Earned Value Consulting

Earned Value Consulting is support services that an expert in Earned Value Management (EVM) provides to an organization to help them implement an Earned Value Management System (EVMS). EVM consulting services may be offered by organizations that have certified Earned Value professionals on staff, or by service providers who have been trained in EVM and can offer advisory or implementation services.

For a full description of what Earned Value Consulting is and who it is for, see our Knowledge Base article: https://www.humphreys-assoc.com/evms/earned-value-consulting-ta-a-252.html

Earned Value Training Help is Available

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Earned Value Training Help is Available

Do any (or many) of these situations apply to you?

  • The Project has to comply with the EIA-748 EVMS Standard! What is that? How do we do that?
  • You have a new contract of over $20 Million, and you need to get yourself, your staff, and all the Project personnel up to speed on your new contractual Earned Value requirement.
  • The RFP says the company must have an Earned Value Management (EVM) certification. How can we respond to the RFP?
  • Your contract is over $100 Million and now you must have and demonstrate a Certified Earned Value Management System (EVMS).  How do you do that?
  • How do you get a compliant EVMS Description in the first place?
  • You have an Integrated Baseline Review (IBR) coming up and don’t have a clue about what that entails. 
  • You reviewed company training materials and everything dealing with Earned Value is out of date; and it is going to cost thousands to update the materials and keep them up to date! 
  • What are Control Account Managers (CAMs)? Must we have CAMs to do Earned Value? How do I get CAMs/Train them?
  • I used to have great CAMs, but none of my new CAMs can spell EV.  How do I train them? 

You Are Not Alone

If you answered “yes” to any of these, don’t feel like the Lone Ranger.  Even though the Earned Value concept has been around for over 50 years, the requirement can still be new to your company, new to your contract, and new to your employees.  Most will not have learned EVM in college.  Even companies that have been using EVM for years face a recurring need for training.  We’re pretty consistently seeing a turnover of 20-40% of our experienced CAMs each year across the industry. 

If you answered “yes” to several, I’m sure you’re a bit overwhelmed and asking yourself, how can we possibly meet all these requirements?

Over 40 Years of Experience

Well, don’t despair.  Humphreys & Associates, Inc. (H&A) has just what you need to get you through all those situations, and more.  For over 42 years, H&A has been the leader in providing EVM proposal support, EVMS Requirements/Gap Analysis support, EVMS Design, Implementation support, IBR Preparation, and EVMS Review/certification preparation, staff augmentation, and of course, EVMS and Project Management Training. 

H&A has trained over 950,000 people around the world in all aspects of the Earned Value requirements and has built the largest, most comprehensive library of training materials in the Earned Value Management consulting industry.  We have tailored training materials and have trained and supported contractors whose customers have been from DOD, DOE, NASA, FAA, HHS, as well as international customers such as the Australian DOD, the Canadian DND, Sweden Defense, and the UK.

EVMS Training Library

Our actively maintained library includes:

  • Basic and Advanced Courses in Earned Value Management and
  • Control Account Manager/Project Controls Staff Training and Certification;
  • EVMS Review training to prepare upper management and project teams for:
    • Earned Value Management System Review,
    • Integrated Baseline Review (IBR), and
    • Internal/Joint/External Surveillance;
  • Specialized training in:
    • Developing a WBS,
    • Planning Techniques,
    • Project Scheduling,
    • Baseline Establishment,
    • Materials Management,
    • Subcontract Management,
    • Basic and Advance Variance Analysis,
    • Estimating,
    • Change Management,
    • Government Reporting requirements,
    • OTB/ OTS incorporation, and
    • Agile Software Development

Real-World Application

Our curriculum makes extensive use of real-world examples and case studies to extend the process of learning into application.  We offer these hands-on courses in a variety of settings and formats to meet your needs. 

Public offerings are open to the industry at large and are particularly useful when you have a limited number of individuals needing the training or those individuals who are widely geographically separated. 

In-house offerings at your facilities allows us to meet the training need at one location or for one specific team and can include specifics of your system description.  

Earned Value Webinars

Webinar offerings of the two courses above and our Virtual Learning Lab (VLL) format are available, especially in these times of limited travel.  Webinars of the public and in-house training courses rely on the same content as the in-person courses with the addition of virtual interaction opportunities to increase student involvement and enhance learning.  Our Virtual Learning Lab (VLL) format provides an opportunity for busy individuals to learn at their own pace and time of their choice – even if they are working from home.  The VLL makes extensive use of video presentations and application case studies to enhance the learning environment and ensure the students continue to apply the knowledge they have gained. 

