Calculating a projected project completion date is subjective! Depending on the tools used for assessing the status, and predicting the completion, of this simple project the assessment can vary from:
- We don’t really know,
- The work is currently behind schedule but we are not sure by how much,
- The work is 5 weeks, 1 month, or 3 weeks late, or
- The project completion is expected to be either 3 weeks, 1 month or 4 months late!
The answer depends on the tool you are using, and the way it is used.
Our latest paper, Calculating Completion, uses the simple project shown above to assess the subjective and objective information available from: Bar Charts, Burndown Charts, Kanban Boards, Velocity, CPM, EVM + ES, and Work Performance Management (WPM). It explains the way the results are derived by each of the tools and the options open to users to vary the result.
The challenge for project controls experts, is all of the answers above can be realistically extracted from one or more of these tools! Deciding which option is correct is an altogether more complex question, there probably is no single correct answer!
To read more on this challenge, download Calculating Completion, from: https://mosaicprojects.com.au/PDF_Papers/P217_Calculating_Completion.pdf
For more on Project Controls see: https://mosaicprojects.com.au/PMKI-SCH-005.php
Pat Weaver
Lynda Bourne
Aavssitedev's Blog