. That’s the delivery date we commit to, 12. That’s how pricing and payment will work, 13 That’s how we’ll deal with late adjustments and scope changes. And most importantly: for every step of the process — in emails, calls, meetings — make sure to mention that late scope changes are very expensive and will eventually cause delays. So ask for the best channels and frequency for communication with stakeholders. Chances are high that you will need it. #ux #design

Estimating Project Timelines as a Product Manager: Art or Science? One of the trickiest parts of being a Product Manager is answering that question: "When will this be done?" Sound familiar? If you’ve been in the room when stakeholders eagerly await your timeline, you know the pressure of getting it right. But estimating timelines isn’t just about guessing or over-promising—it’s about balancing precision, collaboration, and transparency. After 5+ years of leading cross-functional teams in financial services, e-commerce, and tech, here are the 5 proven methods I’ve relied on to confidently estimate timelines—and get buy-in: 1️⃣ Break It Down with User Stories: Big tasks are scary; small tasks are manageable. Work with your team to break down epics into bite-sized user stories. Use techniques like planning poker to encourage discussion and uncover hidden complexities. 2️⃣ Leverage Historical Data: Past projects are a goldmine! Analyze velocity, cycle times, and bottlenecks from previous sprints. If a similar feature took 3 sprints before, that’s your baseline. 3️⃣ Collaborate on Assumptions: Estimations shouldn’t happen in isolation. Include engineers, designers, and stakeholders early. The more perspectives, the more accurate your estimate. 4️⃣ Account for the Unknowns: Spoiler: Things WILL go wrong. Build in buffers for unexpected challenges like scope creep, bugs, or external dependencies. A 10-20% buffer can save your sanity. 5️⃣ Communicate Constantly: No estimate is perfect. Keep stakeholders updated on progress, roadblocks, and changes. It’s better to over-communicate than to let surprises derail expectations. 💡 Engage with me! What’s your go-to method for project timeline estimation? Do you swear by historical data or prefer gut instincts? Let’s crowdsource some brilliance in the comments! 👇 Drop your best tips, and let’s start a conversation. And if this resonated, give it a like or share it with a fellow PM who’s wrestling with timelines! Let’s make estimating timelines less of a guessing game and more of a superpower. 🚀 #ProductManagement #Agile #Leadership #ProjectTimelines #Collaboration #ProductManagement #AgileMethodology #ProjectManagement #PMTips #Leadership #TimeManagement #EstimatingTimelines #AgilePM #TechLeadership #ProjectEstimation #Scrum #ProductDevelopment #PM #DigitalTransformation #ProductStrategy

Estimating time and effort for data projects doesn't have to be a shot in the dark. Here’s how you can nail it: 1. 𝗕𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗸 𝗜𝘁 𝗗𝗼𝘄𝗻: Start by breaking your project into smaller tasks. The more detailed your breakdown, the easier it is to estimate accurately.     2. 𝗛𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝗗𝗮𝘁𝗮: Look back at similar projects. How long did those take? Use past experiences as a benchmark to forecast future timelines.     3. 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘀𝘂𝗹𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗧𝗲𝗮𝗺: Involve your team when planning. They bring different perspectives and expertise that can highlight tasks you might miss and provide realistic time estimates.     4. 𝗕𝘂𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗿 𝗧𝗶𝗺𝗲: Always add a buffer. Unexpected issues will arise as they always do! Factor in extra time for these unforeseen challenges. A buffer of 10-20% is a good assumption to be on the save side without bloating the project artificialy.     5. 𝗥𝗲𝘃𝗶𝗲𝘄 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗔𝗱𝗷𝘂𝘀𝘁: Estimates are not set in stone. Regularly review progress and adjust your timelines as needed. Don't forget to cummunicate any changes to your stakeholders.     6. 𝗨𝘀𝗲 𝗧𝗼𝗼𝗹𝘀: Leverage project management tools to track progress and stay on top of deadlines. You could use tools like Jira, Trello, or Asana. 𝗜𝗻 𝗣𝗿𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗲 Imagine you’re tasked with developing a dashboard for sales performance. Start by breaking down tasks into requirements engineering, data extraction, cleaning, analysis, visualization, and stakeholder feedback. Leverage historical data from similar projects, involve your team in discussions, and use estimation techniques to refine your timeline. Don’t forget to add contingencies for data anomalies or last-minute changes. By following these steps you’ll be setting realistic timelines and hitting your targets with confidence. What techniques do you use to estimate time and effort for your data projects? ---------------- ♻️ Share if you find this post useful ➕ Follow for more daily insights on how to grow your career in the data field #dataanalytics #datascience #projectmanagement #timemanagement #careergrowth

