Leveling, task and project priority

[DenverWaterPM]

Hi:

The following scenario is puzzling me: One resource works the following
tasks: One task (A) in one project (project priority 1000, task priority 500)
is scheduled before all other tasks (for example, B with project priority 900
and task priority 950). The time scheduled for A is 0.2h for each of several
days and thus 7.8 h would be remaining available per day for each of these
days. However, project pushes the B tasks to start after A's finish date. I
would have expected that the other tasks are worked such that the 7.8 h are
used. I am allowing splits on tasks, and level the resource working the
tasks using Tools->Level Resources->Level now.

I would be very grateful for any idea.
Christine

 

[Jan De Messemaeker]

Hi,

This is a general feature of Project, and independent of resource pools
etc., it will happen as such in a single file a well.

Leveling NEVER EVER changes assignment units.
Ans when you say you need the whole of the resource on task B, Project will
give you the whole of the resource, not 98%.
Suppose you need 2 people to carry a long ladder, you wouldn't be happy if
leveling would reschedule the task to be done by 1 man, would you? Let
alone, by 0,6 men??

Sorry, that is the logic.
HTH

 

[DenverWaterPM]

I am sorry, I must have explained the scenario insufficiently. I am not
expecting that the resource availability is changed and yes, I certainly
wouldn't want project to change this. What I am expecting is that the
resources total availability - in this case 100% - is being used. Since
project schedules on a task 0.2h only it should be able to calculated that
7.8h are available for work if 8 h is what represents the resource's
availability. So I would expect that the availability reserves 100% for 0.2h
and 100% for 7.8 hours for another task.
Thanks,
C

 

[JohnM]

You would have to manually set the resource assignment units for each task:
2.5% for resources on Task A and 97.5% for resources on Task B. Once that is
set, then project levels them to work on the same day.

Levelling in project does not optimize the schedule -- i.e., it will not
fill unused time with pieces of other tasks. It will only delay tasks and/or
assignments to remove over-allocations.

When project levels it is basically delaying the task from starting.
Allowing it to split allows you to delay a piece of task.

I have pretty much given up on ever using the Leveling feature. It's easier
to do this yourself by manually manipulating the Leveling Delay field while
refering to the Resource Usage view.

Hope this helps.
-John

 

[Jan De Messemaeker]

But using 7,8 hrs of work in a timespan of 8 hoyurs IS changing the
assignment units, and sorry, projecyt doesn't do that.
If instead of using a task of 0,025% allocation, you replace that by a daily
recurring task of 12 minutes or so, with 100% allocation, Leveling WILL
nicely split the other task around it.
HTH

 

[Jan De Messemaeker]

--
Jan De Messemaeker
Microsoft Project Most Valuable Professional
http://users.online.be/prom-ade/
+32-495-300 620

 

[Jan De Messemaeker]

Hi,

One of my cuzstomers leveled on a weekly basis 70 projects with a total of
3000 assignments.
They could not afford hiring the battery of schedulers they would need to
replace the 6 minutes work of the PC that ran Leveling.

Greetings,

 

[JohnM]

Jan,

What guidelines did they use to ensure that leveling runs properly? It seems
to me that most of the software development plans that I've seen with tasks
that can run in parallel, partial allocations, etc. seems to cause havoc with
the leveling algorithm inside Project. Also our gold partners have strongly
suggested avoiding leveling which matches my experience. Curious as to what
I'm missing here.

-John

 

[Jan De Messemaeker]

Hi,

The point you are missing is in the words "partial allocations"
Leveling gives the bet results when every, every assignment is for the max
units of the resource.
(BTW that is compatible with the TOC guidance not to multitask)
In the case of my client with 70+ projects before leveling we ran a VBA
procedure changing ALL assignment units to the max units of the resource.
If you use leveling there is no reason to fiirst do part of the work by hand
(which is what setting these 30%, 50% etc. allocations is all about); you
define the task and 3 days duration is 3 days of work, full stop, and lmet
leveling produce a REASONABLE plan.

