Change resource availability over multiple date ranges

One value that Project stores for each work resource is the resource’s maximum units value. This is the maximum capacity of a resource to accomplish tasks. A resource’s working-time settings (recorded in the individual resource’s calendar) determine when work assigned to a resource can be scheduled. However, the resource’s capacity to work (as defined by the resource’s maximum units value) determines the extent to which the resource can work within those hours without becoming overallocated. A resource’s maximum units value does not prevent a resource from becoming overallocated, but Project indicates when the resource’s assignments exceed the resource’s maximum units capacity.

You can specify that a resource’s maximum units value be adjusted from one date range to another. Changing a resource’s availability over time enables you to control exactly what a resource’s maximum units value is at any time for the current plan. For example, you might have two copyeditors available for the first 8 weeks of a project, three for the next 6 weeks, and then two for the remainder of the project. Or you might have a translation editor who is normally available at 100 percent capacity, but is reduced to just 50 percent capacity for 6 weeks and then returns to full capacity.

You customize a resource’s availability in the Resource Information dialog shown in Figure 11-1. You do so by specifying maximum units per date range in the Resource Availability table in the dialog. When NA (for not applicable) appears at the beginning of the first date range, it means that the resource has no specific start date for availability. When NA appears at the end of the final date range, it means that the resource has no specific end date. Every resource’s initial availability is unspecified, or NA.

Project shows the then-current maximum units value for the resource wherever maximum units are displayed (such as in the Resource Sheet view). Project uses the current date based on your computer’s system clock to identify the correct date range and its maximum units value.

To customize a resource’s availability over time

1. On the View tab, in the Resource Views group, select Resource Sheet. In the Resource Sheet view, you can see and edit resources’ maximum units values. The maximum units values displayed here normally apply to the full duration of the project.

2. In the Resource Name column, select the name of a resource whose maximum units value you want to vary at different times.

3. On the Resource tab, in the Properties group, select Information to display the Resource Information dialog. If the General tab is not visible, select it.

   Tip

   Project offers some shortcuts for quickly displaying the Resource Information dialog. When you’re in a resource-centric view such as the Resource Sheet, right-click or long-press (tap and hold) the Resource Name and, on the shortcut menu, select Information. Alternatively, you can double-click a resource name. Double-clicking a resource name also works in the Assign Resources dialog when you are in a task-centric view such as a Gantt chart.

4. Under Resource Availability, in the first row of the Available From column, leave NA (not applicable).

5. In the Available To cell in the first row, enter or select the end date of the first date range you want.

6. In the Units cell in the first row, enter a maximum units value for the first date range.

7. Enter the values for the second date range. In the Available From cell in the second row, enter or select the start date of the second date range.

8. Do either of the following:

   • If you plan to set up a third or additional date range, in the Available To cell in the second row, enter or select the end date of the second date range you want. Then repeat steps 7 and 8 for subsequent date ranges.

   • If the second date range is the last one you want to set up, leave the Available To cell in the second row blank. (Project inserts NA for you.)

   Later, you can add other date ranges with unique maximum units values. Just leave the final Available To field blank.

9. Select OK to close the Resource Information dialog.

Work with multiple resource pay rates

Some resources might perform different tasks with different pay rates. You can set up different pay rates for the same resource and then specify which rate to use per assignment (you’ll do so later in this chapter).

For example, in the new children’s book project, the project editor might also serve as a content editor. Because the costs for project editor and content editor are different, you can set up two cost rate tables for the resource (additionally, a cost rate table can include a standard pay rate and an optional overtime rate, and even a per-use cost). After you assign the resource to tasks, you specify which pay rate applies.

Each work or material resource can have up to five different pay rates, each recorded in a cost rate table. You set up pay rates in the cost rate tables on the Costs tab of the Resource Information dialog, as shown in Figure 11-2. The default rate table (the rate Project applies unless you specify another one) is on tab A. If you completed the practice tasks in Chapter 5, “Set up resources,” you might recognize the pay rates you initially entered for resources. You can create up to four additional rate tables on tabs B through E.

When you assign a resource to a task, Project initially uses cost rate table A, by default. However, you can specify that another rate table should be used instead. You do so on the General tab of the Assignment Information dialog, as Figure 11-3 shows, which is available in the Task Usage or Resource Usage views.