Training Materials

If you have an existing training staff, H&A can even be your source for training materials.  Most of our courses are available for purchase/licensing and our staff of EVMS experts can tailor them to any company environment.  The big benefit here is you leveraging H&A active involvement with EVM requirement changes to keep the material up to date and your training staff don’t have to do it.  In the end you get an up-to-date course without out committing the staff and costs to do the work.  This approach also aligns your material across all our offerings to provide you delivery flexibility with a consistent core content.       

In addition to providing course materials, H&A also can provide Train-The-Trainer sessions in those courses, so your company’s training department can understand and become comfortable with the training materials and updates.

EVMS Certification Programs

Our Certification programs go beyond the public or in-house training courses to create the Qualified CAMs and Project Controls (PC) personnel that are integral parts of a successful EVMS implementation.  These roles are where “the rubber meets the road” for EVMS.  CAMs and PCs will be expected to demonstrate how the company’s EVM System is actually operating on a day-to-day basis.  H&A offers comprehensive and rigorous Certification Courses for both of these important functions so you can be assured that your people not only understand Earned Value concepts but have demonstrated the ability to address the requirements or even problems that can arise on a Project. 

Mock Reviews

To enhance the review training listed above (EVMS, IBR, and Surveillance) and best prepare your organization for these events, H&A also provides teams of our consultants who can conduct Mock Reviews for all three of these events.  These mock reviews simulate each type of government review, including the conduct of CAM and other manager interviews, the running of metrics testing, and the preparation of in-briefs and exit briefs all of which are integral parts of a government EVMS Review.  These Mock reviews can also be used as on-the-job training for company personnel who may be required to conduct IBRs or Surveillance at a subcontractor’s facility. H&A can also augment your company teams in conducting these subcontractor reviews to extend the training while helping your team complete required tasks. 

Agile

H&A has a team of experienced Agile Coaches who are also experts in integrating Agile and Earned Value Management methodologies. H&A also has a vast library of Agile and EVM training materials that can be tailored to meet specific client needs.

Specialized and Experienced Training

Our specialized training courses have been developed over time to address the specific training needs of past clients and provide in-depth, focused training in a variety of topics to enhance your application EVM to effectively manage your projects.  These courses build on the general knowledge provided by the basic courses to make your team more effective and efficient in each topic area.  In cases where your team needs specific, focused training and you don’t find it listed here, we would be happy to discuss the situation and provide a recommended approach to make you successful.      

Each H&A Senior Team Lead typically has over 30 years of experience in Industry, in Government, and/or in consulting – so there is virtually no situation or problem that they have not encountered before. So, although your company may be overwhelmed by the EVMS requirements and the expectations of your customer, you can rely on our H&A team of experts to get you through it all successfully. 

So please, take a look at the H&A website and all that we have to offer, and then give us a call at (714) 685-1730, or email us so we can get you started on the road to EVMS success. We look forward to helping you be successful!

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Tips for Implementing Effective Earned Value Training

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Banner Image - Tips for Implementing Effective Earned Value Training

Likely you have been on the receiving end of this advice.  The common solution to every problem seems to be: do more training.  Well, yes, that is often a logical conclusion.  The hard part is, how do you implement earned value training that actually helps project personnel improve their knowledge levels and skill sets that makes a difference in how projects are managed?  Conducting training just to check something off a to-do list is a waste of everyone’s time.

Here are a few tips to help you implement an effective EVM training plan.

Tip 1 – What’s the problem you want to resolve?

A clear understanding of the problem you want to solve helps determine the scope of the training, who needs the training, and what kind of training will make a difference.  Here are a few examples to illustrate a range of the scope of the training from the complex to targeted training.

