Earned value performance measurement : an alternative approach to measuring information systems project progress.
Date
1998
Authors
Fleishman, Mark
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Abstract
Information Systems (IS) project management is fundamental to organlzations who are
involved in the development of information systems, yet IS projects can fail for any number
of reasons, and insome cases can result in consi derable financial losses for the organisations
that undertake them. One pattern of failure is .hat the IS project takes on a life of its own,
continuing to absorb valuable resources without reaching its cbjective. A significant number
of these projects will ultimately fail, potentially weakening an organisation's competitive
position while siphoning off resources that could be spent developing and implementing
successful systems.
Earned value performance measurement (EVPM) is a management technique that relates
resource planning to schedules and to technical performance requirements. It is formed on
a platform of fundamental project management, but with earned value performance
measurement, with its focus being the continuous measurement of actual achievement
against a detailed performance plan, thus providing a basis for problem identification,
corrective actions, and management replanning, whilst providing the information necessary
to be able to predict the final costs and fmal schedule forecasts for the project.
The purpose of this study is to highlight the earned value performance measurement system,
and propose it as an alternative approach that can be used for controlling the IS software
development effort.
Description
A research report submitted to the Faculty of Commerce, University of Witwatersrand,
Johannesburg, in partial fulfilment of the requirements of the degree of Master of Commerce.
Keywords
Management information systems.