I started with headcount and immediately second-guessed myself on the on-site ratio.
Start by clarifying the scope and defining a clear segmentation of laptop types (primary, secondary, dev/test, loaner, visitor). Build a bottom-up estimate using reasonable assumptions for each segment, then sanity-check against total headcount and discuss which assumptions drive the most uncertainty.
Pro tip: Anchor your estimate to a known reference point (e.g., total employees in the office) and express uncertainty ranges rather than a single number. This shows you understand that Fermi estimates are about the process, not precision.
Ask clarifying questions to define 'this office' (e.g., a specific Samsung office location) and confirm whether we're counting only laptops currently on-site. Segment laptops into categories: employee primary, employee secondary, dev/test, storage/IT loaner, and visitor.
Estimate the number of employees on-site (e.g., total headcount times on-site attendance rate). Assume most employees have one primary laptop, and a fraction (e.g., 10-20%) have a secondary laptop for travel or backup.
For dev/test, consider the number of engineers or testers who might need additional machines (e.g., 1-2 per developer). For loaners, estimate based on IT inventory practices (e.g., 5-10% of headcount) and storage capacity.
Estimate the number of visitors on a typical day and assume a fraction bring laptops or use loaners. Also consider shared devices like meeting room laptops, which are often overlooked.
Sum the estimates and compare to total headcount (e.g., laptops per person ratio). Identify which assumptions (e.g., on-site rate, secondary laptop percentage) have the largest impact on the total and discuss how you'd refine them.
AI-generated suggestions, not part of the candidate's original notes. May be inaccurate — verify before relying on them.