Post-Mortem Analysis of the Estimeeting Methodology for 5E6.

A series of 5ESS(TM) Switch project-wide estimating meetings ("Estimeetings") was held for features under consideration for the 5E6 generic program. The project was successful in several dimensions of its goals - particularly in building the confidence of the internal "customer" in the accuracy of the development estimates. Furthermore, a strenuous three- month interval of document preparation and actual meetings was completed on schedule. This success was largely due to buy-in to the process by many organizations and people around the 5ESS project. This paper documents our experiences with Estimeetings - what worked, what needs attention, and where the problem areas were encountered.