Effort estimation, staffing and delivery models, licensing and TCO, and margin awareness.
3 questions in Presales & Solutioning.
Estimate bottom-up against comparable work, carry an explicit three-point range with contingency as a visible line, then choose a commercial shape that matches the uncertainty. When asked to cut, change scope, phase or team mix — never re-estimate the same work downwards.
Convert effort to duration through explicit productive capacity, then check it against the critical path and the customer's dependencies, because dates are often bound by sequence rather than effort. Against a promised date, commit a smaller scope rather than a compressed plan.
An estimate nobody in delivery has accepted is a number your company will be held to and nobody will defend. Get the person who will run the work to own it before submission, and when they refuse, escalate the disagreement in writing rather than averaging it away.