Comparative study of managerial practices and EVM management theory: the case of construction

Indicators are a major management tool that organizations use to monitor project performance. The EVM indicator has widely been used for about 40 years. Nevertheless, only few studies have been conducted about its use in the construction industry. In addition, some authors claim that the theoretical foundation of EVM has been incorrectly used in the construction industry. The main objective of this article is to present a comparative study of the theoretical foundations and the practical use of the EVM indicator. This is an exploratory study involving a case study in 5 construction projects. After the field research, the practices used were identified and compared with the EVM theory. The researchers observed that there were critical success factors such as: staff training, maturity in project management, support from high management, and the need of pre-defined procedures. They also observed that the EVM offered benefits such as better cost control, scope and communication about the project's performance. Additionally, they concluded that the method applied enabled the successful achievement of the goals and the validation of the research hypothesis.

Earned value indicator; EVM; Critical success factors; Construction performance; Project management.