Consideration of EVMS Technique Application to Software Development

Earned Value Management System (hereafter EVMS), as introduced in “A Guide to the Project Management Body of Knowledge” (commonly known as PMBOK Guide and published by the Project Management Institute (PMI))[1], has been employed as an essential technique in managing various project operations, especially in their progress management. In this article, we apply this technique on a trial basis to our software products, and discuss its advantages and disadvantages through analysis of our trial results. Based on these results, we propose some specific methods for improving the progress graphs required in managing a project in software development using EVMS. Furthermore, we weigh some considerations required in EVMS-based project planning and revising of processes and we also analyze how EVMS relates to the quality of software under development.