The Short Answer
Monitoring answers: 'We spent 50% of the budget—have we completed 50% of the work?' Earned Value Management (EVM) integrates scope, schedule, and cost into unified metrics. CPI (Cost Performance Index) and SPI (Schedule Performance Index) below 1.0 indicate overrun. For stakeholders, use RAG reports (Red/Amber/Green) to communicate confidence at a glance. Project closure includes formal handoff, retrospective ('What went well? What went wrong?'), and celebration—critical for morale in remote teams.
A project isn't complete when the deliverable ships—it's complete when the organization has learned from the experience.
Earned Value Management (EVM)
EVM is the gold standard for project tracking because it integrates Scope, Schedule, and Cost into a unified system. It answers the critical question others can't.
Core Concepts
Planned Value (PV)
Budget × % Planned Complete
The budgeted cost for work scheduled to be completed by a specific date. The 'Plan.'
Actual Cost (AC)
Sum of actual expenditures
The total cost actually incurred for work executed. The 'Spend.'
Earned Value (EV)
Budget × % Actually Complete
The budgeted value of work actually completed. The 'Value.'
Performance Indices
| Metric | Formula | Interpretation | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cost Performance Index (CPI) | CPI = EV / AC | < 1.0 = Over budget (spending more than earning) | > 1.0 = Under budget | CPI of 0.8 means for every $1.00 spent, only $0.80 of value is generated. |
| Schedule Performance Index (SPI) | SPI = EV / PV | < 1.0 = Behind schedule | > 1.0 = Ahead of schedule | SPI of 0.9 means the project is only 90% as far as planned. |
| Estimate at Completion (EAC) | EAC = BAC / CPI | Projected total cost if current performance continues | If BAC is $100k and CPI is 0.8, EAC = $125k—expect 25% overrun. |
Variance Analysis
Cost Variance (CV)
CV = EV - AC
Negative = Over budget | Positive = Under budget
Schedule Variance (SV)
SV = EV - PV
Negative = Behind schedule | Positive = Ahead
Visualizing Progress
Burndown Charts
Track work remaining vs. time. Excellent for team motivation ('burn down to zero').
Burnup Charts
Track work completed (climbing line) against total scope (ceiling line).
RAG Status Reporting
Stakeholders need confidence signals, not data tables. RAG provides visual shorthand.
Red
Critical issues threaten project success
Immediate sponsor intervention required
Amber
Off-track or at risk, but recovery plan exists
Monitoring required; PM has a mitigation plan
Green
Proceeding according to plan
Continue; no escalation needed
Best Practices
- •Define thresholds objectively: 'Amber = Budget variance 5-10%'
- •Red is not failure—it's a call for help. Communicate early.
- •Avoid 'Watermelon Reporting' (Green outside, Red inside). It destroys trust.
- •Create a culture of psychological safety where honest status is rewarded.
Project Closure & Continuous Improvement
The Retrospective (Post-Mortem)
The vehicle for continuous improvement. Must be 'Blameless'—focus on systemic process failures, not individual errors.
Retrospective Agenda
- 1Recap: What was the original goal?
- 2What went well? (Celebrate success)
- 3What went wrong? (Identify bottlenecks)
- 4Root Cause Analysis: Use '5 Whys' to dig deeper
- 5Action Items: Assign owners to fix processes for next time
Closure Checklist
Administrative
- Close contracts
- Pay vendors
- Archive documentation
- Finalize budget
Technical
- Revoke access
- Transfer knowledge
- Update templates
Cultural
- Celebrate the team
- Recognize contributors
- Share learnings
In remote teams, the 'end' can feel anticlimactic. Deliberate virtual celebrations are vital for morale and psychological closure.
Key Takeaways
- EVM integrates scope, schedule, and cost. CPI/SPI below 1.0 = problems; EAC forecasts final cost.
- Burnup charts are superior to Burndown for showing scope creep impact to stakeholders.
- RAG reports communicate confidence: Green (on track), Amber (recovering), Red (needs help).
- Define RAG thresholds objectively. Honest reporting requires psychological safety.
- The retrospective is where learning happens. Make it blameless; focus on systems, not people.
- Formal closure includes administrative (contracts), technical (access), and cultural (celebration) tasks.
