The Hindu Business Line : `EVM best tool for tracking project performance'

EARNED Value Management, if integrated with executive information systems, can be a powerful tool at the organisational level. It represents a result-oriented approach to evaluate project performance and estimate the time and cost for its completion.

EVM can be effectively employed to compare two projects and raise motivational levels in stakeholders, according to Mr C. Brajesh, Project Manager and Head of Project Performance and Learning Group, NeST, Thiruvananthapuram.

It gives a clear picture of how projects are performing, he said, delivering a technical talk at a programme hosted by the Institution of Engineers here. All work is planned, budgeted, and scheduled in time-phased "planned value" increments constituting a cost and schedule measurement baseline. EVM integrates the cost, schedule and technical performance for project management on a structured and personalised basis.

There are two major objectives of the earned value system: to encourage contractors to use effective internal cost and schedule management control systems; and to enable customers to rely on timely data produced by the systems to determine the product-oriented contract status.

Project management, according to Mr Brajesh, is the application of knowledge, skills, tools and techniques to project activities to meet project requirements.

A project manager has to cope with the competing demands for scope, time, cost and quality. The right approach is to develop a realistic schedule based on solid estimation. The schedule should be aggressive and reflect a healthy work ethic.

EVM is a cost-control concept used to measure how much real progress is made on a project, not just the effort expended. It combines effort metrics with milestone achievements. It is best adopted in tandem with other organisational improvement initiatives such as TQM or CMMI.

Mr Brajesh said the project manager should be able to establish and control project baselines. He should also be able to wield control on scope changes, if any.

The concept of earned value had not become popular because implementation in copybook fashion will cause the practitioner to face problems such as lack of awareness and training, staff resistance, data acquisition problems and high costs. The staff should be made aware of the system and its usage, Mr Brajesh said. The focus should be on assessing project performance, and not tracking individuals concerned.

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