Imagine you're planning a simple trip to the grocery store. In the best-case scenario, you arrive, find a parking spot right in front, and there's no line at the checkout. In the most likely scenario, the store is a bit busy—you park a little further away, wait in a short line, but everything goes fairly smoothly. In the worst-case scenario, the store is packed, there are no parking spots, you wait in a long checkout line, and the item you need is out of stock. This everyday scenario illustrates the concept of three-point estimates, a valuable tool for planning tasks with uncertainty, particularly in software testing. In testing, whether you're estimating the effort needed for automation framework development, or regression test execution, considering three different outcomes—Optimistic, Most Likely, and Pessimistic—can provide a more realistic estimate. Let’s break it down with a work-related example. Suppose you're preparing a test strategy. If everything goes perfectly, it might take 8 days (Optimistic). If typical challenges arise, it could take 10 days (Most Likely). But if significant delays occur, it might take 12 days (Pessimistic). Using the formula for three-point estimates: The formula for calculating the estimate using these three scenarios is: E = (Pessimistic + 4 x Most Likely + Optimistic) / 6 Applying this to our example: E = (12 + 40 + 8) / 6 = 10 days This approach provides a balanced estimate, leaning towards the most likely scenario, while still considering the best and worst possibilities. While this method is more time-consuming and requires thorough documentation to avoid misunderstandings, it ultimately leads to more accurate and realistic project timelines. Have you tried using this technique in your projects? Please share your experience in the comments below. #SoftwareTesting #QualityAssurance #TestMetry #Estimation

Read this if you want to set more realistic timelines for work. As professionals, we’re often asked to provide timelines for our deliverables. While optimism is valuable, setting realistic timelines is key to building trust with our team and ensuring successful project completion. Here are 7 things to consider in order to set realistic timelines for new tasks: 1. Identify the Deliverables When you clearly define what needs to be accomplished, it becomes easier to break the task into manageable parts and establish a realistic timeline. 2. Consider Your Current Responsibilities It’s easy to focus only on new tasks or deadlines, but smaller recurring responsibilities can accumulate and impact your timeline. Consider everything that demands your time and attention; from emails to team meetings to ongoing projects. 3. Evaluate Your Available Resources Before committing to a deadline, assess the resources (time, people, tools) you have available. This includes checking your team's availability and access to necessary software or equipment. Understanding these factors will help you avoid overpromising. 4. Anticipate the Unknowns Even the most well-laid plans can be disrupted by unforeseen issues, whether they’re technical problems, delays from other teams, or last-minute changes. By identifying potential risks upfront, you can build in flexibility to accommodate them. 5. Check for Dependencies Does your task depend on someone else’s work or another team's progress? Dependencies can introduce delays, so it’s important to allow extra time for any lag in getting necessary inputs from others. 6. Factor in Review and Feedback Time This would ensure you have adequate time to refine your work and make necessary adjustments without rushing through the final stages. 7. Track Progress and Communicate  Monitor your progress regularly. If something is taking longer than expected, reassess and adjust your timeline. Make sure to communicate with your team where necessary. How do you approach setting timelines? Are you more optimistic or realistic? Or do you consider additional factors? Share in the comments.

“I find it hard to estimate how long a project will take.” It’s not just you. Even seasoned project managers struggle with this! It’s called the Planning Fallacy—a bias that makes us consistently underestimate how long tasks will take to complete. How does that happen? We’re natural optimists. We often focus on (hope for?) best-case scenarios and ignore how long similar tasks actually took in the past. But research shows you can outsmart it: 1️⃣ Look Back: Base your timeline on how long similar projects actually took—not what you hope will happen. If unexpected delays happened then, they will likely happen now. 2️⃣ Ask Outsiders: Get input from third parties (this is *very* important and, honestly, one of the most powerful remedies). Other people often spot obstacles you might miss. 3️⃣ Break it Down: List each task and estimate its time. People are usually much better at estimating how long small tasks will take vs. a whole projects. This also reveals hidden steps and makes the scope clearer! The key? Stop planning on hope. Plan based on history. Source: Buehler, R., Griffin, D., & Peetz, J. (2010). The Planning Fallacy. In Advances in Experimental Social Psychology (Vol. 43, pp. 1–62). Elsevier.