  • The good news?  You just won a government contract with EVMS contract clauses.  The bad news?  Your company’s project control system is immature at best and will need to become more disciplined to support the contractual EVMS requirements.  You are going to need a robust education and training plan to rapidly increase the project control maturity level of your company.  Likely you will need to enhance your current project control practices, add process and procedures, perhaps implement new software tools, and educate a variety of functional managers and project personnel on the upgraded best practices they will need to follow. 
  • You have an influx of new project personnel that need to learn the ropes.  Where are they with their current skill sets and what will help them improve?  Perhaps they have a basic understanding of project control or scheduling, but don’t know how to apply your company’s preferred practices or how to effectively use the software tools.  They may need a broader earned value training plan that covers a number of disciplines or hands-on workshops that combine process training and using the software tools to effectively perform their project control tasks.
  • You have a contractual or audit event coming up.  Examples include an Integrated Baseline Review (IBR) for a new project or the DCMA is coming in to do a compliance review.  That means you need to make sure all levels of project personnel are prepared for the review and that quality schedule and cost data have been established.  Different types of focused training or mentoring is often required to prepare for these events where there is interaction with the customer project manager or audit agency personnel.  Personnel knowledge, the EVMS, how they apply the EVMS on their project, and data traceability will all be assessed.   
  • As part of your internal process improvement activities, you discover a number of control account managers (CAMs) are having difficulty producing useful variance analysis report (VAR) narratives.  Or, perhaps the schedulers are having trouble creating or maintaining their integrated master schedules (IMS) to the level of data quality you expect. Targeted or role specific training could make a difference here.

Tip 2 – Determine what you need to accomplish your training objective

Here is a sort list of factors to consider as you begin to sort out what type of training or training materials you need to have in place to accomplish your training objectives.

  • Do you intend to create and maintain a set of EVM related training materials internally?  What types of materials you intend to maintain?  This could be a range of materials such as instructor led presentation and course materials, role specific training materials or templates, desktop instructions, online help, or self-paced instructional videos.  Do you have the personnel, time, and budget to do this?  Do you have the internal EVM expertise?  You may need help creating your internal materials or you may need to rely on outside services to supplement your internal training. 
  • How do you intend to deliver the earned value training, how often, and how many people?  A day or two dedicated to classroom instruction may or may not be option.  Perhaps project personnel need to complete the training remotely or are only available for a short duration.  How do you accomplish your training objectives and verify personnel are applying what they are learning? 
  • You need to prepare a contractual event such as an IBR.  This presents a different set of factors and you may or may not have a process or EVM expertise in place to handle this.  Depending on your company, you may have the internal project management resources you can pull from another division to help the project personnel prepare for the event and perform an independent review of the schedule and cost data.  How do you intend to handle these events?
  • Targeted training to address a recurring issue or a unique project situation such an implementing an over target baseline/over target schedule (OTB/OTS).  For example, targeted training would be useful for CAMs or schedulers that need help getting to the next level of proficiency.  One option could be to solicit the help of an internal “power user” to help mentor project personnel in how to do things or how to effectively use the software tools.  Or, you could leverage the expertise of outside services to help mentor them and expand the base of proficient project personnel over time.

Tip 3 – Who you select to help you with your earned value training objectives matters

There are a number of companies that offer earned value and related training.  There are a number of factors to consider as you start to evaluate their services, expertise, scope and availability of training materials, and range of training options. 

There is a reason why H&A has been the leading provider of earned value training and earned value consulting services for over four decades.  We have proven, cost effective approaches to increasing your project control team’s skills so they become more valuable assets to your organization.  For example:

  • We have built the largest, most comprehensive library of training materials in the EVM consulting industry including basic and advanced courses as well as specific topic areas such as developing a WBS, OTB/OTS, preparing a VAR or government performance report, subcontract management, change management, or IBRs. 

What’s the benefit to you?  Should you need source material for a training course, our courses are available for lease and can be tailored to your environment.  You don’t have to start from scratch.  We actively maintain our course materials and provide updates as requirements change over time including specific versions for DoD, DOE, and NASA.  This takes the burden off you and reduces the cost of keeping up with changes.  We provide train-the-trainer sessions for the courses, so your company’s training department can become proficient with the materials to build out your internal training library over time. 

  • We offer our hands-on courses as public workshops, in-house, or remotely.  We also offer our most popular three-day workshops as distance learning courses.  We refer to these as our EVMS Virtual Learning Lab and Scheduling Virtual Learning Lab (VLL) so your project personnel can learn at their own pace – even if they are working from home.  The benefit is you can select a combination of training options to fit your needs as well as personnel availability or location.
  • We offer two career path certifications you could leverage to assist project personnel looking to advance their knowledge and skills.  We created the H&A Control Account Manager (CAM) Certification program over 5 years ago and approximately 600 people have gone through this rigorous certification process.  We also created a Project Control/Analyst (PC/A) Certification for personnel that support CAMs and Project Managers.  These certifications mean the individual has demonstrated a knowledge level that establishes a sound foundation for success as a CAM or PC/A.
  • H&A senior personnel typically have over 30 years of experience in industry, government, and consulting across a variety of industries.  When you need help with an IBR or government compliance review, our consultants can help prepare and mentor your project personnel to successfully navigate the review process as well as perform data traces with them to verify the quality of the schedule and cost data.  When you need help training personnel on a specific EVM topic such as OTB/OTS or how to prepare a VAR that requires additional EVM expertise, we can conduct the training for you whether in-house or remotely.  

