Condor too heavy

It's been two weeks since my last post - criminal!

Actually, it's been a little hectic around here with the mother-in-law staying with us. Anyway, I have been back at work for a week, and what a week it has been.

In my absence, the report we wrote (or at least a synopsis thereof) has been sent all the way to the CEO. The reponse has been more or less what we expected - at 12 months work and costing around 8 million pounds, it's too expensive and will take too long.

While I was loafing at home, some additional work was apparently done to determine how much work could be stripped out, in order to make it quicker and cheaper to deliver. The new figures are six months and six million pounds (although that excludes capex). Say what???

I can find no evidence of how six months and around 2 million pounds has been cut from the estimate, and yet no-one seems too uncomfortable that we can deliver to those figures. I am aghast. I went so far as to speak to G, my boss's boss to tell him I don't believe it is achievable.

After an audio conference yesterday, it does appear, though, that in the grandiose halls of The Parent Company (TPC), significant weight is being applied to get this project off the ground. There were even suggestions that, since the basic infrastructure requirements are fairly clear already (albeit undocumented), someone can start work on the Infrastructure design. Without any Business Case having yet been completed! It is seen as a strategic revenue-generator, and looks to be given a very high priority relative to the rest of the portfolio. That in itself is A Good Thing, but I have two major concerns:

1. that TPC insist on doing the majority of the work and with limited budget and time, develop a basic strategic product that doesn't actually meet the original requirements.
2. that, even if I am allowed to put together a team to do a large part of the work (after all, it's our Business area that wants this project), I will be held to the 6 months, 6 million pound budget. I just do not think that is achievable without some VERY dodgy accounting - not something I am happy to do.

There is another meeting being held on Thursday to discuss next steps to getting the project kick-started early. I have an action to provide a list of planned deliverables, milestones and assumptions for our (mainframe) part of the work. I am hopeful that I can get involved in the planning process and can be tasked with delivery of a lot more than that. I want this project on my CV too. I want to be proud of this.

I just want a reasonable shot at it.