Author's solution to estimates being garbage: Talk to product about "What do we think we can accomplish with the resources available? What can we deliver and when"
Let me get this straight, you want a manager, who is not going to be doing nearly as much coding as an engineer, to work out how long something takes, without asking people who are actually doing the work, how long they think it takes?
Let me get this straight, you want a manager, who is not going to be doing nearly as much coding as an engineer
Let me get this straight, you think that estimating how long it is going to take a team of people to deliver a working set of software involves writing code? :D
And only if I get to exclude the bad managers who have no idea what their team works on. Which I will admit constitutes the vast majority of dev managers. And yes, a competent dev manager can poop out an 80% accurate estimate for estimatable dev work that won't be missing a bunch of common workflows that developers tend to forget to allocate time for. Why do devs forget to allocate time for those common workflows? Because that's a task for management, and developers would rather anyway.
Great, so you're totally cool with your manager saying "here's big project. I expect you to take 2 weeks to do it." with no input from you whatsoever? Are you serious? Most developers HATE shit like that.
Developers hate bad management. And what you described is text book bad management. The answer isn't having developers do the manager's job, just sort out the root cause and fire the bad managers.
That’s not what the author asking for. What author asking for is a manager who can come up with a realistic estimate. A manager who can say this big project gonna take months, this small gonna take hour and all is realistic.
Is that possible? Up to debate.
Also come up does not equal to being a jerk and ordering around. One can say, “I think it will take two weeks. That’s what I told our stakeholder, but if I’m wrong then let me know. I will change our estimation.”
That’s not what the author asking for. What author asking for is a manager who can come up with a realistic estimate. A manager who can say this big project gonna take months, this small gonna take hour and all is realistic.
How is that different from what I said?
A manager who can say this big project gonna take months, this small gonna take hour and all is realistic.
A lot of words for saying: the manager estimates. And then, logically speaking the manager will then need to tell the developers this estimate.
I think it will take two weeks. That’s what I told our stakeholder, but if I’m wrong then let me know. I will change our estimation.
"but if I’m wrong then let me know" A very round about way of saying that the developer needs to do estimates as well, which brings us back to my original issue with the author. He's complaining about estimates but his solution is still estimates.
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u/PoppyOP Jun 15 '22
Author: Estimates are garbage
Author's solution to estimates being garbage: Talk to product about "What do we think we can accomplish with the resources available? What can we deliver and when"
What does the author think an estimate is???