You can rely on the H&A team of experts to help you with your EVM, scheduling, and related training needs.  For more information about our courses, descriptions, and delivery options, visit our web page at: https://www.humphreys-assoc.com/evms/evms_training_courses.php. 

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Earned Value Consulting – Common Problems Found in EVMS and Recommended Corrective Actions

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Humphreys & Associates (H&A) has the opportunity to work with many kinds of clients who operate EVM Systems for all kinds of customers. We are regularly called on to help them our clients review and improve their EVMS.

H&A has identified several recurring EVMS issues and also the most common ways to prevent or correct these issues.

Common Problems in EVMS and Recommended Corrective Actions – Part 1

 

Video Links:

1:37 – The Estimate at Completion (EAC) is systemically out of alignment with cumulative performance with no justification

3:38 – Poor Variance Analysis and Reporting (VAR)

5:23 – Lack of Effective Subcontract Management

 

Read the Blog Post:

Common Problems Found in EVM Systems – Recommended Corrective Actions – Part 1

Common Problems in EVMS and Recommended Corrective Actions – Part 2

 

Video Links:

0:26 – Poor Use of the Percent Complete Earned Value Technique

3:07 – Data Integrity Issues

5:01 – Poor Scope Language in the WBS Dictionary and/or Work Authorization Documents

 

Read the Blog Post:

Common Problems Found in EVMS Reviews and Recommended Corrective Actions – Part 2

Common Problems in EVMS and Recommended Corrective Actions – Part 3

 

Video Links:

0:15 – IMS Health Problems

3:30 –Data Item Noncompliance

5:17 –Planning Package Mismanagement

 

Read the Blog Post:

Common Problems Found in EVM Systems and Recommended Corrective Actions – Part 3

Common Problems in EVMS and Recommended Corrective Actions – Part 4

 

Video Links:

0:16 – Misalignment between BCWP and ACWP

3:07 – Freeze Period Violations

5:00 – Failed Data Traces

 

Read the Blog Post:

Common Problems Found in EVM Systems and Recommended Corrective Actions – Part 4

Common Problems in EVMS and Recommended Corrective Actions – Part 5

Video Links:

0:22 – Inappropriate use of PERT and LOE

3:55 – Misuse of Management Reserve

6:48 – Administrative Control Account Managers (CAMs) Selection

 

Read the Blog Post:

Common Problems Found in EVMS and Recommended Corrective Actions – Part 5

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EVM Consulting – Modeling & Simulation

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Fighter Jet Air Plain Flying in Front of Moon

Forewarned is Forearmed

Forewarned is forearmed. John Farmer, of New Hampshire, said that in a letter in 1685. But that advice is most likely biblical and very much older. No matter the source of the thought, we should take it as divine guidance if we are project managers. Maybe we should have it cut into a stone tablet, so we can share it with our team members.

Most of our work as project managers is spent in the “controlling” phase which is made up of the three steps “measure, analyze, act.” Our EVMS and IMS exist to be able to support this management function. The measuring part is done very well in our EVMS and our IMS; we know where we are and how we got there. The analyzing is equally well handled in the IMS and EVMS. Only the management task of acting is not well supported. Generally, we lack decision making support and tools.

EVM Consulting - Measure, Analyze, Act

Deterministic Path

No matter how well constructed and how healthy our IMS is, it has a deterministic path forward. The logic links between the activities are there because we expect them to be fulfilled. Indeed, if activity “B” is a finish-to-start successor to activity “A” we fully expect that at some point activity “A” will finish and will provide its output to activity “B”. That is a single path forward and it is a deterministic path. It is also a somewhat simplistic model.

EVM Consulting - Deterministic Relationships in EVMS

Multiple Outcomes

Our management system asks us to perform root cause analysis followed by corrective action. But what if there is more than one corrective action to be taken. And worse; what if the corrective actions can have multiple outcomes with each enjoying its own probability. That means multiple choices and multiple outcomes. How would we show that in our plan? How would we analyze the multiple possible futures that such a situation presents?

