Introducing Earned Value Analysis on Existing Projects
Summary: Have you ever been in the situation where you have been asked to take over a project already in the execution phase? The current Project Manager is leaving and you have been asked to assume the Project Manager role and complete the project. In the best case scenario, the prior Project Manager developed a very good project plan during the planning project phase, and has effective project controls in place, including earned value analysis, to manage the plan. In that case, your role coming in should be relatively easy. Unfortunately, in some cases the incoming Project Manager inherits a project with a disorganized or incomplete project plan, or a project with limited project control tools being used.
This article will cover the actions a Project Manager should take when inheriting a project already in the execution phase. First we’ll discuss why it’s critical for the new Project Manager to completely review the project to determine the “health” of the project. Next we’ll discuss the specific steps the new Project Manager should follow to understand the project business case and objectives, plus confirm the project scope and ensure sufficient project controls are in place to manage the project. Project controls cover cost and schedule performance. A proven performance reporting technique is earned value analysis (EVA), which involves collecting & analyzing project cost and schedule data in order to provide information about how effectively resources are being used to achieve project objectives. We’ll provide some timely tips on how to easily introduce EVA on an existing project, and how to interpret the initial results.
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Subject Matter Expert: Joseph A. Lukas, PMP®, PE, CCE
Joe Lukas is Vice-President of PMCentersUSA, and leads a team of instructors and consultants in delivering project management and business analysis training and consulting to clients across the country. Joe has been involved in project management for over 30 years and has worked in engineering, manufacturing, construction, project controls, estimating and contracting, and has been a Program and Project Manager supporting world-wide programs. His project management experience spans information systems, product development, capital construction and manufacturing projects. He is a registered Professional Engineer, Project Management Professional and Certified Cost Engineer.