How is "earned hours" defined in the context of project management?

The definition of "earned hours" in project management is a concept closely related to earned value management, which measures project performance by comparing the planned progress with the actual performance. "Earned hours" can be understood as the amount of work that has been completed (in terms of hours) based on the percentage of physical progress achieved against the overall work that was planned.

The correct choice reflects this understanding: by taking the percent of physical progress and multiplying it by the control budget hours, you calculate the earned hours. This method allows project managers to quantify the actual achievement in terms of hours against what was planned, providing valuable insights into the project's progress and performance. It aligns directly with the principles of earned value management, which focuses on assessing performance based on the work completed versus what was budgeted.

The other options do not accurately represent the determination of earned hours. For instance, one option suggests using total budget hours multiplied by project duration, which does not consider the progress achieved. Another implies relating earned value to actual costs, which mixes different financial metrics instead of focusing on the measurement of work completed. The last option discusses projected hours divided by work completed, which confuses the concept by not appropriately linking it to the actual physical progress achieved.