Estimation is a topic which is extremely important to running a successful software development company, whether you are a digital agency (like Brandmovers) or a freelancer working solo.

I was honored to be the featured speaker for the September 2013 meeting of the Atlanta PHP User Group. The slides are below in case you missed it. If you are interested in the topic, there is supporting documentation below for reference.

Description

You’re an expert developer, peacefully composing code into a profoundly elegant masterpiece, when suddenly your boss rushes in with the Next Big Idea that will Revolutionize The Way People Use The Internet. He’s on his way to pitch to a VC, and stops by to describe the Idea in excited terms. After a 30 second elevator pitch, he pops the question: “So, Peter, how long do you think it will take to build this thing-a-ma-bob?”

What do you say?

These eight Protips will cover your back, save your job, and keep your boss’s shirt.

Supporting Documentation

I drew heavily from these resources for this presentation, and highly recommend them for anyone wishing to get better at estimating projects:

Books:

• Steve McConnell, “Software Estimation: Demystifying the Black Art“
• Fred Brooks, “The Mythical Man-Month: Essays on Software Engineering“

Blog posts:

• Rob Bowley, “Estimation is at the root of most software project failures“
• Paul M. Jones, “The Miserable Mathematics of the Man-Month“
• Michael Dubakov, “Estimates in Software Development. New Frontiers.“