Earned Value Management: Are Expectations Too High?
LTC Nanette Patton Allan Shechet Office of the Surgeon General Savvy Services Inc.
Earned Value Management Systems (EVMS) are frequently required on government Automated Information System programs. When implementing EVM, especially for the first time, agencies should train their key managers not only in the EVM process but also in the behaviors and management styles required to avoid major problems that can result from the implementation. While EVM is a useful project management tool, implementing EVM will not solve all the chal- lenges in achieving project goals. Furthermore, given the funding and selection processes for programs, first time EVM implementation can introduce a whole new set of program management challenges. Based on their experience with infor- mation technology (IT) and aerospace projects, the authors identify potential difficulties and risk mitigation strategies to counter those potential difficulties.
he President’s Office of Management management control systems, but ject team’s staffing levels and productivity, and Budget (OMB) has asked federal also provides the manager with as well as giving insight into areas of the agenciesT to use a project management dis- timely and consistent cost, sched- work breakdown structure where the cipline known as EVM as a strategy to ule, and progress data. The imple- problems occur. avoid costly IT failures. Other than within mentation of an EVMS ensures EVM compares the following three the Department of Defense (DoD), EVM that cost, schedule, and technical pieces of information: is not well understood by federal agencies aspects of the contract are truly 1. How much work you planned to have [1]. OMB issued its EVM policy guidelines integrated and estimated, and actu- accomplished until now (in dollars or in two memos issued in August 2004 and al progress of the project can be hours) is called the Planned Value (PV). August 2005. In addition to requiring fed- identified. [4] 2. How much you have actually spent eral agencies and their contractors to use until now (in dollars or hours) is called EVM for managing all major IT projects, Actual Cost (AC). the OMB established new reporting “If the budget spend 3. The value, in terms of your baseline requirements. Agencies must include EVM budget, of the work accomplished data when they submit Exhibit 300s, docu- plan shows the project until now (in dollars or hours) is called ments in which they present their business the Earned Value (EV). cases for major IT projects. The OMB over-spending and the The first two pieces of data are compared requires agencies to use EVM to calculate to the EV in terms of differences result- and report each project’s estimated total project schedule ... ing in variances and ratios resulting in per- cost and completion date. slipping, the PM ... formance indexes. While EVM is an effective and useful Basic EVM calculations involve differ- project management tool, there are con- may have no way to ences or ratios with respect to EV: straints within the organizational environ- 1. The difference between EV and your ment of the federal government that make a quantitative plan (PV) is Schedule Variance (SV). impede a smooth implementation of SV = EV - PV. EVM. 2. The difference between EV and your assessment of how bad spending (AC) is Cost Variance (CV). Federal Chief Information the trouble is. CV = EV - AC. Officer (CIO) Council ” 3. The ratio of EV to plan (PV) is your Schedule Performance Index (SPI). Framework SPI = EV/PV. In December 2005, the federal CIO EVM Basics 4. The ratio of EV to cost (AC) is your Council released “A Framework for Program managers (PMs) should manage Cost Performance Index (CPI). CPI Developing EVMS Policy for IT Projects” project cost and schedule performance = EV/AC. [2] to assist agencies in developing their measurements as integrated elements and Positive variance is favorable and negative EVM policies as required by OMB not as separate entities. If the budget is unfavorable. Having an EVM perfor- Memorandum M-05-23 [3] for major IT spend plan shows the project over-spend- mance index that is greater than 1 is favor- projects. The guidance states the following: ing and the project schedule shows mile- able, and less than 1 is unfavorable. stones slipping, the PM may know they CPI is a reading on productivity and EVM is a project management might be in trouble but may have no way SPI is a reading on progress. If there is control tool allowing visibility into to make a quantitative assessment of how good productivity and slow progress, then technical, cost and schedule plan- bad the trouble is. EVMS solves this prob- the project is understaffed. If there is low ning, performance, and progress lem by providing an accurate picture of productivity, then either the project has for major IT projects. EVM not spending and accomplishments related to too much unplanned work or the project only encourages contractors to use a baseline plan. This enables the PM to manager may have estimated poorly and effective internal cost and schedule quickly form conclusions about the pro- the project has more work content than
