Estimation of IT-project efforts for information system creation in the conditions of re-use of its functions

Abstract

The object of this study is the process of estimation and control of an IT project. During the study, the problem of increasing the accuracy of estimating the efforts of an IT project to build an information system (IS) was solved. Research in this area is aimed at simplifying the original assessment methods or at applying elements of artificial intelligence to these methods. The task of the impact of the features of IS development methodology on effort assessment remains unexplored. During the study, the method of functional point analysis was modified. The proposed modification makes it possible to increase the accuracy of estimating efforts to build an IS under the conditions of re-using its individual functions. These conditions allow the construction of new system functions by reusing a previously developed function of the same system. The developed method was tested during the evaluation of efforts of an IT project to form the functional task "Forming and executing an individual plan for a research and teaching staff member of the department." The option of re-using one of the functions of a task during the construction of two other functions of the same task is considered. For this option, the estimate was 72 function points (the estimate using the standard method was 144 function points). The use of the results allows us to increase the accuracy in assessing the efforts of IT projects to construct IS under the conditions of applying the methodology of reuse of previously developed system elements. This, in turn, makes it possible to improve the accuracy of estimating time costs, personnel requirements, and financial costs for the implementation of IT projects for constructing IS. The results obtained are used to solve the task of estimating efforts during the planning of IT projects for developing information systems and their software