All the basics of Earned Value Analysis
Confused about Earned Value Analysis (EVA) in project management and need to know what it is?
It might sound like something complicated, but I’m about to clear up the confusion for you.
Earned Value Analysis Definition
The definition of Earned Value Analysis according to the PMBOK is: “Earned value analysis compares a performance measurement baseline to the actual schedule and cost performance. It integrates scope baseline with the cost baseline and schedule baseline to form the performance measurement baseline. It develops and monitors three key dimensions for each work package and control account.”
What does that really mean, though?
Let’s break it down…
Earned Value Analysis is a technique using formulas to understand where you are in the project. It will tell you if you’re on track or not. It’s a valuable tool to understand your progress in your project!
Earned Value Analysis gives you some great pieces of information, including things like:
- Cost difference of where you are vs. the end of your project
- How far behind or ahead you are in your project
When should you use Earned Value Analysis?
Not every project needs to use Earned Value Analysis, but EVA is fantastic for large-scale complex projects over a long period of time.
It’s valuable for these types of projects because you have a long period of time to monitor, you have a large budget, and you want to ensure your scope statement is maintained.
How does this work in a practical context?
We need to dive into exactly how EVA helps and the pros and cons that you need to understand before implementing it into your project.
I’ve created a YouTube video that dives into all the basics you need to know about EVA to give you a good foundation for using Earned Value Analysis in your projects.
Head over to YouTube with me and we’ll keep chatting about this!
If you want even more project manager tips on every aspect of managing a successful project, make sure you check out my SLAY Project Management course where I give you all the templates, tips, and techniques to implement if you want all your future projects to be productive and successful.
Adriana Girdler, PMP | Creator of Slay Project Management™
