Purpose and scope
What this dashboard measures
Forecast project duration using planned progress, earned progress, and elapsed time.
The Earned-Schedule Completion Forecaster keeps Project starts, Planned duration days, Elapsed days, Planned progress percent, and Earned progress percent visible beside the result so the inputs can be checked, saved, and reproduced without reconstructing the calculation later.
Instructions
How to use this calculator
Enter the values requested for the Earned-Schedule Completion Forecaster and replace every sample with the actual schedule, record, or system being analyzed.
- Use Project starts and Planned duration days to establish the starting conditions for the Earned-Schedule Completion Forecaster.
- Set Elapsed days, Planned progress percent, and Earned progress percent to match the actual case rather than leaving example assumptions in place.
- Run the Earned-Schedule Completion Forecaster with a baseline set of values, then change only one uncertain input at a time when comparing alternatives.
Calculation
Method used
Time schedule performance is approximated by earned progress divided by planned progress and used to forecast duration.
The displayed formula makes the role of Project starts, Planned duration days, and Elapsed days explicit. In the Earned-Schedule Completion Forecaster, keeping those inputs separate helps distinguish a changed assumption from a changed calculation rule.
Calculation method last reviewed: June 20, 2026.
Worked scenario
Example calculation
To audit your own Earned-Schedule Completion Forecaster result, compare Project starts and Planned duration days with the worked scenario. In the Earned-Schedule Completion Forecaster, if the direction or scale looks wrong, verify Earned progress percent before changing several inputs at once.
Interpretation
Interpreting the headline metric
The forecast indicates current schedule performance and should be trended rather than trusted from one measurement.
Read the headline together with the supporting metrics for Project starts, Planned duration days, and Elapsed days. A plausible-looking Earned-Schedule Completion Forecaster result can still be unreliable when one of those values uses the wrong unit, date boundary, or local convention.
The PERT Completion-Time Calculator extends the Earned-Schedule Completion Forecaster by letting you estimate duration from optimistic, most-likely, and pessimistic scenarios.
Visual audit
Reading the supporting metrics
The Earned-Schedule Completion Forecaster dashboard summarizes Project starts, Planned duration days, Elapsed days, Planned progress percent, and Earned progress percent in a headline and supporting measures. For the Earned-Schedule Completion Forecaster, read the original units beside any percentage or status label so a rounded headline does not hide a small but important shortage or overrun.
Boundaries
Important edge cases and limitations
A single progress snapshot can be noisy; scope changes and the earned-schedule method used by the project may differ.
If one of these exclusions applies, treat the Earned-Schedule Completion Forecaster output as a baseline and correct Earned progress percent or another affected input before recalculating.
Practical use
Recommended workflow
Use consistent progress rules and compare several reporting periods before changing the completion forecast.
Input audit
Checklist for this calculation
- Confirm the source and units for Project starts and Planned duration days before entering them.
- Preserve Elapsed days, Planned progress percent, and Earned progress percent with any saved or shared Earned-Schedule Completion Forecaster result.
- For the Earned-Schedule Completion Forecaster, review the exclusions above for conditions that could change Earned progress percent or the calculation method.
- Recalculate the Earned-Schedule Completion Forecaster whenever a recorded input or real-world condition changes.
Questions
Frequently asked questions
Why can percent complete produce an unstable forecast?
Small or subjective progress changes can move the ratio sharply, especially early in a project.
When should the earned-schedule completion forecaster be recalculated?
Recalculate the earned-schedule completion forecaster after an entered value or excluded condition changes. Use consistent progress rules and compare several reporting periods before changing the completion forecast.
How is the earned-schedule completion forecaster result calculated?
Time schedule performance is approximated by earned progress divided by planned progress and used to forecast duration. Time performance index = earned progress ÷ planned progress; forecast duration = planned duration ÷ index.
How can the worked example help check the earned-schedule completion forecaster?
Forty-five-percent earned progress against fifty-five-percent planned progress produces an index below one and a duration longer than baseline. The forecast indicates current schedule performance and should be trended rather than trusted from one measurement.
Which conditions still need manual review after using the earned-schedule completion forecaster?
A single progress snapshot can be noisy; scope changes and the earned-schedule method used by the project may differ. Use consistent progress rules and compare several reporting periods before changing the completion forecast.
Which entries should be checked first when the earned-schedule completion forecaster result seems wrong?
Enter the values requested for the Earned-Schedule Completion Forecaster and replace every sample with the actual schedule, record, or system being analyzed. In the Earned-Schedule Completion Forecaster, begin with the values that define the anchor, duration, interval, or boundary.