10 CROSSTALK The Journal of Defense Software Engineering January 2007 Earned Value Management: Are Expectations Too High? Contract Threshold Requirements previously thought. CCoosntrt acor tIncentive >Th$50Mreshold •ReqCuoimrepmliaencnteswith industry EVM standard. That is the essence of EVM; the rest CEqualost ortooIncreAbntivoeve > $50M •• FCorommalpvliaalncidaetiwonithofincdonutsrtarcytoErV’sMEVsMtansdysatredm. . are details. EqualThresthoooldr Above •• CFoonrtrmacalt Pvalerifdoarmtioanncoef Rcoenptorrat.ctor’s EVM system. Threshold •• InCteognrtartaecdt MPaesrftoerrmSacncheedulRee.port. DoD EVM Applicability •• InItnetgergartaetdeBdaMsealsinterRSecviheewd.ule. • Ongoing surveillance. The DoD has been using cost and sched- • Integrated Baseline Review. ule controls on aerospace and defense Cost or Incentive < $50M but •• COomngpoliainncgesuwrivtheiillandncusetr.y EVM standard. CLosesst oTr hIncaneUnpptiver >< $$50M20M but •• FCorommalpsliaysncteemwvialthidiantdiounnstryotEreVquMirsetda.ndard. projects since the mid-60s. In the Office Threshold but • Contract Performance Report (tailored). of the Under Secretary of Defense Less Than Upper > $20M • Formal system validationnot required. TEhrqualeshotoold br uAbt ove •• InCteognrtartaecdt MPaesrftoerrmSacncheedulRee(ptaoirlot r(etadi)lo. red). • Integrated Baseline Review (tailored). (Acquisition Technology and Logistics) ELqualowertooThrreAbsholvde • Integrated Master Schedule (tailored). • Ongoing surveillance. policy memorandum dated March 7, Lower Threshold • Integrated Baseline Review (tailored). 2005, the DoD revised its EVM policy to Cost or Incentive < $20M •• EOVMngoopintigonsalur(vriesiklla-bncasee.ddecision). streamline, improve, and increase consistency in CLosesst oTr hIncanentive < $20M •• CEosVtM-beonpetfioitnaalnal(ryisiks-rbeaquseirdded.ecision). EVM implementation and application [5]. LeTsshreTshoalnd • Cost-benefit analysis required. The DoD requirement for EVM applies Threshold to cost or incentive contracts, subcon- Phase Phase Defined tracts, intra-government work agree- TablePh aP1:sheDoDa1:se EVMT hThresholdse DoD ass andess eRequirementss capabilitiPesh,aasenalDyzeefsintehde threat and national ments, and other agreements that meet PPhlaasnnei1:ng TdhefeenDsoeDpoalssiciesssaensddcaepvaebloiplitsierse,soaunralceyzinefsortmheedthprreoagtramndgnuaidtaioncnale. the dollar thresholds prescribed (see proper contractingT vehicle.his guidanc Whene def iappro-nes the requcouldireme setnts theirfor th eownmili tdollarary se rthresholdsvices. under priate,Plann theing businessde fcaseense analysispolicies ashouldnddevelothisps r enewsou rrule,ce inf theyorm ealsod pr ostated,gram gitu isid notanc appro-e. Table 1). This memorandum requires the Phase 2: Thiessgeurviidcaencs teradnesflaintesgtuhidearnceque iinretomaepnlatsnfotor tallheocmatielitarerysosuercrviescetos. Programming accomplish mission requirements. They cost out force objectivessix Table’s application thresholds (total con- beP includedhase 2: in theT hacquisitione services t rapproachanslate guidapriatence i nttoo aexcludeplan to certainalloca tecontractresour ctypeses to from years in the future. tract value including planned options in sectionProgr aofmm theing programaccom acquisitionplish missio nstrat-requiremEVMSents. Trequirementshey cost ou int f otherc eFAR.objec Intiv eaccordancessix then-year dollars [TY$]). egy P(seehase Figure3: 1).yTehaersPrienstihdenftu’stubrued. get is prewithpare dOMB, revie wCirculared, and A-11,sentto PartCon g7,re ssEVMS. is Budgeting This phase concentrateson the funding requirements necessary to Although EVM is not required on PHowever,hase 3: theT hFederale Presid enAcquisitiont’s budget is prrequiredepared , forrevi majorewed ,acquisitionsand sentt oforCo ndevelopmentgress. do the job. contracts, subcontracts, intra-govern- RegulationBudgetin g(FAR) councilThis ph aissuedse conc ae rulentrat einsonregardlessthe fund iofng contractrequire typemen[8].ts n Theecess DoDary t oallows Phase 4: dAosstehsse jmobe.nts are made concerning current and previous resource ment work agreements, and other agree- JulyE 2006xecut