Duration minus Actual Effort

Mark Thompkins

We would like to be able to track actual vs estimated duration, as well as the variance.

ie: Duration Column 4 days, actual work 2 days, variance -2.

Duration Column 4 days, actual work 6 days, variance 2.

And be able to roll the totals up at the top of each parent task.

If a task is scheduled to take 90 minutes, but we have 2 weeks to get it completed, how do we enter those values, so we do not show our resources as 100% for the next 2 weeks.

 

Currently, we are setting the start and finish as the same day, and allowing for 90 minutes of duration. But I also need to add that 3rd column, Variance.

 

Thanks

 

Mark

J. Craig Williams

Mark,

This deserves a much longer post. I think there may already be one (or more) but I don't have them at my fingertips.

Here's some starters:

1. Smartsheet has a [Allocation %] column available. It used for Resource Management when that feature is enabled on a sheet.

Estimated Effort = Duration * Allocation %

so if Duration is 10 days and the Estimated Effort is 90 minutes, then Allocation % is 1.875%

Unlike some PM software that allows any two of these to be entered to calculate the third, Smartsheet does not allow formulas (at least not in the usual sense) for Duration and Allocation %. It also does not display Estimated Effort on its own, one must add the column and calculation.

That gets the estimated value.

2. The [% Complete] is then used to determine actual value. 

Actual Effort = Estimated Effort * % Complete

3. Variance is EV - AV.

There's more that can be done. It depends on whether you are concerned about schedule variance or cost variance. 

Hope that helps.

Craig