What is S Curve | How to create S Curve Chart in Excel | Project Management Fundamentals
S Curve is a Project management tool which helps Project leads and managers to analyze the health of the project, track progress and take data driven decisions.
It is a line chart which plots Time on X axis and Project metric (either cumulative Cost, Or Manpower or Resources) on the Y axis. The shape of the graph typically looks like an elongated S, which is why it is known as S Curve.
Why S Curve : When the project is in beginning phase, the progress is slow, resources are getting onboarded, requirements are being collected and there is not much investment. As the project progresses, growth accelerates rapidly and resources are working in full speed. This is why the chart has a upward steep trend. The point of maximum growth of the curve is called as Inflection point. During this time, the project team is working heavily and majority of the cost is incurred.
After the inflection point, growth begins to plateau. As it moves forward, the upper part of the S Curve straightens and project enters the maturity phase. This part of S Curve is called Asymptote.
What are uses of S Curve :
Project Planning, Budget management, Resource Allocation, Performance Tracking and reporting to Senior stakeholders.
Creating an S Curve is very easy in excel sheet, its a line chart which plots Time on x axis and resources on Y axis. In this tutorial, I will explain the definition of S Curve, its uses, and the easy method to create your own project S Curve.
0:00 Introduction
0:10 What is S Curve
0:35 Why it is called S Curve
0:46 Phases of S Curve
2:18 Scenarios where S Curve is used
3:12 Plotting S Curve in excel sheet with example