In fiscal 2009 the federal government will spend about $71 billion on IT investments, and GAO has called on agencies to make better use of earned value management to help manage major IT system acquisitions.
In 2005 OMB directed agencies to use EVM to yield objective reports of project status, predict schedule delays and cost overruns, and provide unbiased estimates of anticipated costs at completion.
GAO followed by reviewing agency policies with best practices, performing case studies, and reviewing documentation from eight agencies and 16 major investments with the highest levels of IT development-related spending in fiscal 2009.
It said all eight agencies have established policies requiring the use of EVM on major IT investments, but that the policies are not fully consistent with best practices.
For example, most lack training requirements for all relevant personnel responsible for investment oversight, and most policies also do not have adequately defined criteria for revising program cost and schedule baselines, according to GAO-10-2.
It said that until agencies expand and enforce their EVM policies, it would be difficult for them to gain the full benefits of EVM.
GAO said that for 13 of the 16 investments it reviewed, key practices necessary for sound EVM execution had not been implemented.
For example, it said project schedules for these investments contained issues such as the improper sequencing of key activities that undermine the quality of their performance baselines.
This inconsistent application of EVM exists in part because of the weaknesses contained in agencies’ policies, combined with a lack of enforcement of policies already in place, the report said.
