Earned Value Management has long been a cornerstone of effective project control, providing a structured approach to tracking progress and program performance over the decades. But where did this powerful system originate, and how did it become a standard for managing large projects and multi-billion-dollar programs across industries? The story of the 32 Earned Value Management System (EVMS) criteria, deeply rooted in historical developments, reveals the system’s transformative impact. With the latest revision of the EVMS Guidelines, EIA-748-E, just around the corner, there’s no better time to explore its origins and understand the changes ahead. Curious? Read on.
The U.S. Navy was the Pioneer
The U.S. Navy introduced the Program Evaluation Review Technique (PERT) in 1958 to manage the Polaris program, addressing the lack of project management techniques for complex technological initiatives. Developed within weeks, PERT effectively managed intricate planning and execution, although later variants like PERT/cost and PERT/time largely faded by the mid-1960s. A key legacy of PERT/cost was the Earned Value concept, which remains central to modern project management.
In 1967, the Department of Defense (DoD) integrated the Earned Value concept into its directive DoDI 7000.2, mandating the use of Cost/Schedule Control Systems Criteria (C/SCSC) for projects with government risk exposure. These criteria, initially developed by the U.S. Air Force, set out 35 requirements but were often criticized as bureaucratic. To address these issues, the DoD revised the system in 1996, introducing a streamlined Earned Value Management System (EVMS) with 32 practical criteria. This standardized approach ensured consistent project monitoring and provided a shared framework for effective project control across all levels.
From C/SCSC to ANSI
Until 1997, the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) defined the requirements for an Earned Value Management System (EVMS). Companies bidding for major DoD contracts had to implement an EVMS that complied with these criteria, originally defined as the 35 Cost/Schedule Control Systems Criteria (C/SCSC). Other U.S. government agencies and countries such as Australia, New Zealand, Canada, and Sweden adopted identical or similar criteria.
In 1995, the National Defense Industrial Association (NDIA) formed a committee to revise these criteria. The outcome was a streamlined “industrial version” of the requirements, known as the Earned Value Management System (EVMS) Criteria, consisting of 32 criteria, three fewer than the original C/SCSC.
In December 1996, the revised criteria were approved by the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition & Technology. By 1997, the updated requirements were integrated into the DoD Manual 5000.2R. During this time, responsibility for EVMS shifted from the U.S. government to private industry, marking a pivotal moment in its history.
From Government Compliance to Industry Standard
In 1998, the American National Standards Institute/Electronic Industries Alliance (ANSI/EIA) formalized the EVMS criteria into a national standard, known as ANSI/EIA-748. This move made EVM more accessible to private industry, not just as a government requirement but as a “best practice” for project managers.
Subsequent updates to the standard included:
- March 2013: ANSI/EIA-748-B was replaced by EIA-748-C, which included minor amendments and clarifications but no significant changes to the 32 criteria.
- January 2019: The Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) and Electronics Industry Alliance (EIA) released EIA-748-D, which introduced further clarifications and additions without altering the 32 criteria.
- September 2021: The EIA-748 E Working Group presented the latest draft version. The final version is planned to be published approx. in 2025
A Preview of the ANSI/EIA-748 E
NDIA has received extensive feedback on revising the EIA-748 guidelines, such as eliminating redundant guidelines or guidelines that provide little value (Guideline 4 and Guideline 20), and adding guidelines for the integration of risk, or adopting a process-oriented approach like the ISO or the Australian Standard.
Although prior attempts for significant updates were rejected, feedback during the last revision (Rev D) prompted the NDIA IPMD committee to draft a rewrite, targeting a 2022 release. A new release is still not published end of 2024. Key changes include reducing guidelines from 32 to 28, combining overlapping ones, eliminating low-value guidelines, and emphasizing management use. The update aims to simplify and clarify the guidelines without altering fundamental practices for compliant systems or government validations.
The Implementation Will be Demanding
The ANSI/EIA-748 Guidelines are applied in multiple industries, for major US Government programs and large US government contracts. They are integrated into agency policies and FAR/DFAR contract language. The Defense Contract Management Agency (DCMA), and civilian agency authorities responsible for contractor oversight, use the 32 guidelines in EIA-748 as a basis for surveillance audits. The guidelines are the framework for the AAP Earned Value Management Systems Interpretation Guide (EVMSIG) and the DCMA EVMS Compliance Metrics (DECM) that are used for validation. Many organizations have internal policies and procedures that map to the 32 guidelines, and they are referenced in company System Descriptions, tools, and training materials. This means: Any significant changes to the guidelines, would require a lot of coordination.
What is Not Changing
First, the EIA-748 E update will not require changes to current practices if you already have an EIA-748 compliant system. It will not impact the tools you use, the procedures you follow, or your reporting requirements. The way DCMA and other agencies conduct validation reviews and oversight will remain the same, and the core elements of the EVMSIG and similar guides will stay intact.
The primary goal of this update is to make the guidelines clearer and easier to use, ensuring they are more flexible and scalable for different contexts. The fundamentals of earned value management, especially as they apply to government contracts, are not changing.
What is Changing
The most noticeable change in the new draft is the reduction of guidelines from 32 to 28. Overlapping guidelines have been combined, while others (notably Guideline 4 and Guideline 20) have been removed. New language highlights management use, and some sections have been expanded or simplified for better clarity.
Key changes summarized by the EIA-748 committee include:
- Streamlining and Modernizing Section 2 (the Guideline section)
- Improving the flow of guidelines for better alignment with processes
- Ensuring guidelines are in logical, sequential order
- Moving attributes, definitions, and implementation details to Section 3
To enhance scalability, content describing system attributes has been moved to Section 3. This change allows for a more detailed explanation of how to scale and apply the system to projects of different sizes and complexities.
Read more about the EIA-748:
The EIA-748 and the 32 EVMS Criteria
Earned Value Management System (EVMS) Validation on Government Contracts
Here You Can Find Even More Knowledge
Would you like to learn more about how to make your projects more successful with Project Control and Earned Value Management? My book “Earned Value Management – Fast Start Guide” takes you an important step further!
Do you know somebody who might be interested in this article? Then simply forward it or share it. Thank you!
