What is EVMS?

Earned Value Management Systems (EVMS) measure Planned Value (PV) (or Budgeted Cost of Work Scheduled (BCWS)) against Earned Value (EV) (or Budgeted Cost of Work Performed (BCWP)) and Actual Costs(AC) to determine if a project is under or over budget, relative to the amount of work accomplished, since the start of the project – an important distinction when evaluating the success of a project.  EVM guidelines are published under the American National Standards Institute document number 748 and have long been in use by federal agencies, especially military and energy related, as a required method of reporting project status.  

EVMS for Construction Projects

Less often seen is the application of EVMS to construction projects largely because it is viewed as being too cumbersome and having no value for construction projects.  However, as noted by Quentin Fleming and Joel Koppelman in “Earned Value Management: Mitigating the Risks Associated with Construction Projects,” (published in PM, March/April 2002, p 90-95), “earned value can be employed in a simple form on all projects, large or small, cost based or fixed price because the basic utility of Earned Value is to contain the cost risks associated with projects.  After all, bad news never gets better over time and the earlier you know you have a problem, the better chance you have to mitigate that problem.”  

Application of EVMS

For example, using an EVM application such as Oracle’s Primavera Earned Value Management, you can measure the planned value against the earned value and actual costs from project start.  Performance data (KPI’s) are easily presented with extensive reports and graphics and are designed to support government standards for project performance measurement.    The benefit to organizations in the construction industry is an easy to use system that you can integrate with your project schedule to measure your performance right from the get go.  This enables you to identify problems early before they become too big to correct and potentially costly.  

For more information about products, services, and training for Earned Value Management or other Oracle Primavera products, contact MSS at mss@midstatesolutions.com, visit us online MSS, Inc. or call us for more information: (800) 931-1582.

About the Author:

Tricia Kyzar has a Master's in International Business and a Minor in Urban and Regional Planning with extensive experience in Finance and project support in construction development.  Her passion is helping companies maximize their project portfolios through increased understanding of scheduling, risk analysis, earned value management, business intelligence, and reporting analytics.  She is currently a Senior Consultant for MSS, Inc providing Training and Support for Oracle Primavera Products, including EVMS. 

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