Estimating Costs and Allocating Resources
In my search to find some helpful resources that would be useful in estimating a budget for an ID project, I cam across many sites that offered helpful advice and tips. I’m bad at math, and helpful tips are like someone patting me on the head and telling me that I’ll learn it eventually. I need a formula or something that is tangible that I can manipulate to see how things will break down.
The first site I visited was Tech Republic. I found an article by Shelley Doll titled “Creating your project budget: where to begin?” http://www.techrepublic.com/article/creating-your-project-budget-where-to-begin/1045600. This article gives guidelines on creating a realistic justifiable budget. It has helpful suggestions such as “project costs and budget costs are two different things, identify project costs first” (Doll, 2002). It also explains “project costs are not defined solely in monetary amounts. Include actual amounts, with shipping and taxes, for software or hardware purchases that must be made. If you’re pro-rating the costs of using pre-existing hardware and software tools, include it in number of hours. Likewise, developer effort costs are recorded in hours, not dollars” (Doll, 2002). These are things that I would never think of, and to me are extremely helpful without being patronizing.
The next site that I looked at, I actually subscribed to. Smartsheet is an interactive spreadsheet. It is an interactive Gantt chart. Within the Gantt chart you can export and print, switch views between calendar and Gantt chart, add sub tasks drag and drop to instantly change dates and create task dependencies, has a mobile app for smart phones, and the ability to share with others on Google apps. This is an app that helps me out with my math issues, and it helps with deadlines, and who is responsible for what tasks within the project. It is great for “bottom-up budgeting” (Portney, Mantel, Meredith, Shafer, Sutton & Kramer, 2008). https://www.smartsheet.com
The final page that I found helpful was Ten Step. Ten Step is a consulting firm that specializes in Project Management. They have posted a 10 step statement of work and posted it online. Steps 2 and 3 are build the schedule and budget, and manage the schedule and budget. These sections are then divided into specific sub sections that define the process and technique. This is just detailed enough that some one like me can understand it, and not be overwhelmed, and yet not “dumbed down” to the point that I feel patronized. The charts and tips are smartly written and although you need to be a member to continue more indepth, what they place for public viewing is enough to help the budget challenged. http://www.tenstep.com/open/2.0BuildSchedandBudget.html
There are many great resources out there but the three I chose seemed best for me, the mathematically challenged.
Resources
Doll, Shelley, 2007. Web article. “Creating Your Project Budget: Where to Begin?” Retrieved from: http://www.techrepublic.com/article/creating-your-project-budget-where-to-begin/1045600
Portny, S. E., Mantel, S. J., Meredith, J. R., Shafer, S. M., Sutton, M. M., & Kramer, B. E. (2008). Project management: Planning, scheduling, and controlling projects. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Smart Sheet, 2011. Retrieved from: https://www.smartsheet.com
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