Feasibility and effort estimation models for medium and small size information mining projects

•We are interested in Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) Information Systems.•Our research focuses on managing Information Mining Projects (IMP) in SMEs.•We propose a model for assessing IMP feasibility in SMEs.•We propose a model for estimating resources required to carry out IMP in SMEs.•Proposed models are validated in IMP real projects.

Information mining is a sub-discipline of Information Systems which provides the non-trivial knowledge needed for making decisions inside an organization. Although such projects have different features from Software Engineering ones, they share some of their problems. Among these problems two are highlighted: unmanaged risks and inaccurate estimations of necessary resources to complete the project. In this context, this paper presents two ad-hoc models to be applied in Small and Medium-sized Enterprises: one for assessing project feasibility and the other for estimating the resources and time required to carry out the project. Both models should be applied at the beginning of the project.