iothatn wentall intoocati oeffectns and inw hAugustether the Dexemptions.oD achieved its p Thelanne d pDefenseerformanc e Federal Phase 4: Assessments are made concerning current and previous resource ments valued at less than $20 million 2006R eandview gave federalgoal sagencies. Service broads apply dis-performAcquisitionance metrics to Regulationsascertain whe theSupplementr Execution allocations and whether the DoD achieved its planned performance (total contract value including planned cretion in determiningappr owhenpriate allandoc ahowtion o ftoresou(DFARS)rces exist inchasu rritsen townbudg eproposedts. rule on Review goals. Services apply performance metrics to ascertain whether options) and/or less than 12 months in Recommendations may be made to replace a program with use EVM [7]. The acouncilppropri anotedte allo cthatatio agenn of-resoEVM.urces Texhaist irnculeu rrweasnt pubbudglishedets. in January duration including options, PMs have the cies have significant discretionalternat ivine sodetermininglutionsor mtheake 2006fundin gandadj uwasstm eopennts to cfororre cpublict resou rcommentce Rimebcalaommnceenifdpaetriofonrsmamncaye bgeoalmsaadree tnootrebpelaincgemaetp.rogram with discretion to implement an EVMS. If size and complexity ofalprteojectsrnativ thate so meetlutio thenso criter m- akeuntilfun dlainteg Maradjucshtm[9].entsTtheo c DForreARSct re prsooposedurce implemented, the PM is required to con- ria for a major acquisitionimbala setnc bye ithef p eagencyrforma[8].nce gorule,als ar whiche not b wouldeing m ebet. subordinate to the duct a cost-benefit analysis. The purpose While the council determined agencies FAR rule, is now under review. of the cost-benefit analysis is to explain the rationale for the decision to require Figure 1: Decision Process for EVM Application cost/schedule visibility in the contract and to substantiate that the benefits to Cost or Did MDA DO NOT the government outweigh the associated NO approve waiver NO Incentive APPLY costs. If the value of a contract is expect- Cost or for Dfirimd-MfixDeAd DO NOT Contract? NO apprporivcee waiver NO EVM ed to surpass $20 million or last longer Incentive fcoornftiramc-tf?ixed APPLY than 12 months, acquisition guidelines Contract? price EVM contract? suggest that the PM should consider YES imposing an EVM requirement on the YES contract. YES Did PM YES The Defense Acquisition Guidebook Contract YES approve NO discourages the application of EVM on Value basedDuidpoPnMrisk firm-fixed price contracts, subcontracts, C
January 2007 www.stsc.hill.af.mil 11 Software Engineering Technology
The Challenges of EVM in Practice • The need for employees trained in the are clarified during the design phase and As federal agencies learn how to apply concepts and methodologies. hence how much cost and schedule risk is the principles of EVM to manage IT • The perception that EVM is burden- associated with the new program. This projects, they have encountered obstacles some and somewhat costly to imple- budgetary estimate is then overly con- and challenges. Some of the challenges ment [10]. strained years too early in the Planning, are related to the suitability of EVM • The perceived questionable cost bene- Programming, Budgeting, and Execution itself to IT projects. Some of these chal- fit of applying EVM to already bud- (PPBE) process to secure adequate fund- lenges are cultural in nature as most geted IT projects [11]. ing. In the PPBE process, requirements experts say EVM cannot help agencies • The perception that EVM measures are identified years before a budget is that cannot accept bad news. The experts the quantity but not the quality of prepared and submitted. These require- say EVM is most valuable if agencies use work performed [1]. ments are expressed in the Future Year it to help people learn from their mis- • EVMs underlying assumption that Defense Program. The planning cycle is takes rather than to punish them. problems derive from poor project shown in Table 2. Nevertheless, the fear of punishment execution rather than inadequate pro- Given the rapidly changing environ- must be addressed. Change management ject planning [1]. ment of technology, the estimates are becomes a difficult aspect of bringing Depending on how deeply ingrained these often too low. Because the budget is con- EVM into an agency in order to keep perceptions are and the knowledge of the strained by the PPBE process, the pro- employees involved and ensure appropri- workforce on EVMS concepts, the PM gram is already in potential jeopardy ate use of the EVM system. Some of the will have to address these cultural issues. before arriving in the request