Earned Value Management (EMV) sounds like a great and objective method for reporting.
Precondition for applying EVM is that tasks or results are well defined and well distributed during the project.
I'm wondering if it is possible to apply EVM to projects with a high probability of change, e.g. R&T projects.
Within R&T projects unforeseen iteration may appear or a former closed task has to be reopened due to new findings.
Those aspects are usually not understood as risk, due to the fact that everybody expects them to appear.
Regarding R&T vs. R&D: For sure, EVM is successfully applied on lots of development projects. From my point of view, EVM is a tool to visualise results or effects caused by the usual uncertainty of projects managed by waterfall model (e.g. delays, changes in estimate at completion).
Regarding the TRL, R&D is situated somewhere between 4 and 8 (my impression). In compare to that, R&T is situated somewhere between 1 and 6 (again my impression).
In addition, I state that the level of uncertainty decreases with higher TRL: Ones estimates get more robust regarding project planning aspects (e.g. time, schedule, tasks) as higher the TRL is.
Those are quite general statement and for sure not always correct or applicable. Nevertheless they reflect (at least my) general observations.
Having this, to which level of uncertainty is EMV applicable or: Can EVM deliver a benefit to projects being subject of regular change?