Estimating Software-Intensive Systems: Projects, Products, and Processes

Chapter 21Earned Value Measurement

Earned value measurement (EVM) is a way to track the status of projects having hundreds or even thousands of tasks. Earned value measurement was originally developed to provide a way to track and control government programs that developed complicated systems having many components and suppliers. (You can also use earned value measurement for smaller projects. In either case, automated tools are essential.) Earned value measurement uses the project cost and schedule baselines described in Chapter 19, “Consolidating and Applying Your Knowledge,” and provides a way to distinguish cost problems from schedule (time) problems. You can also use earned value measurement to predict when a project will finally finish ...