1. Does the value gained balance the cost?
2. Considerations:
2.1. Accuracy of estimate
2.1.1. How accurate is the estimate? Given that:
2.1.1.1. Only a subset of the estimated requirements are implemented at all
2.1.1.1.1. some requirements become obsolete or are significantly changed
2.1.1.1.2. stakeholders will include the proverbial 'kitchen sink' in the scope of the "MVP"
2.1.1.1.3. different stakeholders have different, and sometimes even contradictory, needs and it's not possible to satisfy everyone from the get-go, and even long-term
2.1.1.2. And only a subset of those ones are implemented without significant changes
2.2. Usefulness of analysis
2.2.1. How valuable is the analysis achieved? Given that:
2.2.1.1. Only a subset of estimated requirements have a positive return on investment
2.2.1.1.1. Some studies suggest only between 1/3 to 2/3 of all features deliver a positive ROI!
2.2.1.1.2. Because stakeholders typically do not challenge their own processes
2.2.1.1.3. Because users are unable to articulate the root cause of their pains or opportunities
2.2.1.2. Only a subset of estimated requirements are actually used
2.2.1.2.1. as detailed under "Accuracy of estimates"
3. Costs:
3.1. Resources
3.1.1. time, availability, and cost of people performing the estimations
3.2. Opportunity cost
3.2.1. What else could be done in the time spent on estimating?
4. Benefits:
4.1. Budget clarity
4.2. Resource and capacity planning
4.3. The estimation facilitates breaking down the work, which helps expose the "devil in the details"
4.3.1. dependencies
4.3.2. complexities
4.3.3. uncertainties
4.3.4. missing info, skills, knowledge