Pass the SAVE International Value Methodology CVS Questions and answers with CertsForce

The correct answers are A, B, and C . An implementation plan for accepted VM proposals must translate approved recommendations into executable action. Therefore, it must identify the implementation costs , the responsible parties , and the schedule for completing the required activities. The SAVE Value Methodology Standard states that during proposal development, the team prepares implementation requirements, including estimated initial costs, life-cycle costs, and implementation costs , while accounting for risk and uncertainty. It also requires technical data to identify schedule impact. ( UW Courses )

The same Standard further specifies that the implementation plan should include the proposed schedule of all implementation activities, team assignments, and management requirements. This directly supports responsibility and schedule as required plan elements. ( UW Courses ) In the Implementation/Post-Study activity, assignments may be made to VM team members or to other individuals designated by management, so the key requirement is not generic “VM Team involvement” but clear accountability. ( UW Courses ) “New proposals” are not part of the implementation plan for already accepted proposals; they would belong to a new study cycle or further development.

References/topics: Implementation Phase; Development Phase; Implementation Plan; Accepted VM Proposals; Responsibility Assignment; Schedule and Cost Requirements.

The correct answer is B . SAVE’s dictionary defines a facilitator as someone who is substantively neutral, has no substantive decision-making authority, and helps a group improve how it identifies and solves problems, makes decisions, and increases effectiveness. In the VM context, the facilitator leads the group through the VM Job Plan and is associated with the Value Team Leader role.

Option A is wrong because a facilitator who pushes a preferred solution compromises neutrality and suppresses team ownership. Option C is too narrow; cost estimating may support the study, but the facilitator’s role is process leadership, not simply estimating. Option D is unrealistic and incorrect. Disagreement can be productive when managed professionally. The facilitator should structure the discussion, clarify assumptions, surface competing stakeholder needs, and guide the team toward function-based consensus. CVS facilitation requires discipline: the facilitator protects the process, manages participation, maintains phase boundaries, and prevents premature judgment while ensuring the team produces usable outputs.

References/topics: VM Facilitation; Team Dynamics; Facilitator Neutrality.

The correct matches are based on formal Function Analysis classification. SAVE defines a function as what a project, product, or process must do, independent of what it is or how it is accomplished, and it should be stated in active verb/measurable noun form. A basic function is the specific purpose for which the product exists and answers “What must it do?” For prescription eyeglasses, that purpose is Correct vision . SAVE’s function-analysis examples for spectacles also classify Correct Vision as the basic function.

A higher order function represents the broader need or outcome that causes the basic function to exist. Correcting vision exists to Enhance vision , so that is the best higher-order match. A lower order function is outside the study scope and represents a required input. For prescription eyeglasses, the prescription must be determined first; therefore Assess vision is the best lower-order function. A secondary function supports the basic function and results from the selected design approach. In eyeglasses, the frames, bridge, arms, and related hardware support the basic function by Positioning lenses correctly in front of the eyes. “Fit face” is also a supporting idea, but it is less direct than “Position lenses” for this one-slot secondary classification.

References/topics: Function Analysis Phase; Basic Function; Higher Order Function; Lower Order Function; Secondary Function; FAST Logic.

The correct answer is B. $12,000 . This question asks only for the repair and replacement costs of Car B , not the full life-cycle cost. Therefore, the initial purchase price of $50,000 and the fuel cost data are irrelevant for this specific calculation. The only repair/replacement item listed for Car B is tires every two years at $2,000 .

The service life is 12 years . Since tires are replaced every 2 years , the number of replacement cycles is:

12 years ÷ 2 years = 6 replacement cycles

The total repair and replacement cost is therefore:

6 × $2,000 = $12,000

Option A. $6,000 would represent only three tire replacements, which does not cover the full 12-year service life. Option C. $10,000 would represent five replacements; that approach would exclude the final two-year replacement interval, but this question’s wording asks for costs for the service life , so the full 12-year period is counted. Option D. $4,000 covers only two replacement cycles and is clearly incomplete.

In the Evaluation Phase, the CVS candidate must separate initial cost , annual operating cost , and periodic repair/replacement cost before performing life-cycle calculations. This question isolates the periodic replacement-cost component only.

References/topics: Evaluation Phase; Life-Cycle Cost; Repair and Replacement Costs; Recurrent Cost; Cost Classification.

The correct answers are A, C, D, and E . Pareto’s law of distribution, often expressed as the 80/20 principle , is used in Value Methodology to focus team attention on the “vital few” items that create the greatest effect. In a VM study, this principle helps the team avoid spreading effort equally across all issues and instead concentrate on the limited number of elements that drive most of the project impact.

It can be applied to time , because a small number of activities often consume most of the schedule or create major delay exposure. It can be applied to quality , because a limited group of defects, failures, or performance gaps may account for most quality problems. It can be applied to risk , because a small number of risk events often carry the largest probability-impact burden. It is also highly applicable to costs , because VM studies commonly use cost models and cost distribution to identify high-cost elements for function analysis and value improvement.

Standards are not normally treated as Pareto-distributed variables; they are requirements or constraints. Performance is important in VM, but Pareto application is more directly tied to measurable distributions such as cost, time, quality problems, and risk exposure.

References/topics: Information Phase; Pareto Analysis; Cost Modeling; Risk Identification; Quality Drivers; Schedule Drivers.

