To the two responses below critique their plans and offering additional strategies that have worked well for you in your personal or professional experience (e.g., you might describe a project with similar outcomes from a work experience, or a personal experience such as planning a vacation, renovating your home, or planning a party).

Passage 1:

I would present the cost discrepancies to key stakeholders to ensure they understand why the increased costs have increased and how it impacts the project. Since time is the primary constraint, the business would not be as concerned with the budget being above the estimate if the project meets its time constraints. However, if cost becomes a concern, I would ask the key stakeholders if we can substitute material/resources with a lower-costing material/resources to help lower the increased cost due to the discrepancies in the cost estimates. I would also advise the key stakeholders that using cost estimates from previous projects can save time, but it can also end up causing delays that affect the overall timeframe and that this should be logged in the lesson learned section once the project is completed.

Passage 2:

Using the triple constraint model, it becomes quickly apparent that in this situation, we must alter the scope of the project. Why? The triple constraint consists of Time, Scope and Cost. As described, Time is the primary constraint. Cost estimates used on previous projects (as requested) are inaccurate for this project according to the working team. Therefore, scope is the only constraint not listed (Westland, 2022). Armed with this information, I would analyze the scope of the project and make a concession plan that best meets the requirements of the project within the stated constraints.