Updated status report
The efficient determination of a project’s performance and progress often requires the analysis of a wide range of factors that usually shall include the scope of the project, the costs accrued in the implementation of the project and the time taken to complete the project (Fleming and Koppelman, 2002). The first thing that is conspicuously lacking from the report is the earned value of tasks A and B. The determination of this figure should be the indicator of the progress of the project so far. The table below computes the actual earned values for both tasks and shall be used as evidence of the errors in the status reports given by Jennifer and Ben.
| Task | Budgeted work/cost | Actual work/ cost to date | Percent work complete | Earned value of the tasks | Estimate to complete | Planned start date | Actual start date | Planned end date | Projected end date | Planned resource utilization | Actual resource utilization |
| A | 120 hrs./$1200 | 60 hrs./$600 | 30% | $360 | 90hrs./$900 | March 15 | March 30 | June 15 | June 15 | 25% | 30% |
| B | 120 hrs./$1200 | 50 hrs./$500 | 30% | $360 | 60hrs./$600 | April 1 | April 8 | May 15 | May 30 | 50% | 30% |
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The progress on the task A is actually of great concern. Jennifer’s assessment might have arisen from the fact that 50% of the allocated costs of the project had already been spent on the project. The actual earned value in the task is however, $360 which translates to 30% of the allocated cost. This means that the project is significantly over budget. The level with which this is above the budget is further shown in the review of the amount that is projected to be spent to complete the project. The resource utilization for task A is also higher than the planned resources.
Task B is however in line with the budgetary allocations here, and doing better than expected. At 30% completion, it is estimated that it will be completed at a cost $100 less than the budgeted cost.it is however set to be completed at an additional period of 15 days which presents another overrun in terms of the value of time. Hence the project will be behind schedule. The forecasts for the tasks can however be regarded as unreliable since they don’t consider the actual performance of the project so far.
Instructions on how to determine and present the next project update.
Given the project plan, the most significant things that have to be put into perspective are the time constraints of a task and the cost of the task. The final goal usually is the provision of an accurate forecast of the performance of the task or project at hand (Vanhoucke, 2013). The valuation and the set time are the first variables to be considered. With these values the following can be accurately worked out in a systematic manner to give the best estimate of the project performance over time (Reichel, 2006).
The project plan.
This refers to the initial plan or schedule for a task. It is from this template that one can record the progress of the task and further determine the success of the task so far (Lipke, Zwikael, Henderson and Anbari, 2009). The project plan has a set period for the performing of the task alongside the cost of the project. The running of the cost of the project against timing yield the planned values of the project. These values can be surpassed or turn out to be less depending on the efficiency of the work done (Reichel, 2006). They cat as a bench mark to determine the success of the project.
The Earned Value or the Budgeted Cost of work performed.
The earned value is determined from the percentage of the task accomplished. It is calculated by multiplying the percentage work done by the budgeted cost of work. It is meant to determine the amount of money that should have been spent in the accomplishment of the task. Depending on the amount, it can be determined whether the task being implemented according to the set schedule (Vanhoucke, 2013). These values can then be used to project the time it would take to accomplish the task and the cost that will be accrued.
References.
Fleming, Q W and Koppelman, J M. (2002). Earned Value Management: mitigating risks associated with construction projects. Risk Management . Retrieved from http://s3.amazonaws.com/academia.edu.documents/32040257/Earned_Value_QuentinFleming.pdf?AWSAccessKeyId=AKIAIWOWYYGZ2Y53UL3A&Expires=1500301555&Signature=y6YJRlTfyXRlHEYcV8eQwdO8mf4%3D&response-content-disposition=inline%3B%20filename%3DP_M_M_A_R_C_H_-A_P_R_I_L_2_0_0_2_Earned.pdf .
Lipke, W, Zwikael, O, Henderson K and Anbari F. (2009). Prediction of project outcome: The application of statistical methods to earned value management and earned schedule performance indexes. International Journal of Project Management, Vol 27, Issue 4, pp. 400-407.
Reichel, C. W. (2006). Earned value management systems (EVMS): "you too can do earned value management" Paper presented at PMI® Global Congress 2006—North America, Seattle, WA. Newtown Square, PA: Project Management Institute.
Vanhoucke, M. (2013). Earned Value Management. Project Management with Dynamic Scheduling , pp. 217-240
