Anticipated Finish Variance

[Luca]

Hi There,

A client has asked if an anticipated finish var. column could be added to
show how late (or early) a task is anticipated to finish, i.e 10days, -2days
etc.
He has said that the anticipated date is to be calculated using the overall
duration of the task, multiplied by by the %complete plus the current delay,
i.e task goes for 29 days and 90% complete, therefore = 3 days left to
complete plus current delay which is current date (say 06/02/09) less
programme finish date (say 05/12/08) = 64 days behind schedule (3 + 61). So
in the anticipated column you would have in there -64 days.
I have a Finish Var column but obviously that shows '0' until I insert an
actual finish date so then the programme can compare the planned finish date
to the actual finish date and establish the difference.

Can someone please explain if you can have an anticipated finish var. column
and how I can set up the formula so it reflects what I have explained above.
Many Thanks - Luca

 

[Rod Gill]

Hi,

If I create a Task that finishes on Dec 5 '08 and save the baseline for it
then delay it to finish on Feb 6 the Finish variance = 45d which is 45
working days based on the Project calendar.

When you update % complete, make sure you delay any incomplete work to the
date it will restart. With a baseline the finish variance should calculate
as you go, no need to wait for an actual finish date.

--

Rod Gill
Microsoft MVP for Project

Author of the only book on Project VBA, see:
http://www.projectvbabook.com

 

[Luca]

HI - Thanks Rod,

The problem is that my programme won't update the finish var. until I have
put in an actual finish date. For tasks which have a % complete value entered
but isn't finished yet (so no actual finish date) the finish var. column
remains as 0.

Can you please help.

Luca

 

[Rod Gill]

The only ways a finish duration remains at 0 are:
1) No baseline
2) You do not update the finish dates as you go along. If a task should have
finished last week, but is only partly complete, you need to re-schedule all
remaining work into the future each week. This then gives you what you want.

If your process won't allow this, I'm afraid Project can't give you what you
want so you will need to experiment with formulae!

--

Rod Gill
Microsoft MVP for Project

Author of the only book on Project VBA, see:
http://www.projectvbabook.com

 

[Steve House [MVP]]

I think part of the problem lies in not updating completely, not continuing
the process to the point of rescheduling the delayed work. Example

We have a 30 day duration task that was scheduled to begin 27/10/08. 30
days duration would place it finishing on 05/12/08. We save a baseline that
reflects that schedule and add the Finish Variance field to the data table.
The current Finish Variance is 0. Using the tracking table we post that the
task is 90% Complete - disregarding for a moment that directly entering
Percent Complete is often unwise. Entering 90% Complete means that it's an
actual physical fact that work began on 27 Oct and proceeded as scheduled
through 02 Dec with 27 days of work being done and each bit the work
actually took place on the dates where it was scheduled. But the work that
WAS to have happened on 03 Dec, 04 Dec, and 05 Dec did not take place and as
of today, 06 Feb 09 it still hasn't been done - the task remains at 90%
complete with 3 days of work remaining. At this point our Finish Variance
remains 0. BUT we still need to reschedule those 3 days of work. We don't
have a time machine to take us back to 03 Dec so we can resume work on that
date - the earliest we can resume work we should have done in the past but
in fact did not do before today is sometime in the future, ie, after 06 Feb.
So we use the Tools/UpdateProject menu selection and choose "Rechedule
Remaining Work After 06 Feb 09." Now the work that was scheduled for 03 Dec
appears on 09 Feb, 04 Dec moves to 10 Feb, and 05 Dec work moves to 11 Feb.
Our new scheduled finish date is 11 Feb and the Finish Variance is 48 days.
The variance is duration days, non-working days not counted, but what your
client is asking for is elapsed days, not duration, so a calculated field of
the elapsed days between the revised finish date from the reschedule work
operation, minus the baseline finish date -
DateDiff("d",[Finish],[BaselineFinish]) gives an "elapsed time delay" of -68
days, the number your client is looking for.

HTH