Project Management: Compiling The Task List

The first stage in the bottom-up cost estimating process is to compile a complete list of every known item that is going to cost money. This can prove difficult. But any item inadvertently left out of the cost estimates will result in an underestimate for the project as a whole. This can jeopardize planning and scheduling, and (if not realized in time) lead to serious problems and red faces when the time comes to hand the project over to the customer. And, of course, if the project has been sold for a fixed price, the additional work must be paid for not out of the budgeted project funds, but from the contractor's expected profits.