Some positive characteristics of earned value in project management are that it removes the ambiguity associated with project budget reporting. Further, earned value indexes provide a simple metric for monitoring progress and updating the budget and schedule projections.

On the other hand, many stakeholders can be confused by the many earned value metrics that exist. Also, earned value metrics are only meaningful to the extent that they are derived from accurate progress data.

Use the following questions to guide you to highlight the pros of earned value in project management:

• Should earned value be used as the primary means for monitoring and controlling project progress?
• Do most project teams use systems that are capable of generating valid earned value progress data?
• Can earned value compete with frequent face-to-face communication as well as "management by walking around?"