Do you include general project costs in your estimates?

General project costs

Management costs can change depending on how much management the client requires. You should recommend a suitable level of management. 'Management, accountability and transparency' has a cost.

You should add general project costs as a % of the work items generally in line with the following (note that these numbers are just best guesses):

• Testing: 20%
• Bug Fixes: 20%
• Software Audit (if relevant): 4 hours per Release - usually conducted by two experienced Architects
• Fixes from the Software Audit: 5%
• DevOps: 10%
• Project Management: 15% - this includes items like stand up meetings, timesheets, standard updates, reviews, etc.
• Unknowns (for risky projects): 10%. While this is arbitrary it raises awareness for everybody that there are things we still don't know!

Project specific costs

Estimates for a project should be done by a developer, checked by another developer, and finally triple checked by an Account Manager. While every project is different in some way, there are common elements.

If the client requires a fixed price quotation, a 20% premium is added to the estimates for the Sprints specified in the Specification Release only (i.e. a fixed price is not given on the entire project). Requests for variations to a fixed price contract must wait until the contract is completed. If development is based on a fixed price contract, work is completed offsite only to facilitate project management and prevent unauthorized scope development.