To create an additional cost rate table for a resource

1. On the View tab, in the Resource Views group, select Resource Sheet.

2. In the Resource Sheet view, select a resource name.

3. On the Resource tab, in the Properties group, select Information to open the Resource Information dialog.

4. Select the Costs tab.

5. In the Cost rate tables area, select the B, C, D, or E tabs.

6. In the Standard Rate and Overtime Rate fields, enter the pay rate values you want. In addition to or instead of pay rates, you can also enter a value in the Per Use Cost field.

7. Select OK to close the Resource Information dialog.

   

To change the cost rate table to be applied to an assignment

1. Do either of the following:

   • On the View tab, in the Task Views group, select Task Usage.

   • On the View tab, in the Resource Views group, select Resource Usage.

   As with other assignment-level activities, you can perform this procedure in either view.

2. Select the assignment you want to edit.

3. On the <View Name> Format tab, in the Assignment group, select Information to open the Assignment Information dialog. Select the General tab, if it is not already selected.

4. In the Cost Rate Table box, select a cost rate table; then select OK to close the Assignment Information dialog, as Figure 11-3 shows.

   Tip

   If you frequently change cost rate tables for assignments, it’s quicker to display the Cost Rate Table field directly in the Resource Usage or Task Usage views. To do so, display the last (rightmost) column in the table portion of a usage view, select Add New Column, and then select Cost Rate Table.

Change resource pay rates over different date ranges

When you set up pay rates for a resource, Project uses those rates for the duration of the plan. However, you can change a resource’s rates to be effective as of the dates you choose. For example, you can initially set up a resource with a standard rate of $40 per hour and then plan to raise the resource’s standard rate to $44 per hour 6 months later.

You set up the effective date of each pay rate on the Costs tab of the Resource Information dialog, as displayed in Figure 11-4, introduced in the previous topic.

Project uses pay rates when calculating resource costs based on when the resource’s work is scheduled. You can assign up to 25 pay rates to apply at different times in each of a resource’s five cost rate tables.

You can use a couple of different formats to enter the additional pay rates—Project is flexible:

• Enter a pay rate as a specific dollar value.

• Enter a percentage change from the previous rate. You can either enter a positive percentage value (for example, 5%) for an increase or enter a negative percentage (for example, -3%) for a decrease. Project calculates the new rate, and it replaces the percentage value you entered.

For example, in the Resource Usage view, you might see the cost of a resource’s assignment change midway through the assignment when the effective date of a new pay rate applies, as Figure 11-5 shows.

To set up a different resource cost rate to apply later

1. On the View tab, in the Resource Views group, select Resource Sheet.

2. In the Resource Sheet view, select a resource name.

3. On the Resource tab, in the Properties group, select Information to open the Resource Information dialog.

4. Select the Costs tab. If you’ve set up multiple cost rate tables, select the tab of the cost rate table you want to change. Leave the resource’s original pay rate as is for the first row; you’ll enter the upcoming effective date and pay rate in the second row.

5. In the Effective Date cell in the second row, enter or select a date and then enter the new pay rates. The new rates can include standard or overtime rates and per-use cost value. If you want to add multiple future pay rate changes, enter them in chronological order on subsequent rows.

6. Select OK to close the Resource Information dialog.

Delay the start of assignments

If more than one resource is assigned to a task as Figure 11-6 shows, you might not want all the resources to start working on the task at the same time. You can delay the start of work for one or more resources assigned to a task.

Consider a specific example. The new children’s book plan includes a task to which both a copyeditor and the book author, Tad Orman, are assigned. The intent of this task is for the author to first review the edits made to his book manuscript; shortly afterward, the copyeditor then can begin to incorporate the author’s feedback.

Currently, both resources have work that is assigned to them throughout the duration of the task, but you want to delay the start of the copyeditor’s work by 2 working days. You do so in the assignment-level Start field.

After you change the start date of the copyeditor’s assignment, you can see in Figure 11-7 that Project accounts for the later start of the copyeditor’s work on the task in the timescaled grid of the view.

The other resource assigned to the task is not affected. Note that the total work of this task did not change, but its duration did—the finish date moved out 2 working days.

To delay the start of a resource assignment on a task

1. On the View tab, in the Task Views group, select Task Usage. The Task Usage view groups the assigned resources below each task. It’s a useful view for this activity.

2. In the Start field of the resource assignment you want to delay, enter or select a new start date. You might need to adjust the divider bar separating the table from the timescaled grid if the field is not visible.

