Refining the Size Estimate

The team’s System Architect, Susanne Martin, has taken the client’s requirements for the medical records system and estimated the size in Stories.  The development teams are using Agile methods. 

Click the Edit Project (pencil) icon  in the project toolbar.  Click on the Sizing tab to update the T-shirt size estimate with detailed data from Susanne.  Notice that the Function Unit is set to Story Points with a default Gearing Factor that converts the Function Unit to a normalized size, known as the Base Size Unit.  This size measure, in Implementation Units (IU), represents the most elementary development steps and provides a common measure across all project types. The list of available Sizing units and default Gearing Factors, along with other lookup fields, like Primary Language, are configured by the Site Administrator to promote consistent and repeatable processes. 

To enter the detailed size estimate from Susanne, Phillip needs to change the Size Method to Calculator.  Click on the Size Method pull-down menu and select Calculator, then click the Size Calculator button.

The Sizing Calculator initially displays the Stories and Epics sizing method associated with the Agile Story Point Template used to create the estimate, but you can choose a technique that fits your project type, such as Package Implementation, and size data you have available.  You can add additional sizing components to any available method or create a new sizing method specific to each project.

This sizing technique lets you estimate total project size in epics and user stories, each measured in Story Points.  The Story Points/Component column contains gearing factors used to account for the variability of size and complexity among stories or other software components.  

Enter the # of Components shown in the example below and click the checkboxes to the left of each edited row.  The updated size estimate is 1247 Story Points (a bit larger than your initial, industry-based estimate of 1088 story points).  Click OK to close the Sizing Calculator and return to the Sizing tab.

Note that the size shown on the Sizing tab has been updated to reflect your new Size Calculator estimate.