This Project Sizing Tool divides projects into three categories (Small, Medium and Large), to indicate the
appropriate level of risk management process. Two
shortcuts are used: Projects with value <$50K are automatically defined as Small, and Projects valued at >$5M are defined as Large. Projects valued
between $50K-$5M are assessed against the ten criteria below. For each criterion the closest description is selected, and the corresponding criterion score is
recorded at the right of the row (one of 2, 4, 8 or 16). Criterion scores are totalled to give an overall project score, indicating project size as follows:
!75 Large project An extended ATOM risk management process is required
35 74 Medium project A standard ATOM risk management process is required
< 35 Small project A reduced ATOM risk management process is required
CRITERION Criterion Value = 2 Criterion Value = 4 Criterion Value = 8 Criterion Value = 16 Criterion
Score
Strategic importance Minor contribution to business
objectives
Significant contribution to
business objectives
Major contribution to business
objectives
Critical to business success
Commercial / contractual
complexity
No unusual commercial
arrangements or conditions
Minor deviation from existing
commercial practices
Novel commercial practices,
new to at least one party
Ground-breaking commercial
practices
External constraints and
dependencies
None Some external influence on
elements of the project
Key project objectives depend
on external factors
Overall project success
depends on external factors
Requirement stability Clear fully-defined agreed
objectives
Some requirement uncertainty,
minor changes during project
Major requirement uncertainty,
major changes during project
Requirements not finalised and
subject to negotiation
Technical complexity Routine repeat business, no
new technology
Enhancement of existing
product/service
Novel product/project with
some innovation
Ground-breaking project with
high innovation
Market sector regulatory
characteristics
No regulatory requirements Standard regulatory framework Challenging regulatory
requirements
Highly regulated or novel
sector
Project value Small project value
(<$250K)
Significant project value
($250K-1M)
Major project value
($1-3M)
Large project value
(>$3M)
Project duration
Duration <3 months Duration 3-12 months Duration 1-3 years Duration >3 years
Project resources Small in-house project team Medium in-house project team Large project team including
external contractors
International project team or
joint venture
Post-project liabilities
None Acceptable exposure Significant exposure Punitive exposure
OVERALL PROJECT SCORE
Example project sizing tool
David Hillson and Peter Simon - 2007.
