Estimating a user-centered design effort

Defining a User-Centered Design (UCD) effort is challenging when budget and calendar times are limited. Accurate estimating builds trust and promotes a spirit of creative compromise. This chapter discusses that Shea Rose's experience at Apollo Appraisal Systems is typical of many situations in the UCD profession. Professionals often move during their career growth from a setting where they are part of a supportive group to an organization where they are the primary UCD practitioner. They work in organizations that have a large highly structured engineering group. UCD activities must coordinate with engineering activities and their schedules. The variables Shea might eventually add to make her estimating process handle more alternative includes complexity and logistics. The iterative planning, estimating, and scheduling process—and repeating the process at intervals throughout a design and development project—described in this case study is not an exceptional situation. Rather, UCD professionals should expect to revisit their estimates at least monthly during every project.