7.1 Plan Cost Management
Decide, up front, how you will estimate, budget, and control cost.
Planning / Cost · ← PMBOK reference · See it on the map
Why it matters
Without an agreed method, one estimator's numbers and another's cannot be compared, and the budget nobody trusted from the start rarely gets trusted later.
What done looks like
A cost management approach is written down and the team is using it.
First time tip
Decide your cost estimating precision before the first estimate is made. Rounding rules that change midway confuse every comparison after that.
What you need (Inputs)
How you do it (Tools & Techniques)
What you get (Outputs)
Worked example
For the library renovation the project manager agrees with the director that estimates round to the nearest $500, that a written contractor quote is the basis for any figure over $5,000, and that spend is reviewed at the same Friday meeting as the schedule.
Common pitfalls
- Changing the rounding rules midway, so no two estimates can be compared.
- Leaving how reserve is held undecided until the first estimate needs one.
- Writing a cost plan the person who pays the invoices never sees.
How driftless helps
- Meetings can be run here.
- Cost Management Plan can be created in the wizard.