One Estimators
Company: LTIMindtree
Client: Microsoft
Role: UI Architect / v-partner Software Engineer
Jan 2024 — Feb 2026
Enterprise estimation platform and UI architecture work across Microsoft's cloud, AI, business, and developer tooling — helping teams forecast costs, resources, and subscription needs.
Overview
One Estimators is internal Microsoft engineering work focused on estimation experiences across the company's platforms. Microsoft offers a broad portfolio of specialized estimation tools tailored to different domains — from cloud infrastructure and security to AI, quantum computing, business management, and machine learning.
The work centers on designing scalable UI architecture and frontend systems that help enterprise users navigate, compare, and project costs and resources across these estimator ecosystems.
Role & Responsibilities
Senior Frontend Engineer / UI Architect at Microsoft
- Led UI architecture for internal estimation and planning tools
- Built reusable Fluent UI-based components for complex forecasting workflows
- Designed interfaces for multi-step guided estimation experiences
- Collaborated with product, engineering, and program management across Azure and Dynamics teams
- Ensured accessibility, performance, and consistency with Microsoft design standards
Problem Statement
Enterprise customers and internal teams need accurate cost and resource projections across dozens of Microsoft services — each with different pricing models, SKUs, licenses, and usage patterns. Without unified, intuitive estimation experiences, planning becomes fragmented, error-prone, and difficult to scale across domains.
Solution
A structured approach to estimation UI across Microsoft's platform portfolio — organizing tools by domain and guiding users to the right estimator for their task, with consistent interaction patterns, clear inputs/outputs, and integration with enterprise agreements (EA) and Cloud Solution Provider (CSP) licensing models.
Microsoft Estimator Ecosystem (Public Reference)
Microsoft provides specialized estimation tools across four primary domains:
Cloud & Platform — Cost & Resource Estimation
| Tool | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Microsoft Sentinel Cost Estimator | Guided tool to project 3-year Sentinel expenses, including discounts |
| Azure Pricing Calculator | Estimate pricing for Azure cloud services; maps to EA or CSP licenses |
| Microsoft Fabric SKU Estimator (Preview) | Forecast and budget SKUs for analytics and data platform needs |
| Microsoft Defender for Cloud Estimator | Consolidated price estimations from resource telemetry and enabled Defender plans |
AI & Quantum — Computation & Usage Estimators
| Tool | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Agent Usage Estimator | Forecast monthly Copilot AI credit consumption across agents in Dynamics 365 and Copilot Studio |
| Azure Quantum Resource Estimator | Open-source QDK tool to estimate physical qubits and runtime for quantum programs |
Business & Software — Management Estimators
| Tool | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Dynamics 365 Project Operations | Estimate projects using contracts and track project costs |
| Dynamics 365 Lifecycle Services Subscription Estimator | Infer subscription requirements from transaction counts and user licenses |
Developer — Machine Learning Estimators
| Tool | Purpose |
|---|---|
| OneHotEncodingEstimator | ML.NET class that builds dictionaries to convert categorical data |
| ExpressionEstimator / NormalizingEstimator | ML.NET data transformation classes for building and training ML pipelines |
Key Features
- Domain-organized navigation — Cloud, AI, business, and developer estimators grouped by use case
- Guided estimation flows — Step-by-step wizards for complex multi-year cost projections
- License-aware calculations — Support for EA, CSP, and subscription-based pricing models
- Reusable UI patterns — Shared components for inputs, summaries, and export across estimator tools
- Fluent UI integration — Consistent with Microsoft's enterprise design system
Tech Stack
- React.js · TypeScript · Fluent UI · Azure
- Component architecture · Design systems · Storybook
- REST APIs · Enterprise authentication
Challenges
- Estimation logic varies significantly across Azure, Dynamics, Sentinel, and Copilot — requiring flexible UI patterns without one-size-fits-all assumptions
- Presenting complex pricing outputs in scannable, actionable formats for both technical and business audiences
- Keeping estimator UIs aligned with rapidly evolving SKUs, preview features, and new Defender/Copilot plans
- Maintaining performance with large datasets (resource telemetry, transaction counts, multi-year projections)
Learnings
- Estimation tools succeed when they reduce anxiety — clear labels, progressive disclosure, and visible assumptions build trust
- Cross-product estimator platforms benefit from a shared component layer even when backend models differ
- Enterprise users need exportable summaries and audit-friendly outputs, not just on-screen numbers
- Preview SKUs (e.g., Microsoft Fabric) require UI patterns that communicate uncertainty without blocking planning
Business & User Impact
- Enabled faster, more accurate planning for cloud migrations, security investments, and AI adoption
- Reduced friction for enterprise customers mapping estimates to existing agreements
- Supported internal teams shipping consistent estimation experiences across multiple Microsoft product lines
Future Improvements
- Deeper integration between estimators for multi-product scenario planning
- AI-assisted recommendations based on usage patterns and industry benchmarks
- Unified dashboard for comparing estimates across cloud, security, and business applications