for proposal challenges are related to putting the (RFP) stage. infrastructure in place to support the Budget and Contracting The budgeting issue often escalates EVMS process. It takes a lot of commit- Challenges during the RFP stage. Contractors often- ment and effort to get tools and systems In applying EVM, having a realistic base- times base their proposal estimates using in place and integrate them with other line is critical. However, in the federal historical actuals with inflation factors existing systems to generate the data and arena, there are several systemic realities built in for time and manpower. However, timely reports required. that can introduce errors to the baseline since not reporting overtime is a common problem, these so called actuals often do Cultural/Perceptual from the very beginning. The process for creating the initial not reflect all hours truly expended on dif- Challenges funding estimate can introduce errors. ficult tasks in past projects. Furthermore, In theory, the EVMS enables PMs to track Developing a baseline budget is usually the accuracy of the historical data is also money spent on a project as well as mea- dependent on having experience with dependent on whether or not progress was sureCo nthetrac workt accomplishedThresh oagainstld R ethatquirempreviousents projects of similar type, size, tracked and reported on a daily basis and costCos andt or theInce schedulentive >in$50M a near real-time• Compandlianc scopee with. inIndu today’sstry EV MDoDstan dITard .environ- many organizations are challenged by the Equal toor Above • Formal validation of contractor’s EVM system. lack of an automated time-reporting sys- status. However, this theory does not ment in which we are trying to develop Threshold • Contract Performance Report. tem. All of which can result in underesti- always translate well in an actual project• Integraratcehitecturd Masteesr S withched ulcomplementare. y infos- 2 mating the duration of tasks that are then management setting. Speculations as to tructures that support net-centric opera- • Integrated Baseline Review. used to generate the project cost estimate. why EVMS may be ineffective include• theOngotionsing su, rvweeillaarncee.venturing into uncharted If the contractor bases their proposal following ideas: territory in which we are pursuing project Cost or Incentive < $50M but • Compliance with industry EVM standard. on the budget allowance knowing that it • LeLackss T hofan seniorUpper management> $20M support.• Formobjectial systevesm v althatida tiohavenno tnotrequ beenired. achieved cannot be met, then they may be relying • TLittlehresh ounderstandingld but of EVM method-• Contrbeforeact Per finor mtermsance Rofep technology,ort (tailored). size, and on making up the shortfalls later on in Equalologytoo as ritAb pertainsove to software versus• Integrscope.ated M Furthermore,aster Schedule the(tai loinitialred). budgetary • Integrated Baseline Review (tailored). their negotiations for requirements Lohardwarewer Thre sandhol dthe accompanying belief funding estimate is usually based on well • Ongoing surveillance. changes. The negative implications of that IT projects are not measurable intentioned, but nevertheless best guess Cost or Incentive < $20M • EVM optional (risk-baseddecision). underbidding based on a budget allowance and therefore EV cannot be applied to assumptions about how much change or Less Than • Cost-benefit analysis required. can further be compounded after the con- those projects [1]. rework is likely to occur as requirements Threshold tract is awarded. In this case, the contrac- Table 2: Planning Cycle tor may implement the program at the Phase Phase Defined funded/proposed amount and then Phase 1: The DoD assesses capabilities, analyzes the threat and national reduce all the budgets by 10 to 15 percent Planning defense policies anddevelops resource informed program guidance. to create a management reserve in time This guidance defines the requirements for the military services. and budget to allow for the unexpected. Phase 2: The services translate guidance into a plan to allocate resources to Ideally, the contractor would have acceler- Programming accomplish mission requirements. They cost out force objectivessix ated the schedule to create a schedule years in the future. reserve and shorten the length of the pro- Phase 3: The President’s budget is prepared, reviewed, and sentto Congress. gram to fund the budget reserve. Budgeting This phase concentrateson the funding requirements necessary to However, contractors are often unable to do the job. accelerate the schedule because sufficient Phase 4: Assessments are made concerning current and previous resource funding (or personnel) is unavailable to Execution allocations and whether the DoD achieved its planned performance Review goals. Services apply performance metrics to ascertain whether support an earlier schedule. appropriate allocation of resources exist incurrent budgets. Program Execution Challenges Recommendations may be made to replace a program with alternative solutionsor make funding adjustments to correct resource Program execution comes with many chal- imbalance if performance goals are not being met. lenges with technology, staffing, schedules and budgets. One of the biggest chal-