Apply contours to assignments

In the Resource Usage and Task Usage views, you can see exactly how each resource’s assigned work is distributed over time. In addition to viewing assignment details, you can change the amount of time a resource works on a task in any given time period. You can do this in various ways:

• Apply a predefined work contour to an assignment, as illustrated in Figure 11-8. Predefined contours generally describe how work is distributed over time in terms of graphical patterns. For example, the Bell predefined contour distributes less work to the beginning and end of the assignment and distributes more work toward the middle. If you graphed the work over time, the graph’s shape would resemble a bell.

  

• Edit the assignment details directly. For example, in the Resource Usage or Task Usage views, you can change the assigned work values directly in the timescaled grid, as shown in Figure 11-9.

  

• Edit work values at the task level, as Figure 11-10 shows. When you change a work value at the task level, Project adjusts the resulting work value per assignment according to each assigned resource’s units value. For example, assume that, on a specific day, two resources were assigned 8 hours each to a task that had a total work value of 16 hours. If you then change the total work on the task for that day to 8 hours, Project decreases the work per resource from 8 hours to 4 hours.

  

How you contour or edit an assignment depends on what you need to accomplish. Predefined contours work best for assignments in which you can predict a likely pattern of effort—for example, a task that requires gradual ramp-up time might benefit from a back-loaded contour to reflect the likelihood that the resource will work the most toward the end of the assignment.

Keep in mind a few more points when contouring assignments:

• Depending on the task type, applying a contour to an assignment might extend the overall duration of the task. Applying a contour to a fixed-duration task does not affect its duration. When you apply a contour to a fixed-duration task, Project recalculates the resource’s work value so that the resource works less in the same time period. For a fixed-work or fixed-unit task, however, the duration is affected. If you don’t want a contour to extend a task’s duration, change the task type (on the Advanced tab of the Task Information dialog) to Fixed Duration before you apply the contour.

• You can split a task in the Gantt Chart view to account for an interruption in the task, as you saw in Chapter 9, “Fine-tune task scheduling.“ You can also split a task in the Task Usage view by entering 0 work values in the task’s row in the timescaled grid for the date range that you want. To preserve the total work on the task, add the same amount of work to the end of the task that you subtracted with the split. For example, assume that a task starts on Monday and has 8 hours of total work per day for 4 days. Its work pattern (in hours per day) is 8, 8, 8, and 8. You interrupt work on the task on Tuesday and then add those 8 hours to the end of the task (in this case, on Friday). The new work pattern would be 8, 0, 8, 8, and 8.

• When editing values in the timescaled grid, you can work with the cells similarly to how you might work in a Microsoft Excel worksheet—you can drag values and use the AutoFill handle to copy values to the right or down.

To apply a predefined work contour to an assignment

1. Do either of the following:

   • On the View tab, in the Task Views group, select Task Usage.

   • On the View tab, in the Resource Views group, select Resource Usage.

   Both of these views show assignment-level work values per time period, such as daily or weekly. The Task Usage view groups assignments per task, whereas the Resource Usage view groups assignments per resource.

2. Select the assignment to which you want to apply a predefined contour. In Task Usage view, be sure to select the resource name. In Resource usage view, be sure to select the task name.

   Tip

   The next two steps are not required, but they can help you see the result of applying a work contour.

3. On the View tab, in the Zoom group, select the arrow next to the Timescale box and select the smallest unit of time (such as Days) that you want displayed in the right side of the usage view.

4. On the Task tab, in the Editing group, select Scroll to Task.

5. On the <View Name> Format tab, in the Assignment group, select Information. The Assignment Information dialog opens.

6. Select the General tab, if it is not already selected.

7. Select the arrow to display the options in the Work contour box. These are all predefined work contours; some of the names of the contours are graphical representations of a resource’s work over time with that contour applied.

8. Select the contour pattern you want and then select OK to close the Assignment Information dialog. Project applies the contour to the selected assignment. If the timescaled work values are visible, you can see the updated work values per time period. You can also see a contour indicator in the Indicators column.

To manually edit work per time period for an assignment

1. Do either of the following:

   • On the View tab, in the Task Views group, select Task Usage.

   • On the View tab, in the Resource Views group, select Resource Usage.

2. If the assignment values you want to edit are not visible, select the resource’s name in the Task Name column.

3. On the Task tab, in the Editing group, select Scroll to Task.

4. On the View tab, in the Zoom group, select the arrow next to the Timescale box and select the smallest unit of time (such as Days) that you want displayed in the right side of the usage view.

5. In the timescaled grid in the right pane of the usage view, edit the assignment values you want. These appear in the details row labeled Work.

