Schedule Variance (SV)

Schedule variance is calculated as earned value minus planned value. A positive number means more work has been completed than planned; a negative number means less. Because it is expressed in money or effort rather than days, it is often read together with the schedule performance index and the critical path. SV has one well-known limitation: at the end of a project it always tends to zero, even if the project finished late. For that reason, use it with date-based forecasts rather than on its own. Example: At the end of month three, planned value is 100,000 and earned value is 75,000. Schedule variance is 75,000 minus 100,000, which is negative 25,000. The project is behind plan by that amount of work. SV gives a quick signal of where attention is needed. It does not identify which activities are driving the delay, so pair it with schedule analysis.