Nuances of the process when maintaining existing work packages
Introduction
The Replan process in Deltek Cobra is an often-utilized utility that sets budgets and earned equal to actual costs through a certain point in time. The remaining effort is then re-planned accordingly. One of the options is to maintain existing work package codes and their associated charge numbers. While this option is often desired, the complexity of the setup would typically cause the user to use the more traditional method of closing all old work packages and assigning new work packages and charge numbers.
This blog will spell out the necessary steps to set both Budgets and Earned value equal to Actuals through “time now” while maintaining the existing charge numbers for the remaining work. The Cobra Guy has no opinion on whether this is the appropriate approach to the Replan, but is only instructing on how to accomplish it.
An overview of the Replan process has been covered in an earlier blog, along with The Cobra Guy’s opinions on the subject. You can find it here The Deltek Cobra Replan Process
Often, there is the desire to perform the Single-Point Adjustment, hereafter referred to as the SPA, where the existing charge numbers are maintained. Where government or customer guidance exists, it will typically require that new work packages be created for all remaining effort, with all existing work packages (and associated charge numbers) being closed.
Similarly, an organization’s System Description for EVM often requires the same. The reason a project would prefer maintaining existing charge numbers is usually tied to existing POs, where a charge number is inexorably linked. Splitting POs in two is not helpful and requires significant effort on both the project staff and the suppliers, thus not a preferred option.
In the event the project desires to maintain the existing charge numbers, thus the existing work packages, a waiver can be requested to allow for existing work packages/charge numbers to remain in use for all remaining effort. I can attest that once the customer or internal EVM authority understands the burden the requirement for new charge numbers will cause, the waiver is usually granted.
That all said, the process for performing the Replan with the existing work packages/charge numbers is detailed below. I can assure you that all options have been explored in how to make this work properly and what follows is the only method that calculates EV accurately.
The Process
Step 1:
The process begins in the project schedule. Activities that will span the status date in which the SPA will occur will be split into two (or more) activities. This is necessary to allow for earned value calculations to only occur against the remaining effort. Once the schedule no longer has activities which cross over the SPA status date, the coding what allows for integration with Cobra is removed for all activities up to and including the status date.
The reason for the above is that further earned value calculations are only to be applied to the remaining effort. The earned value reflected in the SPA should not change and is no longer associated with “progress”, but is set equal to the Actuals existing at the time of the SPA. Any further earned value calculations that include these prior periods will change SPA values for Progress, which is not desired nor allowed.
At the completion of this first step, the schedule should be coded for import into Cobra for all remaining work, beginning the period following the SPA.
Step 2:
As in all SPAs, import Actuals for the period in which the SPA will occur. There is no need to calculate progress, as these values would be replaced with current period adjustments needed to set Progress to date equal to Actuals to date.
The same applies to any BCRs that would typically be updated in the Cobra baseline, as any current period costs would be overwritten with adjusted to budgets to cause cumulative budgets to also equal Actuals to date. BCRs should be updated along with all remaining effort, with a start date no earlier than the period following the SPA date.
Step 3:
Do I really need to tell the user to perform a backup before the Replan process? Good. Execute the Replan process, using the settings shown below. The first option will prevent changing prior period values for budgets and earned.
At the conclusion of the Replan process, signified by a green checkmark, run the IPMR CPR Format 1 at the Control Account and Work Package level to verify no cumulative Schedule or Cost variances remain. With the settings selected in this example, the current period will generally have both cost and schedule variances, which reflect the adjustments to budget and earned required to cause each to equal cumulative Actuals.
The Format 1 report below reflects a successful Replan where S&P=A
Step 4:
The next step is the import of the schedule (Or however you integrate with Cobra) for the remaining effort. This will include effort for existing work packages and charge numbers that continues past the SPA period. The period of performance for this remaining effort must be no earlier than the day following the period end date of the SPA.
It is recommended to import this effort into a separate budget cost class to allow for validating values and the PoP. If desired, the cost class can be added to the existing budget class once the baseline update is complete.
Step 5:
The following steps are to be performed prior to advancing the calendar to the period after the Replan.
Step 5a: Create a new cost class for Earned. For this example, we will call it SPA EV.
Step 5b: Using theReclass process, copy the Earned cost class into the SPA EV cost class. Copy all periods. Once the process has been validated, delete all values out of the Earned cost class using the Zero-Out Data tool.
If you’re not familiar with this process, a blog is available here Utilizing the Zero-Out Data Tool in Deltek Cobra 8.5. This step is necessary to isolate all EV through the SPA date from the EV earned after the SPA date. Stand by, this will all make sense (Hopefully???).
Step 5c: Create another cost class for all budget values through the SPA period end date. In this step, I used the name “Replan”.
It will contain the Replanned and Budget cost class values through the SPA date as well. Make sure this cost class is not included as a budget cost class under the “Earned” cost class. The settings below will satisfy this requirement.
The reason a new Replan cost class is required is that Cobra will not allow the user to add values via the Reclass process to the Replanned cost class, thus the need to create a new class. One can Reclass “Replanned” cost class values into another budget cost class, but one can’t Reclass another Budget class into the Replanned class. I’ve no idea why, it’s just the way it is.
Step 5d: Using the Reclass process, copy the Replanned cost class into the Replan cost class. Once this is complete, again use the Reclass process to copy the Budget cost class values through the SPA status date into the Replan cost class, using the “Add to existing” option. Once this process has been deemed successful, Zero-Out the Budget cost class values through the SPA status date.
Note: The user will likely notice when using the Project Audit function that the distributed budget amount will show an amount that does not align with the current distributed budget. This is due to an anomaly in Cobra than retains the values in the “Replanned” cost class, even though “Replanned” has been removed from the Budget cost set. This can be remedied by utilizing the “Zero Out Data” tool and deleting all values in the Replanned cost class. While this will delete what would be a potentially useful artifact, the Cobra Guy hasn’t identified another method to correct this issue.
Step 5e: Open the Project Properties, choose the Classes tab, then the Earned cost class. Open the tab for Included Budget Classes and remove any cost classes not associated with the remaining effort. In this example, all remaining effort, and only the remaining effort, is in the Budget cost class.
At the Completion of these steps, the user has segregated all Budget and Earned values through the SPA date from the remaining effort. Each of these steps is necessary to facilitate Progress calculations. The intent is that future Progress Calculations will only apply to the budgets planned after the SPA date.
The setup is now complete. Once the user finalizes the month end process for the SPA period, the calendar can be advanced. Status can now be imported, which will only contain updates for the remaining effort. Again, the % complete imported will only reflect the progress on those activities with a baseline start after the SPA status date.
Once status is imported and the Progress Calculation is executed, an interesting result will occur. Because the SPA EV cost class is a Progress class, Cobra will “Unearn” the cumulative value in that class in the current period, as shown below.
To reconcile this, the extra step required is to Zero-Out the current period value in the cost class SPA EV. Once this is done, the Earned will be correct. This process of deleting the current period value of the SPA cost class must be performed each time Progress is calculated.
Conclusion
This setup for the replan process in Cobra is obviously cumbersome. The Cobra Guy spent many hours attempting every option available to determine the method that will generate accurate Earned Value. This method alone achieves this goal.
Again, the cleanest method of performing the Replan is to close existing work packages/charge numbers and assign new codes for the remaining effort. That said, I have assisted in several Replan exercises lately where the client required that the existing charge numbers be maintained.
They thought I was nuts when they saw the required replan process in Cobra. I can’t swear that I am not nuts, but I can assure you that this works!
Good luck. If any issues remain, let us know at Ten Six or in the comment section on LinkedIn.