Which type of analysis is used to examine project results through time to determine if performance is improving or deteriorating?

Question

Options

• AControl chart
• BEarned value
• CVariance
• DTrend

• A
  2% (1)
• B
  18% (9)
• C
  8% (4)
• D
  72% (36)

Explanation

Trend analysis examines project performance data over time to identify patterns - whether results are getting better or worse - making it the right tool for tracking directional movement across reporting periods.

• A (Control chart) is wrong: control charts monitor process stability and identify variation within acceptable limits, but they focus on whether a process is "in control," not on directional improvement/deterioration over time.
• B (Earned value) is wrong: earned value analysis measures cost and schedule performance at a point in time using metrics like CPI and SPI - it can feed trend analysis, but isn't itself the technique for examining results through time.
• C (Variance analysis) is wrong: variance analysis compares actual versus planned performance at a given moment, revealing how much deviation exists, not where it's heading.

Memory tip: Think "trend = trajectory." If the question uses words like over time, improving, deteriorating, or direction, the answer is always trend analysis - it's the only technique whose whole purpose is reading the arc of performance across time.

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