Hello there,
As a member of this forum I am also a learning person.
I feel fairly confident to solve most of my technical programming related issues on my own. I mean by that it is fairly easy to find resources on the web.
One topic though I don’t feel like too sure is the organisational, planning stuff. I can determine requirements or backlog items but I have absolutely no idea how I could estimate how long such item would take or how much it would cost. What I find on the web seems to generic and not practical enough.
I’ve also read books about project management but it felt like targeting people already in the field. Too vague / general and I could relate to only a few points.
Do you know any comprehensive / practical resources that could be helpful ?
Do you know people who explain such thing well just like Mosh does for code ?
I know SCRUM overall. I get the idea of using planning poker to estimate a task. But I am also not confident in my ability to properly estimate anything.
Should you dev in a company for a living , you can also tell us a bit about how it looks like IRL.
Thank you.
1 Like
In practice, the only reasonable way to estimate the size of a task is by experience. Until then you can only make wild guesses.
When you have some experience with similar tasks, you can have a pretty good idea about the scale of a task because you can compare it to other things you have done before. “Ah, this is just like (thing I did last month), I think it will take about 2 weeks.”
Even with experience, estimating the size of a task is guesswork because some parts of your code may not be as clean as others. Often the hidden parts of doing something are the biggest cost. For example, I had to refactor five classes to discover a bug that could be fixed with one line change after the refactoring exposed the bug.
In the meantime, you can start with wild guesses and build up a library of sorts of tasks that you will now have a better idea of how long it takes to do those kinds of tasks. That is the best advice I can give.
Unfortunately, the best resources I have seen on project and time management have been internal presentations by my colleagues so they are privileged and confidential. There are many resources out there about SCRUM and Agile development. Much of it only works if your company uses those systems. There are also things which depend on what type of system you have available for sharing work progress, etc.
One other important aspect we found was a good triage system to review incoming work and bug reports. If you do not have a good triage system you get constantly derailed by incoming stuff. The SCRUM / Agile world has a systematic approach to this, but your company has to agree to those terms. Regardless, you need a good triage setup.
Good luck!
The thread is from a year ago, but I wanted to drop in with some advice on project management resources. It’s great that you’re actively seeking to improve your skills in the organizational and planning aspects of programming projects. Even though the thread is a bit old, the knowledge and resources are still relevant. When it comes to estimating project timelines and costs, it can be a challenge, especially if you’re new to the field. While there are plenty of generic resources available online, it’s important to find practical and comprehensive ones that resonate with your specific needs. One resource you can explore is this web based help desk software that can assist you with project management tasks, providing practical features to streamline your organizational and planning efforts.
Thank you for your contribution.
The topic is rather underestimated / not covered enough (IMHO).
Any interesting resource is always a plus.
Now as a junior dev professionally for 6+ months what I learnt is I apparently overthought a lot of this. I did estimate JIRA tasks today and I did not use ultra precise formula.
Simply looked at the code, checked the using statements (imports) to have a rough idea. Scanned the code to check for any fancy code, add my estimation to JIRA and voilà.
I was clearly said I am not expected any precise estimation to the millisecond.
Just wanted to jump in and say that there’s an excellent array of resources out there for gaining comprehensive knowledge in project management. When you’re exploring these resources, it’s a great idea to focus on those that provide certifications and training tailored to the systems your company uses. For example, I’m currently undergoing certification with the Project Management Institute in Agile. This aligns perfectly with our business goals and how we execute our work projects in the company. Also, consider joining project management forums or communities. Sometimes, real-world experiences and tips from professionals can be more valuable than textbooks.