The correct answers are B and C . In the VM Job Plan, implementation support requires more than approving an idea; it requires a controlled plan for turning accepted VM proposals into real changes. SAVE’s Value Methodology Standard identifies Create Implementation Plan and Prepare Final Proposals as Development Phase activities, followed by Presentation Phase commitment and Post-Study implementation tracking. ( UW Courses )

A detailed implementation plan is essential because the standard specifically requires an implementation plan with a proposed schedule, implementation activities, team assignments, and management requirements. ( UW Courses ) This directly supports option B . A contingency plan is also appropriate because implementation must account for risk, uncertainty, schedule impact, resource availability, policy limits, and potential barriers. The Development Phase includes implementation requirements that consider risk and uncertainty, making contingency planning a logical implementation-control tool. ( UW Courses )

Option A may be useful background information, but it is not the primary tool for implementing approved proposals. Option D is incorrect because implementation should not proceed blindly without assessing current policies, procedures, constraints, and organizational requirements.

References/topics: Implementation Phase; Development Phase; Implementation Plan; Risk and Uncertainty; Post-Study Implementation.

The correct answer is D. ask questions of the quiet members . In a VM workshop, the facilitator must maintain balanced participation so the team benefits from the full range of technical, operational, customer, and stakeholder perspectives. A dominating participant can unintentionally suppress alternative viewpoints, reduce creativity, and weaken the quality of evaluation and consensus. The facilitator’s response should therefore be corrective but professional, not punitive.

SAVE International guidance identifies the team leader’s responsibilities as keeping the team focused, keeping team members involved in the discussion and work, keeping the team together, and acting as a catalyst while being diplomatic rather than dictatorial. ( ) Asking quiet members targeted, neutral questions directly supports these responsibilities because it redistributes participation without embarrassing the dominant person or disrupting team cohesion.

Option A is too extreme and damages trust. Option B worsens the imbalance by allowing quieter members to remain disengaged. Option C may distract the group but does not solve the participation problem. The best facilitation technique is to invite quieter members into the conversation through open-ended questions, round-robin input, or direct prompts tied to their expertise.

References/topics: VM Facilitation and Team Dynamics; Team Leader Responsibilities; Balanced Participation; Group Engagement; Workshop Control.

The correct answers are B, D, and E . An Implementation Form is used after VM proposals have been developed, presented, reviewed, and moved into disposition or execution tracking. Its purpose is to identify each accepted or pending value alternative clearly enough that management, the project team, and follow-up reviewers can track what proposal is being implemented, who developed or owns it, and how it will be handled.

The SAVE International Study Guide describes Implementation Activities as ensuring accepted value alternatives are implemented and that projected benefits are realized. It further identifies activities such as conducting an implementation meeting, determining the disposition of each value alternative, establishing action plans, obtaining commitments, setting timeframes, tracking value achievement, and validating benefits. ( )

Therefore, an implementation form normally requires traceable proposal identifiers: the VM proposal number , the title of the VM proposal , and the developer or originator/responsible party . These fields allow each proposal to be tracked from study recommendation through acceptance, rejection, modification, and completion. A creative idea list belongs to the Creativity Phase record, not implementation tracking. Risk impacts may support development or recommendation documentation, but they are not as fundamental as proposal identity and responsibility fields on the implementation form.

References/topics: Implementation Phase; VM Proposal Tracking; Action Plans; Follow-Up; Value Study Recommendation Documentation.

The correct strategies are A and C because the Presentation Phase is intended to communicate value alternatives clearly enough for management and stakeholders to make informed implementation decisions. The SAVE Study Guide identifies the Presentation Phase purpose as presenting value alternatives to management, stakeholders, and decision makers, with the fundamental question focused on helping them make more informed decisions that fit strategic plans. ( ) Therefore, a concise summary of key points is essential because it reinforces the major recommendations, benefits, risks, and implementation direction without forcing decision makers to search through excessive detail.

Visuals such as charts and graphs are also appropriate because presentation products commonly include cost-versus-worth comparisons, present-worth analysis, risk analysis, and advantages-versus-disadvantages information. ( ) These items are best communicated visually when the objective is executive understanding and decision readiness. The formal VM Standard also states that the Presentation Phase involves an oral presentation followed by a written report, with the team obtaining approval or direction for additional information. ( courses.washington.edu ) A complex presentation format would reduce clarity, and detailed technical specifications belong mainly in the Development Phase technical data package, not as the primary means of enhancing the presentation.

References/topics: Presentation Phase; Value Alternatives; Management Decision Support; Oral Presentation; Formal Report.

The correct answer is D. To prioritize functions . The Function Analysis Phase includes several important activities: identifying functions, defining them in active verb/measurable noun form, classifying them as basic or secondary, organizing their relationships, and relating cost or worth where required. However, these activities are not the final purpose by themselves. Their purpose is to determine which functions deserve the team’s focused attention for value improvement.

SAVE’s Value Methodology guidance explains that during Function Analysis, the team defines project functions and reviews them to determine which need improvement, elimination, or creation to meet study goals. ( WSDOT ) The Study Guide also states that functions performed inefficiently or at more than expected cost become the focus of the VM team’s improvement effort. ( ) This means the ultimate output is a prioritized understanding of where value improvement opportunities exist.

Option A may occur in advanced function-cost analysis, but it is not the ultimate objective. Options B and C are necessary intermediate steps, but they support the larger goal of prioritizing functions for creativity, evaluation, and development.

References/topics: Function Analysis Phase; Function Definition; Function Classification; Function Organization; Function Prioritization; Value Improvement Opportunities.