NASA Earned Value Management (EVM) Implementation Handbook – dated November 2021

“The purpose of this handbook is to provide Earned Value Management (EVM) guidance for the effective application, implementation, and utilization of EVM on NASA programs, projects, major contracts and subcontracts in a consolidated reference document.  EVM is a project management process that effectively integrates a project’s scope of work with schedule and cost elements for optimum project planning and control.  The goal is to achieve timely and accurate quantification of progress that will facilitate management by exception and enable early visibility into the nature and the magnitude of technical problems as well as the intended course and success of corrective actions.”

This Directorate requires that contractors are compliant with EIA-748 Standard for EVMS Guidelines and have obtained an approved EVMS determination from a Cognizant Federal Agency (CFA) such as DCMA if a contract is greater than $100M. For contracts between $20M to $100M, the contractor must be compliant with the EIA-748 Guidelines. For these contracts, the Integrated Program Management Report (IPMR) is the primary report NASA uses for obtaining earned value and schedule data. The IPMR requirements are discussed in the NASA IPMR Data Requirements Description (DRD). NASA has a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the DCMA that delegates responsibility for compliance reviews and surveillance reviews of a contractor's EVMS to DCMA when requested.

The directorate includes the detailed requirements for EVM application for contractors as well as NASA in-house projects.  It contains discussion and direction regarding roles and responsibilities of program team members, EVM implementation requirements both before and after contract award, discussion of Integrated Baseline Reviews, surveillance requirements, a basic, EVMS process description, and a section on lessons learned.

Note: As of June 2023, NASA placed the Integrated Program Management Data and Analysis (IPMDAR) DID on contract instead of the IPMR DID. The IPMDAR requirements are discussed in the NASA IPMDAR Tailoring Supplement.

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