12 CROSSTALK The Journal of Defense Software Engineering January 2007 Earned Value Management: Are Expectations Too High? lenges is to react to changes, such as jects’ cost, schedule, and performance to Efforts should be made to counter this requirements creep, without losing control maximize benefit for the taxpayer dollar, cultural pressure to ensure that tailored of the program. then the entire operating environment in EVM requirements remain tailored and do When changes or problems surface which EVM is implemented will need not become overly cumbersome. The that require a modification to the sched- transformation as well. EVM can track Government Accounting Office (GAO) ule, adjusting the program baseline can progress of a project, but it cannot solve found that commercial firms that use EV pose a real challenge. There are several the underlying systemic issues that created systems produce reports more frequently, reasons for this. For the contractor, a an underfunded/underbid project budget more quickly, and in less detail than tradi- change request must be internally coordi- that inadvertently puts the project at high tionally found in the DoD [12]. The focus nated to check feasibility. It is often a chal- risk from the outset. should be on the information the EVMS lenge to gather all the required people to Agencies can take steps to practice is communicating and less on the presen- analyze the impact of the change within more realistic project portfolio manage- tation itself. This will enable program the project and across other projects to ment in order to identify duplication of management to identify the areas that determine if the staffing available can sup- effort in attempts to gain desired capabili- need program management attention and port the revised plans. Once the contrac- ties. This would promote cross leveling to develop corrective actions needed to tor has developed a new baseline with the enable more adequate funding of projects achieve program success. change, the contractual process will create that remain in the portfolio. Agencies can a lag. It can take weeks or months to get a also leverage system engineering tech- At the Organizational and Project Levels change request approved. Scope and All levels of program management (over- schedule changes often require coordinat- sight, management, and execution) need ing handoffs between several organiza- “The negative to understand the principles of EV, but tions before agreeing on new delivery more importantly they need to under- dates. Since it is unusual to stop a program implications of stand human behavior. A good PM will while you are re-baselining, the project anticipate reluctance and will prepare to team continues to track against the origi- underbidding based on employ savvy political strategies to solicit nal baseline that is in reality obsolete while buy-in. By emphasizing that the EVMS is the approval process is taking place. a budget allowance can aimed at improving the overall program Continuing to track against an obsolete progression to successful completion on plan impedes effective management further be compounded time and on budget and by understanding because true priorities become lost which the impacts of their behavior, manage- can then lead to the misallocation of after the contract is ment can positively influence the team to resources. do their best. However, the PM must be In order to validate that the program awarded. In this case, realistic and cannot deny the challenges can be completed within the contract of implementation with the team. requirements, EVM system descriptions the contractor may In overcoming those challenges of require a schedule. The larger programs implementation, training is key. This typically require a schedule with logical implement the program training must include the oversight ties between the tasks (often a critical path authorities. This will help them under- method schedule) as opposed to the simpler at the funded/proposed stand and