Analyze

The Analyze utility lets you drill down through any code file assigned to the project, such as the work breakdown structure (WBS) or by control account. This view of project costs highlights variances that exceed the thresholds defined on the code file selected.

The red and green color coding allows you to easily pinpoint areas that need management attention.

This management technique is often called management by exception, or looking for areas not performing as planned. This is a proven method used to quickly identify problems in time to apply effective corrective action.

Cobra also uses this utility to enter the explanation of the variance, corrective action, impact, and monthly summary. Cobra uses this information in the IPMR Format 5 reports.

Note: To analyze project data in hours, select the Hours option in the Analyze section of the Preferences tab of the Project Properties dialog box.

Analyze Form

Running the Analyze utility generates the Analyze form for the selected project. Variances that exceed either the value or the percentage of the specified thresholds for a given code are highlighted. Negative cost and schedule variances that exceed the defined thresholds are displayed using contrasting colors. You can also collapse or expand code structure and Resource File codes so that you can drill down to any level defined in the structure.

The Analyze form displays values for the following fields:

  • Code
  • Description
  • Start Date
  • Finish Date
  • Cost Variance (CV)
  • Schedule Variance (SV)
  • Budget
  • Actuals
  • Progress
  • BAC
  • SPI
  • CPI
  • EAC
  • VAC