PMI-SP Earned Value 4 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A control account manager reviews a work package with SPI = 0.75. What corrective action is most appropriate?
- Reduce the project budget
- Accelerate work or add resources to recover schedule (Correct answer)
- Recalculate the BAC
- Decrease the quality standards to speed up delivery
Correct answer: Accelerate work or add resources to recover schedule
SPI = 0.75 means only 75% of planned work is being completed on time, so adding resources or fast-tracking activities is needed.
Question 2: Which EVM method assigns 100% of the budget to an activity only when it is fully complete?
- Weighted Milestone
- Percent Complete
- 0/100 rule (Correct answer)
- 50/50 rule
Correct answer: 0/100 rule
The 0/100 rule credits no earned value until the activity is 100% complete, making it suitable for short-duration tasks.
Question 3: A project uses the 50/50 earning rule. A $20,000 activity has started but not yet finished. How much EV is credited?
- $0
- $10,000 (Correct answer)
- $20,000
- $15,000
Correct answer: $10,000
The 50/50 rule credits 50% of the budget when work starts and 50% when it completes, so $10,000 is earned at start.
Question 4: A PMI-SP exam candidate calculates TCPI against EAC instead of BAC. What scenario makes this appropriate?
- When the project is ahead of schedule
- When the original budget is no longer achievable and a new EAC has been approved (Correct answer)
- When CPI equals SPI
- When the project has a favorable cost variance
Correct answer: When the original budget is no longer achievable and a new EAC has been approved
TCPI based on EAC is used when the original BAC is deemed unrealistic and a revised budget (EAC) has been authorized.
Question 5: Which of the following scenarios results in a positive Schedule Variance (SV)?
- EV < PV
- EV > PV (Correct answer)
- AC > EV
- AC < PV
Correct answer: EV > PV
SV = EV - PV; when EV exceeds PV, more work has been accomplished than planned, yielding a positive (favorable) variance.
Question 6: On a large infrastructure project, a control account has BAC = $1M, EV = $600K, AC = $700K, and the project manager decides to re-estimate remaining work at $500K. What is the new EAC?
- $1.1M
- $1.2M (Correct answer)
- $1.3M
- $1.0M
Correct answer: $1.2M
EAC = AC + ETC = $700,000 + $500,000 = $1,200,000 when ETC is based on a new independent estimate of remaining work.
Question 7: A project's EAC is $980,000 and its BAC is $900,000. What does this indicate?
- The project is projected to finish under budget
- The project is projected to overrun the original budget by $80,000 (Correct answer)
- The project is on track
- The project variance at completion is positive
Correct answer: The project is projected to overrun the original budget by $80,000
VAC = BAC - EAC = $900,000 - $980,000 = -$80,000, a negative VAC signals a projected cost overrun.
PMI-SP Earned Value 4
A control account manager reviews a work package with SPI = 0.75.
What corrective action is most appropriate?