Happily, there are ways to model a future without a set path. And once we have the future model, there are also ways to simulate the outcomes to give the probabilities we need to decide which actions to take. We are talking about probabilistic branching, and we are saying that we can build a probabilistic map of the future to use in making decisions; especially making decisions on corrective actions.

Take a simple example of running a test on the project. The expectation is that eventually we will pass the test. We will keep trying until we do. In the IMS deterministic model the test portion of the IMS might look like this:

EVM Consulting - Run the Test then Use the Product

Simulation

We can simulate this situation with different expected durations for the test. That is helpful information, but it does not explain or even capture what is going on in those different durations. It looks like we are just taking longer to do the testing but is that really what is happening? What is going on here? We certainly don’t show that.

In the real world, this simple model might have three potential outcomes. There might be three paths we can take to get to the point where we use the product. Each path has a time and money cost. We might run the test and find that we passed. Or we might have to stop the test for issues on the item or the test setup. We might even fail the test and must correct something about the product to improve our chances of passing a rerun. Eventually we will get to a usable product. But what do we put in our estimate and our plan? What do we tell the resources we need? What do we tell the boss? The customer?

EVM Consulting - Real World Testing

Full Future Model

We now have a much better understanding of the future and can explain the situation. We also can simulate the situation to find out the most likely time and cost outcomes, so we can explain the future without any histrionics or arm waving.
If the issue is important enough we can build out the full future model and simulate it.

EVM Consulting - Full Future Model and Simulation

No matter how far we pursue the model of the future, having a valid model and being able to stand on solid ground are very valuable to us as project managers.

This is not to say that we should model out complex situations as a routine in the IMS. That would be impossible, or at least prohibitively costly. We are saying that when situations arise, we need to be able to use the IMS to help us make decisions.

This type of probabilistic modeling of the future is particularly useful in defining major decision points in our plan. When we reach a decision point the IMS may have multiple branches as successors but that implies we take every branch and that is not valid. Modeling each branch and its probabilities is valid. In the example below, where the milestone represents a decision point, we have shown three possible paths to take. If each were modeled out into the future with time and cost data, we should have the information we need to choose the path we wish to pursue. Without processes and tools like this, we would be flying blind.

Future Blog Posts

This discussion will be continued in future blogs to develop a better foundational understanding of the process and power of probabilistic modeling in our EVMS.

EVM Consulting - Decision Point

Good information sets the stage for good decisions. The IMS and the EVMS have sufficient information to help us model the pathways ahead of our critical decisions. We just need to learn to take advantage of what we have available to us.

Find out how an experienced Humphreys & Associates EVM Consultant can help you create a full future model and simulation of your most vital EVMS Systems. Contact Humphreys & Associates at (714) 685-1730 or email us.

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Project Management: Earned Value Consulting; Could You Use Some?

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Failed Projects

A recent article discussed the results of a survey on the reasons that projects failed. The definition of failure was that the project was abandoned. Abandonment does not occur frequently in the world of government projects; especially defense projects where there should be strong “must have” needs driving the project. These projects tend to persist until completed even though the outcomes are not satisfactory. But there is a lot to learn from the list of reasons for failure.

Of the sixteen reasons listed, the top four had to do with changes to the environment that had given rise to the project. For example, changes in the company priorities was the most often cited reason for abandonment. In that same vein were issues with changing objectives and inaccurate definition of requirements. These types of failures are not topics for this blog since they do not immediately involve execution of the project.

Execution Problems

Lower on the list of those environment related reasons for failure were the ones more related to execution problems. These are of significant interest to a project management using an earned value consulting company such as Humphreys & Associates (H&A). These reasons related more to issues of poor project management that could have been corrected. In this area were reasons like “poor change management,” “inaccurate cost estimates,” “inaccurate time estimates,” and “inexperienced project management.”

The answers given in a survey situation depend very much on the mindset of the person responding. Is the reason really “inaccurate cost estimates” or should it have been “failure to execute to the estimate”? How many times have you seen a problem in execution “swept under the carpet” as being an inaccurate estimate or plan? One of these two answers points to the estimating system and process while the other points to project management. The estimates were generated; and, at some point, they were deemed to be sufficiently detailed to launch the project. If a scrubbed and blessed estimate is “inaccurate” that would still be a failure of project management. If the problem were really a failure to execute, then how easy would it be to blame the problem on poor estimates? This blog will discuss the cited failures as if they were execution failures.

