Richard HwangPrincipal Project Engineer| RaytheonIrvine, Ca, United States
I did a quick search to see if this has been addressed before and didn't find anything.
How do some of the base metrics such as SPI and CPI change if there is donated work? This would happen basically on a microscale where hours were tracked and here's a real scenario.
Say we have a superstar employee who loves what they do and so they are willing to put in and record say 60 hours to a project in a week because that's what he loves to do. Let's assume the hours are efficient. The employee gets paid a fixed salary though.
So it can be argued, that this extra work is not costing the company any extra time.
SPI would look better than it really is because usually SPI is calculated from a baseline and notional schedule date.
Amongst PM's there is an argument about CPI though. Do you use the standard cost of labor and multiply by 60 or because you know they are salaried, you only use 40 hours because that is the maximum they can charge to a project? The different comes up depending on whether you use $ or hours as your method of calculation. CPI technically is a $ amount and not hours/hours. However, if you were to redo the project again, the real cost would be much more because you can't depend on the next employee to be that generous...
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Thomas WalentaGlobal Project Economy ExpertHackenheim, Germany
Richard
I used both monetary currency and person hours to calculate earned value. Both normally give different results, for the reason you mention and others like different hourly rates.
Currency us better to track the monetary budget, person hours better to track progress vs your estimates and plan.
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Sergio Luis ConteHelping to create solutions for everyone| Worldwide based OrganizationsBuenos Aires, Argentina
This is where you might need to separate EVM from understanding the true costs of a past project. I'd based your EVM calculations on a single method (either "real" dollars or hours as Thomas has indicated), but in your project summary report ensure you summarize the variance between the planned and actual hours as well as the planned, actual & "true" cost had the work been fully charged on a T&M basis.
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Peter RapinSubject Matter Expect; Project Delivery| Independent ConsultantOntario, Canada
"Donated work" can be problematic on a number of levels not just costing considerations. Resentment, burnout, unresolved expectations, future entitlements, disappointments. You also assume the hours are 'efficient', are you sure? How does one measure efficiency of 'donated hours'? How does one manage 'donated hours'? What does one do about time management and staff assignments? Does one staff the project based on donated hours or accept overstaffing (I have nothing to do - John did it all)? Does one starting expecting donated hours from others?
Help this person find some other interest in their lives otherwise it will come back and bite you. Saving Changes...
Stéphane ParentSelf Employed / Semi-retired| Leader MakerPrince Edward Island, Canada
At the end of the day, this "donated" work has an associated cost. In most situation, overtime is paid to the employee, whether in currency or banked timed. (Banked time earned in one project and used in a following project creates another set of problems.)
We all have a point of diminishing return. I don't know about most people but after a 40 hour workweek, any additional work becomes less efficient and productive. To treat the overtime on an equal footing as regular work hours does your project a disservice.
As Peter hinted at, there is also a cost to the eager beaver's health. Will the employee need to overuse employer benefits such as medical and employee assistance plans?
I know I'm not necessarily addressing your issue. My point is to rethink how free those worked hours truly are. Saving Changes...
