VivoWorks products and services are always marketed on a fixed-price basis to ensure clients receive a comprehensive solution for complex problems while knowing their budget will not exceed plan. How do we do this? Based on the Activity Based Modeling System developed by Dr. David Tobey in the late 1990s, each project is measured in terms of the number of functions (or activities and behaviors) required to complete the work.
(Effective January 15, 2011)
A standard cost of $50 per function point (for commercial clients) and $25 (for non-profit or government clients) is then applied, regardless of whether a single person or the entire VivoWorks team is required to complete that function. This provides the necessary flexibility to ensure the right resources are brought to bear on every project, without concern over billable rates. For those requiring a billable rate estimation for a fixed-price contract, we can approximate the distribution of work planned to address each functional element of the project.
We guarantee the cost of each deliverable will not increase regardless of how much time, effort, or resource is required as long as there is no alteration of the function points specified for that deliverable.
The function point method was created in 1979 by Allan Albrecht at IBM by categorizing capabilities to be provided into one of five types: outputs, inquiries, inputs, and internal and external communications. Once identified and categorized, each function point is then assessed for complexity and assigned a number of function points. Studies showed that function points map easily into user-oriented requirements, simplifying project estimation and improving quality outcomes within pre-established expectations for capability and cost.
