Earned Value Management

Earned Value Management (EVM) is a methodical project administration process used to identify variances in project cost and schedule. This article discusses the benefits, weaknesses, and recommendations for implementing EVM.

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Earned Value Management
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1EARNED VALUE MANAGEMENT
Executive Summary
Earned Value Management (EVM) is value of piece of the project work which is equal to the
amount of the budgeted funds to complete the project plan. EVM is based on three key principles
such as planned value, earned value and actual costs. Planned value is the accepted budget for
the scheduled project effort to complete in scheduled time. Earned value is the accepted budget
for work finished in particular project date. Actual cost is the rate which is involved for work
concluded in scheduled time period.
The findings of this report are to get real time overview of the centralized project related
information so that the project manager can complete the project work on schedule time period.
It tracks the project on real time basis for analyzing causes of the problems and solutions to
scheduling problems.
The disadvantage of EVM is that it only checks whether the project is on time and in budget, but
it will not check for the quality of the work, therefore it is shown as a problem. It is found that
there is involvement of constant supervision on the project plan result in involvement of
management more into the project. It creates rift among the management team as well as project
team members cause disruptions into the project relations.
It is recommended that to improve the communication methods so that they can discuss the
project problems with each other’s and provide solution on time. There is a recommendation to
perform benchmarking as well as analytics assessments so that proper project related information
are to be taken on time.

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1. Earned value management (EVM)
Based on the perspective of the project management, Earned Value Management (EVM)
is a process which helps the plan manager to calculate the presentation of the development plan.
It is a methodical project administration processes which are used to identify the variances into
the project based on the evaluation of the job performed as well as work intended. EVM method
is used on controlling the project cost as well as timetable and it is also a useful way to forecast
the project. As per the case study, there is development of a new product into the company
known as LAZRTRIM (LAZRTRIM Case Study, 2018). It is used of laser technology for cutting
the grass.
2. Benefits of EVM
EVM would benefit the executive team by providing them extra information as compared
to normal the project tracking. It helps them to calculate the successful completion of the project
plan. Value added approaches can help the project manager to achieve greater visibility as well
as control over the project management activities that help to respond to the project management
issues (Fleming & Koppelman, 2016). It makes the project manager possible to meet with the
development deadlines.
As the project manager, they have to deal with the project constraints as well as handle
them efficiently. Therefore, it is required to monitor status of the project on real time based with
respect to the project constraints. Throughout the project lifecycle, it helps to deliver earlier
signals about the project issues which are occurred (Webb, 2017). EVM assist in monitoring as
well as controlling processes where it causes a difference between the predictable project
baseline as well as definite development performance.

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3. Weaknesses of EVM
While performing the earned value analysis, it provides effects on the quality of the
development schedule and cost management plan. It is not possible that the project is scoring
higher on the earned value performance scale while superiority is low. As quality is the main
project criteria, therefore when it is low then it is not taken in EVM calculation.
Into the earned value management, the manager takes the planned value as the project
baseline by means of calculations and predictions. While doing the predictions, there is always
an uncertainty involved which is a critical factor to determine the project completion time
(Willems & Vanhoucke, 2015). The project is on schedule when EVM is performed, as the risks
which are not visible are getting delayed at later project stages.
In case of a big project, time needed to collect relevant data pertaining to the actual cost
is time consuming, therefore it takes more time to calculate it and therefore there is possibility of
project delays.
4. Change management
The change management should require addressing in the project plan as it included
procedure to handle the project scope as well as change in schedule and cost variances. The
changes requests are evaluated and review as well as approval process for the project changes are
included (Batselier & Vanhoucke, 2015).
5. Recommendations
It is recommended that if project EVM method is not implemented, then there are
potential concerns related to schedule and cost management. It is recommended that the

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organization should adopt EVM into the organization so that the manager can predict the price
risks. By means of EVM method, cost performance index is calculated for forecasting the final
cost so that the project manager can predict the cost overrun in the project.

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References
Batselier, J., & Vanhoucke, M. (2015). Evaluation of deterministic state-of-the-art forecasting
approaches for project duration based on earned value management. International
Journal of Project Management, 33(7), 1588-1596.
Fleming, Q. W., & Koppelman, J. M. (2016, December). Earned value project management.
Project Management Institute.
LAZRTRIM Case Study (2018).
Webb, A. (2017). Using earned value: a project manager's guide. Routledge.
Willems, L. L., & Vanhoucke, M. (2015). Classification of articles and journals on project
control and earned value management. International Journal of Project
Management, 33(7), 1610-1634.