Evaluating Project Status — PMP Study Guide

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Included in this chapter:

Reading status: actual versus a baseline
Earned value: the three totals and variance gaps
The metric family: variances, indices, forecasts
Measuring adaptive and flow status
Artifacts, reconciliation, and communicating status
Exam-pattern recognition

Status measurement by delivery approach

Aspect	Predictive (earned value)	Iteration-based adaptive	Flow-based (Kanban)
Unit of progress	Budgeted value of completed work (EV)	Accepted increments per iteration	Completed work items
Core metrics	CV = EV - AC; SV = EV - PV; CPI = EV / AC; SPI = EV / PV	Velocity; iteration burndown	Cycle time; lead time
Forecast the finish	EAC = BAC / CPI; VAC = BAC - EAC	Remaining work vs. team cadence	Cycle- and lead-time trend
Baseline required	Yes: integrated scope-schedule-cost	No: inspect working increments	No: measure flow directly
Best chart	S-curve of PV, EV, AC over time	Burndown / burnup chart	Cumulative flow diagram (CFD)
Breaks when	No baseline exists	Percent-complete claimed, nothing demoable	Velocity forced on continuous flow

Decision tree

Cheat sheet

Cheat sheet

Cost variance compares earned value to actual cost
Schedule variance compares earned value to planned value
Earned value requires a performance measurement baseline
A CPI below 1.0 signals cost inefficiency
Estimate at completion forecasts final cost from performance to date
Variance at completion projects the final budget overrun
SPI = EV / PV; below 1.0 means behind schedule
Adaptive status comes from working increments, not percent-complete
Burn charts and cumulative flow diagrams expose delivery health
Lead and cycle time quantify speed in flow systems
Report status against the baseline, including bad news, transparently
Tailor the status metric and detail to the audience
Tailor which artifacts the project maintains to its needs
Artifacts must be current, reviewed, and accessible to be useful
Continually assess whether artifact management still serves the project
The project manager validates AI-generated status before acting
Reconcile status metrics across data sources for a reliable picture

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References