February 19, 2004
A: FROM MENTOR CHARLENE CASSIDY IN SC
Kelli -- these are two great questions!

a. How do you estimate how long a project will take and how do you budget your time?

I'm not sure if you're asking about design projects or construction projects, but it is a similar process for both.

For design projects we typically start by preparing a "SCOPE OF SERVICES". The Scope of Services details what work we will perform for our client. It is broken down into small tasks and usually defines what we call a "deliverable" or end product that we will provide for a client. For example if one task is to conduct Traffic Study we will detail what data we will collect, how we will collect data, analysis methods, etc. Our "deliverable" would be a Traffic Study Report.

Once we agree on what services we are going to perform for our client, we then prepare a Fee Proposal based on the items of work in the Scope of Services. This is where we estimate how much time it will take us to perform a task -- and ultimately how much it will cost. Usually more experienced engineers and project managers complete the Fee Proposal, as they usually have a gut feeling for how long it takes to perform different tasks. Sometimes, a client will know when they want a project completed -- for example 18 months from the start of a project (which usually means they've done their own estimates). As far as budgeting our time, sometimes that is tough, since we usually work on more than one project at one time. Most projects have a "deliverable schedule" outlined in the Scope of Services. We typically look ahead at the deliverable dates on our different projects and schedule our time accordingly to meet our deadline. If it looks as though we may not meet a deadline, we may add more staff to a project or work some overtime to get it completed on time. At my office the staff meet every Friday morning to discuss where we are on projects, upcoming deliverables (and staffing needs). This helps us to better organize our time and keep our schedules.

For construction projects, it is similar. Instead of a "scope of services" the engineers determine a list of items that are required to completely building a project. For example, if the project the construction of a highway -- our list would include things like tons of pavement, cubic yards of earth fill (dirt), linear feet of drainage pipe, etc. In order to estimate how much time it will take to build, we use what we call a rate of production for each item. A rate of production is an average of the time it takes to construct a particular item. It is developed over the years based on previous experience of how long something took to construct and knowledge of the type of equipment used. For example, we if we know that on average a contractor and lay 100 feet of pipe in one day and there are 1000 linear feet of pipe to be constructed, it will take 10 days. We also account for the order in which the construction must take place -- for example a road cannot be paved until the drainage pipes under it are constructed. If a contractor started laying pipe on day one, he could not start placing pavement before day 11. Once we've determined how long it will take to construct each item and when construction can start relative to the other items, we factor in time for times when the contractor is unable to work -- such as inclement weather and holidays. We sum all of this and have an estimate of the total number of days it will take to completely construct a project. The contractor is told that he has a certain number of days to complete the project from the time he starts -- she then budgets her time accordingly to complete the project on time.

b. How do you work with difficult people?

The short answer is very carefully. The best thing to do is remain calm and try not to let your emotions take over. Usually a person is difficult because he/she has some concern about a certain issue. If you can find some common ground or a way to resolve it that will be satisfactory to all parties, the person will become less difficult. This usually requires some compromise on all sides.

Sometimes a difficult person simply cannot be satisfied, no matter what you do. In that case, you have to move on and try to complete your job as best you can. I've found that t this happening is the exception rather than the rule. Usually there is a way to make a difficult person less difficult -- the key is finding it!

Good luck on your project.