PK0-005 Project Management Concepts Practice Question
A project has a cost performance index (CPI) of 0.8 and a schedule performance index (SPI) of 1.1. What does this indicate?
⚠ Common exam trap
PK0-005 often tests whether candidates remember that CPI and SPI values greater than 1.0 are good (under budget / ahead of schedule) and less than 1.0 are bad, so the trap is inverting the interpretation of one or both indices.
Answer choices
Why each option matters
Answer the question above first, then reveal the full breakdown to understand why each option is right or wrong.
Correct answer & explanation
✓
Over budget and ahead of schedule
CPI is calculated as EV/AC; a value of 0.8 means the project is getting only 80 cents of earned value for every dollar spent, indicating it is over budget. SPI is EV/PV; a value of 1.1 means the project is ahead of schedule because it has earned 110% of the value planned for this point. Therefore the project is over budget and ahead of schedule.
Answer analysis
Option-by-option breakdown
For each option: why learners choose it and why it is or isn't the right answer here.
- ✗
Under budget and behind schedule
Why it's wrong here
A CPI of 0.8 means cost efficiency is below 1.0, so the project is over budget, not under. The SPI of 1.1 does indicate ahead of schedule, but pairing it with an under-budget claim inverts the cost index. This option is tempting because SPI above 1.0 correctly signals schedule progress.
- ✓
Over budget and ahead of schedule
Why this is correct
A CPI of 0.8 means every £1 spent delivers only £0.80 of earned value, so the project is over budget. An SPI of 1.1 means earned value exceeds planned value, so work is ahead of schedule. This option satisfies both constraints simultaneously.
- ✗
Over budget and behind schedule
Why it's wrong here
CPI of 0.8 correctly indicates over budget, but SPI of 1.1 is above 1.0, meaning the project is ahead of schedule, not behind. Tempting because both indices being unfavourable is a common assumption when one index is poor, yet the schedule index is favourable here.
- ✗
Under budget and ahead of schedule
Why it's wrong here
CPI of 0.8 is below 1.0, meaning more was spent than earned, so the project is over budget, not under. SPI of 1.1 does show ahead of schedule, but the cost half is inverted. Tempting because SPI above 1.0 is correctly read as favourable schedule performance.
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Last reviewed September 2026 · checked against the official CompTIA exam blueprint
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