ABSTRACT
The decision-making process at each of the budgeting and funds approvals points is an updated estimate of cost and time. The class 1 estimate is a rough order of magnitude (ROM) estimate, although conceptual or study estimates are also common names. This second estimate is an update to the class 1 estimate and might be called the planning estimate or budgetary estimate. The project team uses the information from the Definition Stage plus the project planning information, including the detailed work and product breakdown structures, to develop the class 3 estimate. A non-existent or weak organizational system, lack of historical data for cost and time, and an absence of lessons learned will all contribute to poor planning, unreliable project detailed plans (PDPs), and funding decisions based on questionable estimates. To reach project management maturity, organizations must save all of the estimating data and estimates in the historical database.
