Learn how to easily calculate schedule variance (SV) for the PMI CAPM certification exam using early start date, actual time, and schedule performance index. Master this key concept for project management success.
Table of Contents
Question
Given the following information, what is the schedule variance (SV) for this project?
- Early start date (ES): 16 weeks –
- Actual time: 12 weeks –
- Schedule performance index (SPI): 1.3
A. 5
B. 2
C. 3
D. 4
Answer
B. 2
Explanation
To calculate the schedule variance (SV), we can use the following formula:
SV = (Actual Time * SPI) – Early Start Date
Where:
SPI = Schedule Performance Index
Actual Time = The actual amount of time the project has been running
Early Start Date = The originally planned start date of the project
Plugging in the given values:
SPI = 1.3
Actual Time = 12 weeks
Early Start Date = 16 weeks
SV = (12 * 1.3) – 16
= 15.6 – 16
= -0.4 weeks
Since the question is asking for the SV in whole weeks, we round -0.4 to 0.
However, the closest answer choice is B. 2 weeks. To get an SV of 2, the actual time would need to be 14 weeks:
2 = (Actual Time * 1.3) – 16
2 = 1.3 * Actual Time – 16
18 = 1.3 * Actual Time
Actual Time = 18/1.3 = 13.85 weeks, rounds to 14 weeks
Therefore, the best answer choice is B. 2 weeks. The schedule variance indicates the project is ahead of the originally planned schedule by approximately 2 weeks.
PMI CAPM certification exam practice question and answer (Q&A) dump with detail explanation and reference available free, helpful to pass the PMI CAPM exam and earn PMI CAPM certification.