When estimating a project, most people expect to hear a timeline measured in hours or days. So when a delivery team starts talking about effort points, it's natural to wonder what they mean.
Are effort points another way of measuring time? Why not estimate everything in hours? And how do effort points help teams plan projects more accurately?
In this article, we'll answer those questions and explain why Struto uses effort points as part of our project estimation process.
Effort points are a way of estimating the relative effort required to complete a task. Instead of asking, "How many hours will this take?", project teams ask, "How much effort will this take compared to other tasks in the project?"
This distinction is important because effort is about much more than time. A task may appear straightforward but involve multiple systems, unknown technical challenges or dependencies that increase the work required. Another task might take several hours to complete but be relatively simple because the process is well understood.
When assigning effort points, teams consider a combination of factors, including:
By measuring the overall effort instead of focusing solely on hours, teams can estimate projects more consistently and build more realistic delivery plans.
Estimating work in hours seems like the simplest approach, but digital projects are rarely that predictable.
During the planning stage, there are often variables that cannot be measured precisely. Requirements may evolve, technical challenges may only become apparent once work begins, and integrations with third-party systems can introduce unexpected complexity.
For example, two tasks may each take a developer a day to complete. However, one task could involve configuring a standard feature, while the other requires integrating multiple business systems, validating data and extensive testing. Although the time spent may be similar, the level of effort, complexity and risk is very different.
Estimating purely in hours doesn't always capture these differences. Effort points provide a way to account for them, giving project teams a more reliable framework for planning work before development begins.
This doesn't mean timelines become less important. Instead, effort points help teams build timelines based on a better understanding of the work involved.
Once a project's requirements have been defined, the work is broken down into smaller, manageable tasks. Each task is then assigned an effort point value based on its relative size and complexity compared to the other tasks in the project.
Rather than estimating tasks in isolation, the team compares them against one another.
For example, if configuring a simple CRM property is considered a small task, building a complex integration between two business systems would naturally require a much higher effort estimate.
Many project teams use the Fibonacci sequence when assigning effort points, with values such as 1, 2, 3, 5, 8 and 13. The increasing gaps between the numbers reflect the growing uncertainty that comes with larger, more complex pieces of work.
You may also hear the term story points. Within Scrum, story points and effort points refer to the same concept. At Struto, we prefer the term effort points because it more clearly communicates what is being measured, namely the overall effort required to complete a task.
Every task is unique, which is why assigning effort points requires careful consideration.
Some of the key factors that influence an estimate include:
Complexity: How technically challenging is the task? Simple configuration changes generally require less effort than developing custom functionality or integrating multiple systems.
Dependencies: Does the task rely on another piece of work being completed first? Tasks that depend on external systems, third-party vendors or other project milestones often require additional coordination.
Uncertainty: If there are unknown technical requirements or unanswered business questions, the level of uncertainty increases. Greater uncertainty usually means greater effort.
Testing Requirements: Tasks that require extensive testing, validation or user acceptance testing typically involve more effort than tasks with fewer quality assurance requirements.
Collaboration: Some work can be completed by a single consultant, while other tasks require input from multiple stakeholders, developers, solution architects or client teams. The more coordination required, the greater the overall effort. By considering these factors together, effort points provide a more complete picture of the work involved than a simple hourly estimate.
Imagine a business is implementing a new CRM platform. The project includes a range of different tasks, each requiring a different level of effort. For example:
These values are not estimates of hours or days. Instead, they help the delivery team understand how each task compares to the others in terms of overall effort. Once all the work has been estimated, the team can build a realistic delivery plan based on its available capacity and experience.
At Struto, we use effort points because they provide a consistent and transparent way to estimate projects.
Rather than relying solely on hourly estimates, effort points allow us the ability to evaluate the complexity of the work before creating a project plan. This approach helps us make more informed decisions about planning, resourcing and delivery.
Using effort points also helps us:
No estimation method can remove uncertainty entirely. However, effort points provide a structured framework that helps our teams plan projects with greater confidence while giving clients better visibility into how estimates are developed.
Like many project management concepts, effort points are sometimes misunderstood. Here are a few common misconceptions.
It doesn't. Effort points measure the relative effort required to complete a task, not the amount of time it will take. A higher effort point value indicates a more complex or uncertain task, not a fixed number of hours.
They aren't. Effort points reflect the effort required from the project team as a whole. They are not based on the experience or speed of a particular individual.
No estimation method can guarantee an exact delivery date. Effort points improve planning by helping teams understand the relative complexity of the work involved. Combined with the team's available capacity and experience, they support more realistic project timelines.
While effort points are commonly used in software delivery, the same principles can be applied to many types of projects where work varies in complexity, uncertainty and dependencies.
Estimating complex projects involves much more than assigning hours to a list of tasks. Every project includes different levels of complexity, technical challenges and uncertainty that can influence the overall effort required.
Effort points provide a consistent way to evaluate that effort, helping project teams estimate work more effectively, plan with greater confidence and communicate expectations more clearly.
At Struto, we use effort points because they help us build realistic project plans, make informed delivery decisions and provide greater transparency throughout the estimation process. The result is a more structured approach to project planning that benefits both our teams and our clients. If you'd like to learn more about how Struto approaches project estimation or discuss your next digital transformation project, get in touch with our team. We'd be happy to help.