Sizing and effort estimation model for information technology infrastructure projects

What can be done to improve the success rate of Information Technology (IT) infrastructure projects? Completion of projects on time, on budget, and meeting the project requirements are the criteria used to determine project success. This research was carried out to address the “time” parameter of the success criteria. No sizing and estimation models exist for IT infrastructure projects in the current literature. The IT infrastructure project managers estimate their projects using expert judgment and historical records. The purpose of this research is to construct a sizing and effort estimation model for IT infrastructure projects. A qualitative focus group research was conducted to identify the factors that affect the sizing of IT infrastructure projects. The focus group experts identified eight factors that impact the sizing of IT infrastructure project. They also defined a new unit of measure for measuring the IT infrastructure project size called syspoints. The results from the focus group were used to develop a survey instrument. The survey was administered at 18 IT consulting firms in the Chicago area and 42 IT infrastructure project data (relevant to project size and effort) were collected. Regression technique was used to construct IT infrastructure effort estimation equation using total project effort (in person hours) as the dependent variable and adjusted project syspoint as the independent variable. The equation was also tested for statistical significance and goodness of fit. Six additional regression equations were constructed to predict the effort for the various phases of the IT infrastructure project life cycle. These equations were also tested for statistical significance and goodness of fit.