trust the signals that the schedule without links between the tasks. amount and then reduce EVMS is sending so they respond in a The PM can base the program network timely manner when issues are raised schedule on the resources available or all the budgets by such that the situation does not become assume that management will get the unrecoverable. Training in the concepts resources in time for the program to be 10 to 15 percent ... of EV should include practice in devel- successful. Neither approach is ideal since ” oping project schedules with different the non-availability of the right resources styles of work breakdown structures can delay the program and even a schedule niques to divide the project into smaller (execution oriented vs. product oriented) that uses resource allocations to determine parts to enable a more agile response to to demonstrate which orientation style the durations makes assumptions about changes. works best when changes occur and what the availability of resources needed in the Because agencies must meet 90 per- level of detail to plan. Too much detail future. In addition, program contract lead- cent of agency goals for cost, schedule, makes the system burdensome – too lit- ers have to develop program plans around and performance in order to achieve green tle and it lacks credibility. In developing the available funding constraints in terms on the President’s Management Agenda these work breakdown structures, pro- of both amount and timing of cash flow. scorecard, there will be cultural pressure ject members should acknowledge and Lack of sufficient funding prevents con- to view the EVM process as a contractual anticipate that later life-cycle activities, tractors from developing schedules opti- requirement that is administered with such as testing, will have different mized for best cost, schedule, or resource audit-like rigor by the review teams. cost/schedule variances than earlier life- availability and thereby results in a more Accommodating extensive government cycle activities. The goals of effective inefficient plan. certification reviews, collecting and array- program execution need to be empha- ing data in prescribed categories, and sized during the training. Questions to Recommendations preparing detailed reports requires time, answer during the training sessions At the Strategic Level effort, and cost to the government and might include the following: If the true intent of OMB’s implementa- can draw some of contractor engineering 1. If work is tracked at a high level, can tion of EVM is to better manage IT pro- resources away from program execution. the details be used to sum up to the
January 2007 www.stsc.hill.af.mil 13 Software Engineering Technology
total? If not, how can the high-level focus on tends to get reinforced whether ing EVM can be more challenging in IT work completed be assessed? or not it enhances project progress. projects. Nevertheless, most experts 2. How will the plan work in practice? Counting missed milestones and focusing today agree that EVM is suitable for 3. What happens if the plan changes? on the negative can result in an overem- managing major IT projects [1]. EVM requires truth telling [13]. It often phasis on doing tasks on time against a With this in mind, PMs should careful- involves reporting contentious facts, deliv- plan that may be out of date. If the pro- ly consider exercising their discretion in ering bad news, and sharing difficult feed- gram only measures missed milestones applying EVM. Ultimately, the decision back. Some areas in which interpersonal instead of keeping the emphasis on the will largely be subjective based on how the relations training may help the team are final goals (focusing on the positive), near cost-benefit analysis is conducted. the following: term tasks may receive a disproportionate- Therefore, the value the PM gets will be 1. Communications. ly high priority to increase the number of determined by how EVM is implemented, 2. Leadership. tasks completed. However, the best taking care to avoid unnecessary cost dri- 3. Active Followership. approach for the long term may have been vers, such as the following: 4. Emotional Intelligence. to miss some near-term tasks to take • Lengthy systems descriptions of EVMS Once the team has been trained, then the advantage of resources available now but [15]. PM must create and diligently maintain a which another program will require at the • Written variance analysis at the control culture of execution. Strategies to accom- same time if the tasks are performed in account level [15]. plish this might include the following: the order of the original plan. If