Earned Value Management (EVM) Consultant Specialists

There are situations in life where the need for specialized advice is common and well accepted by us all. When your doctor is unsure of the medical issues, the doctor will send you to a specialist. The reason is obvious. The specialist has learned so much more about a specific problem and has so much experience diagnosing and treating the problem that it would be foolish not to secure the services of that specialist. In fact, it might be malpractice. A project management consultant can be thought of much like a medical specialist.

There are similar situations in business where the need for specialized knowledge is critical. Large companies tend to have in-house legal departments to cover the day-to-day legal issues and tasks that are central to their businesses. However, the need to go to outside counsel for large or unusual issues is accepted. Companies do not hesitate to engage the services of outside law firms to help them through troubled times. Project management consultants are like outside counsel.

What if there were a project management or earned value management situation you have never encountered before? A good example would be the times that H&A has been called in to help clients navigate the unhappy circumstances of needing to go over-target. Going through the over-target-baseline (OTB) or over-target-schedule (OTS) process is not a common experience. It is a tense time when careers can be on the line and the company reputation might also be at risk. It takes specialized knowledge to get it right. In some cases, it even takes the objective view of an outsider to help make the right decisions.

Specialized Knowledge

Another example of specialized knowledge being crucial is when the customer has deemed some issue on the project to be deficient. In some situations, a customer’s Corrective Action Request (CAR) can result in cost penalties and damaged reputations; possibly even worse consequences could result. Engaging the services of an EVM consultant with experience in identifying problems, building Corrective Action Plans (CAP)s, and leading or helping implementing the corrective actions is often a valuable and necessary action. Ask yourself how smart it would be to assume that those who were involved in causing the issue would be capable of creating a satisfactory solution.

These scenarios are aligned with the idea of project management consulting being something you only need in a crisis. There are other non-crisis needs for specialized support. Often H&A is engaged simply to help a client prepare a proposal. A proposal situation puts heavy demands on the company staffing levels and can require areas of specialized knowledge not available in the company. What if the company has never created a fully compliant Integrated Master Schedule (IMS) and they could use help the first time? What if there are not enough trained and experienced schedulers to work on the proposal? What if the company does not have a documented project management system?

Make or Break Opportunities

Projects can be huge and risky. They can be make-or-break opportunities to a company. Where so much can depend on good project management, smart companies recognize the need for an outside opinion and outside talent. Just like the internal legal department, the internal project management group sometimes needs to call on outside subject matter experts. While it might be obvious, let’s look at some reasons why this is true.

There are more ordinary everyday reasons to engage a project management consultant. Perhaps an organization just managed to win a new project bigger than any they have won before. In this case, they may not be ready to handle the project in terms of experience, systems, and even just talented headcount. A project management consulting company such as H&A can bring solutions to your earned value woes. It can also provide temporary training staff to get things going until the client is ready to take over.

Poor Communication

Let’s get back to the survey of reasons that projects failed. Are there issues on the list where project management consulting could have made a difference? Imagine an improved project management process and staff after a period of consulting to support creating or improving systems and training personnel?

The fifth most frequent reason for failure is “poor communication.” A good project management system with trained personnel is all about communication. Communication of plans, communication of progress, communication of issues, and communication of corrective actions are all actions required in a project management system. Quite often the problem of “poor change management,” cited as the sixth most common reason for failure, is reduced or eliminated after using the consulting services of a specialist?

What about the twelfth cited problem of “inadequate resource forecasting”? Would a well built and maintained resource-loaded Integrated Master Schedule (IMS) go a long way in providing forecasts of resource needs and the impacts of not having the resources? In fact, a proper IMS would help with several of the cited reasons for failure, such as inaccurate duration estimates. In fact, the application of a process, such as Schedule Risk Analysis (SRA), with the help of an experienced consultant can identify such issues in advance while there is still time to take action.

Earned Value Training

Disregarding the threat of failure as a motivator, the need for constant improvement should be enough reason to consider a project management consultant. We can all laugh at the time-worn clichés of “not-invented-here” or “we’ve never done it that way;” however, these are clichés for a reason. There is resistance to outside help and there is resistance to change. But outside help can be a great logjam breaker. An experienced and knowledgeable consultant can be your voice when you need someone who has, to use another cliché, “been there and done that.”

In fact, our consultants can laugh when they say they have “been there” and they have more than a T-shirt to prove it.

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