Project Management Tips

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Buffering project timelines to ensure project success

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Buffering Time to Protect Project Deadlines

The act of buffering time is a fundamental protection in case of trouble. It solves a myriad of problems by allowing time for mistakes. In many cases, an unfounded level of confidence, or a lack of project experience, leads workers into a false sense of security. As things go smoothly, it's easy to get cocky. They do not plan appropriately, and end of up with their tail between their legs. It is the responsibility of management to communicate these project pitfalls to their teams before they happen, and introduce them to behaviors that can save their projects from ruin.

However, there are two common questions that deserve attention in relation to the act of buffering. Some may consider buffering to be less than honest, and perhaps the idea of it may ruffle a moral note. The idea of adding hours beyond what one expects to need at the time of estimation might seem wrong. Yet, time after time, the project scientist discovers that the truth is always closer to the buffered estimate than the originally presumed amount. I cannot count the times I've received phone calls from vendors complaining that their original estimate was far too low, and that they required more money for the job at hand. That is when I am all too happy to discuss the concept of buffering and why it is so important. Buffering is in fact the most honest manner of estimating a project timeline. However, this in no way should encourage people to needlessly buffer their price estimates and over charge clients for work not done. Rather, the buffering process should be used to figure out a better measure of what the work will actually take, in the end allowing you to wow clients with a project brought in early instead of late, under budget instead of over budget.

The second question that comes up on this topic is the amount of buffering to be added to a project. Inexperienced project managers may choose to add arbitrary amounts to the project hour count, perhaps too little, or too much. But this is not the way to success. A 30% margin seems to hit the mark more often than not as the amount of time to buffer for most projects. Talk to your teams about this important tool, and stress the idea that adding thirty percent onto a project will help assure you'll be able to handle any trouble that comes along. This seems to be the magic number.

Buffering is a fantastic tool in all project situations. Throughout the article, the use of buffering for hourly amounts was simply an example. Regardless of the industry or profession in question, consider adding a buffer to all values, including project costs, resources, headcount, etc. After some experimentation on your part, it will become obvious how beneficial this activity is for your project health. With buffering in hand, you'll move closer to the desired goal, a less stressful process for you and your employees, with a more fruitful outcome for everyone.



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