ICEAA Cost Challenge

We are excited to open team registration for the 2026 ICEAA Cost Challenge! Teams competing in the 2026 Cost Challenge will have the opportunity to showcase their data analytical and storytelling skills at our 2026 Professional Development & Training Workshop in Norfolk on Tuesday, May 12 in a supportive environment that encourages taking some risks and trying new approaches.

Our judges will focus on the reasonable assumptions, methodology and approach to their analysis, and the team’s ability to produce thorough, communicable estimates. Teams will send their materials in advance and then give a live presentation to our judges. The winning team will have the opportunity to give their presentation as a breakout session…and win a $1,000 cash prize!

Our judges will determine the winning presentation based on:

  • Team composition
  • Planning and research
  • Data sources
  • Approaches to data gathering
  • Ground rules & assumptions
  • Normalization techniques
  • Analysis of any economic trends
  • Any uncertainty or risks associated with their estimate
  • Analytical models
  • Innovation and creativity in the approach

A maximum of six teams will be comprised of 3-5 junior estimators with three or fewer years of cost estimating/analysis-related experience (including previous employment related to project management, data analysis, mathematics, finance, engineering, or similar fields) and one optional mentor that may provide guidance and support but not actively participate in the project. Teams may be comprised of estimators from a single organization or up to two can be represented.

Space is limited to six teams. Team registration will remain open until space is filled; any team that signs up after the first six will be placed on a wait list. The Challenge question will be released to the participating teams on April 15, 2026. No additional information about the Challenge or Challenge question will be available before April 15.

Team members may be substituted/replaced prior to receipt of the challenge details on April 15. If any team members are unable to attend or participate after April 15, they will not be replaced. Should this reduce the team members to fewer than 3, the team will be disqualified.

All team members must be registered for the 2026 ICEAA Workshop by April 27, 2026. If any team members have not registered by April 27, the team will be disqualified.

Teams will be required to email their presentation and supporting documents (all files must be able to be opened by standard Microsoft products, no software-specific files will be accepted) on Sunday, May 10 in preparation for judging on May 12.

ICEAA Cost Challenge Team Entry Form 2026

The team may be represented by up to two organizations.
Teams will be made up of 3-5 junior analysts with 3 or fewer years of cost estimating/analysis-related experience (including previous employment related to project management, data analysis, mathematics, finance, engineering, or similar fields) and one optional mentor. Mentors may provide guidance and support to the team but may not directly participate in the preparation or presentation.

Team Lead/Participant 1(Required)
Primary contact for the team
Please enter a number less than or equal to 3.

Participant 2(Required)
Please enter a number less than or equal to 3.

Participant 3(Required)
Please enter a number less than or equal to 3.

Participant 4 (optional)
Please enter a number less than or equal to 3.

Participant 5 (optional)
Please enter a number less than or equal to 3.

Mentor (optional)

I confirm all participating competitors (excluding the mentor) have 3 or fewer years of cost estimating/analysis-related experience (including previous employment related to project management, data analysis, mathematics, finance, engineering, or similar fields).(Required)
Team mentors may not actively participate in the Cost Challenge preparation or presentation, they may only provide counsel and guidance.(Required)
The ICEAA Cost Challenge data, questions, and criteria will be emailed to the Team Lead on April 15, 2026. It is the Team Lead's responsibility to distribute materials to the team members and serve as the team's primary contact with ICEAA.(Required)
Team members may be substituted/replaced prior to receipt of the challenge details on April 15. If any team members are unable to attend or participate after April 15, they will not be replaced. Should this reduce the team members to fewer than 3, the team will be disqualified.(Required)
All team members must be registered for the 2026 ICEAA Workshop by April 27, 2026. If any team members have not registered by April 27, the team will be disqualified.(Required)

At the 2025 ICEAA Professional Development & Training Workshop, our teams were challenged with estimating the cost of relocating the 2028 Olympics from Los Angeles to Atlanta…and in 2027! What will it take to fast-track preparations and successfully move the LA Olympics to a city with its own unique challenges and opportunities? What infrastructure from the 1996 Olympics can be repurposed, what other Atlanta area venues can be utilized, and how can innovative technologies like AI and digital twins transform Olympic logistics and reduce costs? Which creative strategies can maximize sustainability while minimizing community disruption?

Our rising estimators defined their ground rules and assumptions, the context of their estimate, and presented in current fiscal year US dollars. Teams presented their solutions for a panel of judges at the 2025 ICEAA Professional Development & Training Workshop in Atlanta.

2025 Cost Challenge Presentations

Winning Team Technomics:

Download Team Technomics’ Slides (PDF)

Participating Team Augur:

Download Team Augur’s Slides (PDF)

Participating Team Boeing:

Download Team Boeing’s Slides (PDF)

2023 Cost Challenge Presentations

The teams competing in the 2023 ICEAA Cost Challenge faced a ponderous question: how much does our cycle through life cost? How will the cost curves change from milestone to milestone, from birth to death? What risks or uncertainty need to be considered? What outliers or other unexpected elements will impact the project we call being alive, and what external societal costs or circumstantial benefits should we consider when looking at, well, everything?

Our rising estimators defined their ground rules and assumptions, the context of their estimate, and presented in current fiscal year US dollars. Items that may have been taken into consideration are government assistance, taxes, US population, life expectancy, and elements surrounding education, health, occupation, lifestyle, or other statistics. Our teams presented their solutions for a panel of judges at the 2023 ICEAA Professional Development & Training Workshop, and encore presentations from three of our teams are below:

 


Team Quantech

Download slides (PDF)

Team Augur

Download slides (PDF)

Team Technomics:

Download slides (PDF)