In this article we’re going to give you a clear overview of project assumptions, including examples, so you can understand what they are and their role in project management.
Everyone makes assumptions all the time – even if you think you don’t! For example, when you order a takeaway, you assume it will come within the quoted timeframe, and you assume it will be hot when it arrives.
These are safe assumptions to make. And project assumptions are very similar. But to really get to grips with them, let’s take a closer look…
What are project assumptions?
As the name suggests, project assumptions are things you assume will happen throughout the course of your project. They’re classed as assumptions because they can’t be fully confirmed until they’ve happened, but they refer to all of the factors that you expect to happen (in an ideal world).
Why are project assumptions important?
Project assumptions are important for many reasons. For starters, they provide a baseline for what’s expected so you can clearly define the project scope, estimate a deadline, and manage project expectations throughout.
Project assumptions also help you to estimate costs, allocate resources, assess and manage risks, and make informed decisions to accurately plan and manage your project.
10 examples of project assumptions
This assumption means you believe sufficient funds have been allocated to cover the cost of the project.
The assumption here is that the project will be completed in the timeframe agreed upon at the start.
This assumption means that the people assigned to the project will be available to work on the project and communicate with stakeholders throughout the entire duration.
This is the assumption that project stakeholders will hold up their side of the bargain and provide feedback on time. This is super important for sticking to your deadline!
The assumption here is that the tools you’ve selected to use for the project will work as intended, with limited to no downtime.
This means that you assume no unexpected circumstances will cause a delay or cancellation to the project. It typically refers to rare events like natural disasters and pandemics.
This is similar to the previous assumption and assumes that economic factors, like inflation or labour costs, won’t fluctuate significantly during the course of the project.
This is the assumption that the parameters of the project (that were agreed upon at the start) will not change. It refers to project goals and deliverables, too.
The assumption here is that everyone involved on the project will feel safe to work without risks to their health, safety, and/or mental wellbeing.
This assumption means that the information used for planning and working on the project will all be current, accurate, and relevant.
Track project assumptions with Project.co
When tracking your project assumptions, it helps to use a project management tool. Here are some ways you can use Project.co to track project assumptions:
Tasks
Our robust Tasks tool allows you to create and assign tasks to different team members. You can also add dates, priorities, files, and even chat directly within a task.
You could directly add your assumptions to Project.co as tasks, and assign them to the team member who is responsible for that part of the project, e.g. the budget or the timeline.
This way, your team member can keep track of the assumption and update the rest of the team if anything changes.
2. Custom Fields
You can also create custom fields on a project level within Project.co.
These custom fields can be useful for categorising and tracking your project assumptions. You can simply mark the task as an ‘assumption’ so that you don’t get it confused with all of your other project tasks.
3. Discussions
Our Discussions tool allows for real-time conversations directly within your projects.
Using Discussions, you can quickly and easily chat to project stakeholders about any changes to project assumptions or potential risks to the project in real time.
Final thoughts
Whether you put much thought into them or not, we all make assumptions about our projects. And it’s important to do so!
Project assumptions can help you to manage expectations, plan appropriately, and ensure everyone is on the same page.
Start tracking your project assumptions today with Project.co.
