Set up the project rules for sizing the cost accounts work packages. Work packages are the smallest units of work on the WBS and are collectively rolled into cost accounts. Cost accounts are typically the lowest level on the WBS where formal cost tracking and allocation are made. Sizing the cost account means deciding how large in dollars a cost account should be before it is too large for effective management and needs to be subdivided into multiple cost accounts. There are no fixed rules. On some smaller projects, $50,000 or less may be a cost account; however, on larger projects, so small an amount may be impractical. The project manager and the project team make these decisions.

Provide a means to collect and report actual cost. Collecting and reporting actual cost is the most difficult part of applying earned value. Outside of the contractor community that serves the Department of Defense, there are few businesses that invest in the means to collect actual cost beyond direct purchases. Most projects are run with salaried labor for which project-level timekeeping is not available. Without actual cost, there is little that can be done with the quantitative metrics of earned value, although the concept of focusing on accomplishment remains valid.

Set up the project rules for claiming earned value credit. Earned value credit rules must be set up in advance and made known to the cost account and work package leaders.