TOPIC 5A: EVM COST AND SCHEDULE VARIANCES AND PERFORMANCE INDICES

Suppose you have a project consisting of three activities. Midway through the project you collect the following information:

Activity	PV	EV	AC
1	30	40	35
2	20	15	15
3	10	10	15

What is the project-level Schedule Variance (SV) and Cost Variance (CV)? What is the project-level Schedule Performance Index (SPI) and Cost Performance Index (CPI)?

Under what conditions would a positive variance and a performance index less than 1.0 occur simultaneously?

TOPIC 5B: CORRECTIVE ACTION (MANDATORY TOPIC)

Describe any performance “thresholds” used by your organization to signal when corrective action is required to get a project back on track. If no “thresholds” are used, describe how your organization determines when to apply corrective action. In this context, use the PMI definition of corrective action – “an intentional activity that realigns the performance of the project work with the project management plan”.

Option: If you work in an agile environment, describe when, in the process, corrective action is identified and how the effects of corrective action are assessed.

TOPIC 5C: FORECASTING ESTIMATE AT COMPLETION (EAC)

The PMBOK talks about the PM’s “official” Estimate at Completion (EAC), which is determined by performing a detailed bottom-up estimate of the remaining work and adding costs incurred to-date. In the reading this week, several statistical methods of forecasting EAC were discussed. What assumptions are associated with each statistical method?