I do a lot of estimations for projects involving configuration management and data management. One of the requirements these days is that you make estimates based on historical actuals or metrics derived from same.
Unfortunately, I have yet to find a highly correlatable metric that will definitively provide an estimate that will result in a fairly accurate bid (when compared to the conclusion of execution). I recognize that such things are highly variable, and a lot of items can impact getting a good metric.
I would be interested in knowing if anyone out there has a metric that can be shared in this public forum that has a high degree of correlation to actual hours experienced. Some of the metrics I've seen are:
% of software design/code/integration hours (% of DCI)
hours/month
hours/release
hours/change request
% of Lines of Code
none of which - to my satisfaction - yeild a definitive answer.
