Project Management
What a Restaurant’s Bathroom Remodel and a Computer Programming Project Have in Common
Not what you’re thinking from the picture!
Many seemingly unrelated things actually have something in common. That’s why so many cartoons and jokes are funny when the connection is pointed out. This restaurant bathroom and the computer project are no different.
Restaurant project
It was a complete gut and replace project. The manager told me it would take 4 or 5 days. I didn’t believe him, based on my project management experience.
The plumbing turned out worse than expected. The tile took longer. In fact, everything took longer. Even though the tasks are different, the project managers must handle the same issues.
The process is the same whether it is remodeling or software development. Only the tasks, issues and environment varies.
Side topic — a different type of issue
Being a restaurant, they had to provide restrooms to remain open during the remodel. Therefore, they positioned temporary restrooms in the parking lot behind the building.
I expected little square green or blue plastic buildings in a row, like I’ve seen at many events. Reality was quite different, unlike any portable toilets I’ve ever seen
Two fairly large restrooms, separated for men and women, were located on a trailer with steps for each, and connections to warm running water and electricity. They were spotless! Cleaner than a 5-star hotel. The manager told me they cleaned them every 55 minutes.
This has nothing to do with computer programming, but is interesting in relation to the restaurant.
Computer project & commonality
Before starting, both managers of computer projects and remodels start with a task list. They make their best estimate for each task and come up with a time estimate. I’ve always done one more thing:
Double the original time estimate
This covers the tasks you left out, did not know about, or took a lot longer than expected. I’ve rarely seen a task take less time than projected.
I’ve done the same for over 100 computer projects plus remodeling a couple of our houses when we moved in. On one project of over 1,000 hours, my estimate was within 8 hours of the actual time spent.
For the restaurant, the original 4 or 5 days has taken about 10 days.
Repetitive projects
Some projects, like repainting interior walls for the hundredth time, rarely have surprises. If there is nothing unusual, you know about how long it will take.
However, you still may have workers get sick, have a car wreck, or suppliers may run out of stock for a day or so.
Doubling the estimate in such cases may be overkill, but I still would add 25% to the estimate. That percentage may vary by type of project.
It’s always best to add some slack because customers tend to get upset if a project takes much more time than projected and happy if it takes slightly less time. Those whose estimates are way off get bad ratings which will eventually cost them projects.
Conclusion
Certain aspects of project management tend to be the same, no matter the project. Time estimating is one of them.
References
The restaurant, City Fire in The Villages, FL, tends to be pretty innovative and pays attention to detail, as they did with the individual dance floors during the COVID reopening.
Disclaimer: The author is not connected with City Fire and has received no compensation of any kind. The author is using City Fire as a first-hand example.
