Software Cost Estimation for TKP

The Issue at hand

Following the Dutch national pension agreement (Pensioenakkoord), TKP needed to translate new pension rules into its systems and needed an objective, well-substantiated forecast of the program's cost and duration to inform its own management and its Board.

The Service Provided

TKP had already built an indicative function point analysis from its domain model and asked us for:

• An expert-opinion validation of TKP's own high-level estimate.

• An externally usable, substantiated forecast of cost and duration.

• Internal advice on the metrics needed to keep the program's agile teams predictable, steerable, and effective.

The outcomes achieved

We delivered the engagement in a very short timeframe, giving TKP a minimum, most-likely, and maximum cost and duration range, the effect of different scenarios (partial reuse of the existing application, possible outsourcing, team instability), and a recommended monitoring instrument to keep the program within its target range and correct course early if needed. TKP rated the engagement a 10 out of 10.

Deliverables

• Validated Estimate: An expert-validated indicative FPA and a minimum/most-likely/maximum cost and duration forecast.

• Productivity Analysis: Productivity benchmarking of two TKP teams.

• Monitoring Advice: Metrics for objectively tracking progress and correcting course early.