How do you calculate schedule variance (SV) and what does it indicate?

How do you calculate schedule variance (SV) and what does it indicate?

• A. SV = PV − EV; positive indicates behind schedule.
• B. SV = EV ÷ PV; positive indicates acceleration.
• C. SV = EV − PV; positive indicates ahead of schedule.
• D. SV = PV ÷ EV; positive indicates cost underrun.

Answer: (C)

Schedule variance measures how much of the planned work value has actually been earned by this point. It’s calculated as SV = EV − PV, where EV is the value of work completed and PV is the value of work that was planned to be completed by now. A positive SV means you’ve earned more value than planned, so you’re ahead of schedule; a negative SV means you’re behind schedule; SV = 0 means you’re exactly on schedule. This uses budgeted cost units, not time, and shows schedule performance through earned value. For example, if PV is 100k and EV is 120k, SV = 20k, indicating ahead. If EV is 90k, SV = -10k, indicating behind. The other formulas swap the order or replace subtraction with division, which changes the meaning and doesn’t correctly indicate schedule status.

Schedule variance measures how much of the planned work value has actually been earned by this point. It’s calculated as SV = EV − PV, where EV is the value of work completed and PV is the value of work that was planned to be completed by now. A positive SV means you’ve earned more value than planned, so you’re ahead of schedule; a negative SV means you’re behind schedule; SV = 0 means you’re exactly on schedule. This uses budgeted cost units, not time, and shows schedule performance through earned value. For example, if PV is 100k and EV is 120k, SV = 20k, indicating ahead. If EV is 90k, SV = -10k, indicating behind. The other formulas swap the order or replace subtraction with division, which changes the meaning and doesn’t correctly indicate schedule status.