Create and assign material resources

Material resources are consumables that you use up as the project proceeds. For example, on a construction project, material resources might include nails, lumber, and concrete. You work with material resources in Project to track a fixed quantity or a rate of consumption of the material resource and its associated costs. Unlike with work resources, maximum units values do not apply to cost and material resources because neither type performs work. See Figure 11-11 for a material resource example.

Although Project is not an inventory tracking system, it can help you stay better informed about how quickly your project is consuming material resources and at what cost. Consider an example.

This example is for a material resource named Advance proofs. This resource has a Material label named copies. Copies are the unit of measure of this material resource, illustrated In Figure 11-12; other types of material resources might have different labels. A liquid material resource might be labeled (and measured) in gallons or liters, for example. This material resource has a per-unit cost of $15. In other words, each copy of an advance proof used in the project costs the plan $15.

Assigning a material resource to a task is similar to assigning work resources but with some important differences. When you assign a material resource to a task, you specify the unit quantity for the task. Project then calculates the cost of the material resource assignment as the per-unit cost you specified times the number of units on the assignment.

Recall that material resources are used up, or consumed, as a project progresses. Common material resources you might find on a construction project, for example, include lumber and concrete.

When assigning a material resource, you can handle consumption and cost in two ways:

• Assign a fixed consumption rate Regardless of the duration of the task to which the material resource is assigned, an absolute quantity of the resource is used. For example, pouring concrete for a house foundation requires a fixed amount of concrete, no matter how long it takes to pour it. Project multiplies the unit cost of this material resource by the number of units assigned to determine the total cost.

• Assign a variable-rate quantity Project adjusts the quantity and cost of the resource as the task’s duration changes. A variable consumption rate means that the quantity of the material resource consumed depends on the duration of the task. When operating a generator, for example, you consume more fuel in 4 hours than in 2, and you can determine an hourly rate at which you consume the fuel. You enter a variable consumption rate in units per time period—for example, you enter 2/h to record the consumption of 2 gallons of fuel per hour. After you enter a variable consumption rate for a material resource’s assignment, Project calculates the total quantity of the material resource consumed, based on the task’s duration.

The advantage of using a variable rate of consumption is that the rate is tied to the task’s duration. If the duration changes, the calculated quantity and cost of the material resource also change. When you need this level of cost tracking for a material resource, use a variable consumption rate.

To set up a material resource

1. On the View tab, in the Resource Views group, select Resource Sheet.

2. In the Resource Sheet, select the row where you want to insert a new material resource.

3. On the Resource tab, in the Insert group, select Add Resources and then select Material Resource. Project inserts a new row for the material resource.

4. Enter a name for the material resource.

5. In the Material Label field, enter the name of the unit of measure of the material resource.

6. In the Std. Rate field, enter the per-unit cost of the material resource and then press Enter.

To assign a material resource to a task

1. In a task-centric view, such as the Gantt Chart view, select the name of the task to which you want to assign the material resource.

2. On the Resource tab, in the Assignments group, select Assign Resources to open the Assign Resources dialog.

3. Do either of the following:

   • To assign a fixed consumption rate, in the Units field for the material resource, enter or select the quantity of the material resource you want to assign.

   • To assign a variable consumption rate, in the Units field for the material resource, enter the variable consumption rate in units per time period. For example, enter 2/h to set a consumption rate of 2 units of the material resource per hour.

View resource capacity

Recall that the amount of time that a resource is able to work on tasks in a project is called the resource’s maximum capacity; in Project, this is measured in units. By default, such units are presented as a percentage value, with 0% meaning no capacity and 100% meaning the full or maximum capacity of a single resource, with the normal working schedule of 40 hours per week. In Project, a resource’s maximum capacity to do work is tracked as the resource’s maximum units (labeled Max. Units) value. Refer to Chapter 5, “Set up resources,” for a tip on setting the capacity to display whole numbers, if that is your preference.

Even experienced project managers have been known to overestimate resource capacity for the people allocated to work on a particular project. This can lead to unhappy resources and problems during the execution of a project, especially when the project manager has also underestimated the amount of work required to complete the tasks in the project. You can expect some variability with task work estimates for many legitimate reasons, especially in the initial planning stage of a project. This topic introduces some useful tools in Project that can help you better see and understand resource capacity.

Viewing the working capacity per resource gives you a better understanding of overall capacity for your project. This, in turn, can help inform you and the project’s stakeholders about any adjustments you might be able to make to the scope of the project to better match the capacity of the team (or adjustments you can make to the team’s capacity to better match the project scope). Normally, you can expect one of the following conditions for resource capacity:

• Planned work is less than the working capacity of the team. You might be able to use some portion of your resources’ time for other projects or to do more work on this project.