innova- • Over-specified work breakdown struc- • Celebrating success. People respond tion and creativity are stifled because of a ture [15]. to positive reinforcement. When the culture that punishes managers who have • Over- or under-compensating for in- team’s efforts result in a big win for the evitable planning errors [16]. project, celebrate! Celebrating success Fleming and Koppelman offer sound builds team spirit and encourages The PM must advice in the June 2006 issue of Cross- repeat performance. Make sure the “ Talk on how to pragmatically obtain the success is public knowledge. Share it personify the principles benefits of EVM using simple EV without with the entire organization, if possi- overtaxing the project team [17]. ble. Making public heroes out of those of the EVM process Tracking project progress should be a responsible for the success is likely to continuous activity where data is collected encourage others to strive for their in every interaction. as the activity occurs. Thus when EVM is chance in the limelight. optional, PMs should seek as close to real- • Being a role model. The PM must If you do not practice time data as possible directly from the personify the principles of the EVM contractor in whatever format the con- process in every interaction. If you do what you preach, tractor uses, as long as the format remains not practice what you preach, how can consistent and the data is accurate and you expect it of your team? Speaking how can you expect it verifiable. candidly, insisting upon realistic infor- The following set of questions can mation, focusing on results and being of your team?” assist a PM in developing a tracking and actively involved in the success of the measurement program: project makes the PM a great role • What visibility do you have in terms of model for the project team. When the EV variances, the goal of improved pro- resources, time, and cost? team submits undesirable, but realistic gram execution by implementing EVM • What can you track and measure? numbers, the PM must remain cool. will not be met. How often can you do it? Candid communication and realistic • Who sets the standards for perfor- information are cornerstones of an Making EVM Work for You and mance? How realistic are they? How EVMS. PMs must remain calm and Your IT Project clear are they? Do these standards con- then try to find out what happened One sociological definition of technolo- tribute to project goal achievement? and how the project can be brought gy is a set of standardized operations which • How often do you need to report and back on track. The PM must be acces- yield predetermined results [14]. The more to whom? How long does it take to sible and available to the team on a likely predetermined results occur, the prepare the reports? regular basis. stronger the technology. Developing • What performance variance is accept- • Encouraging appropriate behavior. software does not have the predictability able? At what level of variance is EVM in action is not always easy. of outcome as manufacturing processes action required? Speaking candidly and using realistic do. Many people would argue that devel- • What rewards and penalties are avail- data comes with risk. The PM can oping software programs and informa- able? encourage the team to do so by prais- tion systems is just as much art as it is sci- • What is the criticality of the system ing them when they are bold enough ence. While style guides can be imple- being developed? to present realistic numbers, even mented to maintain some consistency, • What is the critical path for the system when doing so makes them and the two different programmers can still being developed to be operational? project look bad. Acknowledge them approach the same requirement very dif- A good PM knows metrics are just one of for speaking their minds and commu- ferently obtaining the same results via many tools of the project management nicating project challenges. very different coding paths. Predicting, tool set. When a healthy balance and per- Organizational leaders and PMs must replicating, and standardizing those spective is maintained by using EVM as a keep in mind that what you measure is thought patterns that created those cod- management tool rather than a financial important – what you pay attention to and ing paths is very difficult. As such, apply- report card that supersedes all other
14 CROSSTALK The Journal of Defense Software Engineering January 2007 Earned Value Management: Are Expectations Too High? tools, the benefits of EVM become more With EVM as OMB Deadline Projects.” Ask Process (2003)
January 2007 www.stsc.hill.af.mil 15