• Planned work exceeds the working capacity of the team. You might need to reduce the scope of work or add more resources.

• Planned work is approximately equal to the working capacity of the team.

As Figure 11-13 shows, a customized Resource Usage view is a great view in which to see resource capacity.

In the Resource Usage view, the left pane organizes tasks under the resources to which the tasks are assigned. The right pane shows assignment and other values organized on the timeline. A handy customization is to show only the Remaining Availability and Percent Allocation details, hide resource assignments, and set the view’s zoom level to whatever incremental time period your team normally plans for, such as weekly or monthly.

To view resource capacity per time period

1. On the View tab, in the Resource Views group, select Resource Usage.

2. On the Resource Usage Format tab, in the Details group, select Add Details to open the Detail Styles dialog.

3. In the Available Fields list, select Percent Allocation and then select Show.

4. Select Remaining Availability, select Show, and then select OK to close the dialog. To further simplify the view, also perform the following steps.

5. On the Resource Usage Format tab, in the Details group, clear the Work checkbox. Project hides the Work details, leaving the Percent Allocation and Remaining Availability details visible.

6. Select the Resource Name column heading.

7. On the View tab, in the Data group, select Outline and then select Hide Subtasks. Project hides assignments, leaving only the resource rows visible.

8. On the View tab, in the Zoom group, in the Timescale box, select the time period you want. Use whatever time period your team normally focuses on; daily or weekly might be a good level of focus for resource availability.

Adjust assignments in the Team Planner view

By now, you’ve seen how to work in the Task Usage and Resource Usage views to accomplish detailed tasks, such as manually contouring resource assignments. Another view that can give you insights into tasks, resources, and assignments is the Team Planner view.

In the Team Planner view, shown in Figure 11-14, tasks are organized by the resource to which they’re assigned (as in the Resource Usage view), and any unassigned tasks are also visible. Both assigned and unassigned tasks might be either scheduled or unscheduled:

• Scheduled tasks These tasks are scheduled for a specific time period and displayed in the Team Planner view at a specific point in time.

• Unscheduled tasks These tasks are manually scheduled.

The Team Planner view supports a simple drag-and-drop method of rescheduling or reassigning tasks.

The Team Planner is unique because of its support for drag-and-drop scheduling and other means of handling assignments:

• Drag tasks to assign, reassign, reschedule, or unschedule them.

• Right-click an assigned task and reassign it to another resource.

The Team Planner view supports many of the view-adjustment and navigation techniques you use elsewhere in Project:

• Use the Scroll To Task button (on the Task tab, in the Editing group) to horizontally scroll the timescale portion of the view to display task assignments (bars).

• Display ScreenTips to see the full name and other details for tasks that might not be fully visible in a Team Planner task bar.

• Make timescale adjustments by using the Timescale box (on the View tab, in the Zoom group).

• Display overallocated resource names in red.

To assign and schedule unassigned tasks

1. On the View tab, in the Resource Views group, select Team Planner to display the Team Planner view.

   Tip

   You can also select the Team Planner view shortcut on the status bar, in the lower-right corner of the Project window.

2. Drag an unassigned task and drop it into a resource’s row at the start date you want. The task you drag can be from the unassigned and unscheduled tasks corner in the lower-left corner, or from the unassigned but scheduled corner in the lower right. The task is assigned and scheduled but remains a manually scheduled task until you switch it to be automatically scheduled.

To schedule assigned but unscheduled tasks

• In the Team Planner view, drag a task from the Unscheduled Tasks column of the view and drop it into a resource’s row at the start date you want. The task is assigned and scheduled but remains a manually scheduled task until you switch it to be automatically scheduled.

To reassign a task from one resource to another

• In the Team Planner view, right-click the assigned task and, on the shortcut menu that appears, select Reassign To. Then select the resource to whom you want to assign the task.

Skills review

In this chapter, you learned how to

• Change resource availability over multiple date ranges

• Work with multiple resource pay rates

• Change resource pay rates over different date ranges

• Delay the start of assignments

• Apply contours to assignments

• Create and assign material resources

• View resource capacity

• Adjust assignments in the Team Planner view

Practice tasks

The practice files for these tasks, FineTuneResources and FineTuneAssignments, are located in the ProjectDesktopSBSCh11 folder. For practice file download instructions, see the introduction.