All the objections to leveling then disappear.
I got the idea from implementing Project Leveling in a Toolshop: no machine
works 35%, and behold: leveling worked without objections from the user.

Splitting each working minute of your resource in seconds per task (which is
what project does hen you say 50% f.i.) hoping to come up with the schedule
you have in mind in the first place is exactly the same reasoning as putting
in constraints instead of links, it is doing part of the work by hand and
hoping Project will still come up with a "good" solution.
In that case, curiously enough, all specialists say let the software do the
work; but with resource allocation the need to split resources' brains into
small pieces is too strong, you ccan't stop it.
And yes, once you start doing the leveling yourself that way, Project will
no longer give good results because it doesn't reason that way: people
aren't split, tasks are.

If your plans are so small you can afford doing all this work manually (and
redoing at each tracking event because reality never matche the plan) or if
your boss is willing to pay you for calculating these splist, fine. Yes, you
will have a "finer" plan than I. At another customer, a PL overseeing 6
development projects spent 2 days a week calculating those percentages, then
blamed Project because it took her another half day to enter it all into the
software!

So assigning only the max units of the resource and then using leveling
makes you save much time and thus allows you to spend more time on managing
the project, and that is what a software is for.

Greetings,

 

[JohnM]

If your client is able to manage resources as fully dedicated assignments,
then, yes, it would work. I haven't been fortunate enough to be in an
environment where the projects are modelled this simply. I definitely agree
that plans should not be engineered, but there are too many real life
situations that require partial allocations.

For example, let's say your initiating a project. You have your project
start up tasks for the team: setting up project infrastructure, configuring
systems, documenting project processes, etc. We allocate all the resources at
100% to their own tasks. Because this is a new project, we have asked the
customer to provide the team with domain training (learn about the business,
processes, their customers, etc.). The customer has agreed to do this in a
week-long, 4 hour day sessions. I want my entire team to attend. How would
you schedule this in Project? By the way, the customer agreed to next week,
but there is a chance that it will need to be delayed to the following week,
so it has to be relatively easy to delay it in the plan. And, I have agreed
to charge the customer at a lower rate for training time, so I have to know
how much time was spent on training versus the other project tasks...

Or, a different example, you have an SME on the team that you want to help
(e.g., 25%) other team members on some of their tasks, and the SME to fully
own other tasks. When the SME is helping out, s/he should still make progress
on his/her own tasks,

In the enterprise project management environment (using Project Server) --
this is even more common. For example, resources can allocate time in a
separate admin plan for training, time off, etc., and they don't have to do
it in full days (which would be needed to for the leveling feature to be
useful). E.g., a resource notifies me that they are taking 2 hours off on
Monday for a dentist appointment. 2 hours gets "planned" in the admin plan
and rolls into my project plan showing a 2 hour over-allocation for my
resource on that Monday. Leveling would push that resource's assignments off
completely to the next day.

If project managers are in this environment, then they are forced to either
simplify the plan, or learn to level the plan themselves. And quite frankly,
sometimes the simplify option is not feasible because of contractual
obligations, business policies, reporting requirements, and downstream system
impacts (e.g., finance).

-John

 

[John Sitka]

let me get the popcorn.

 

[Jeremy Robkin]

Hi:

The following scenario is puzzling me: One resource works the following
tasks: One task (A) in one project (project priority 1000, task priority 500)
is scheduled before all other tasks (for example, B with project priority 900
and task priority 950). The time scheduled for A is 0.2h for each of several
days and thus 7.8 h would be remaining available per day for each of these
days. However, project pushes the B tasks to start after A's finish date. I
would have expected that the other tasks are worked such that the 7.8 h are
used. I am allowing splits on tasks, and level the resource working the
tasks using Tools->Level Resources->Level now.

I would be very grateful for any idea.
Christine

 

[Jeremy Robkin]

Hi:

At my company we have a scenario where 2 PMs share resources across 2
project files. when PM1 levels their project, it makes changes in PM2's
project. If we want a PM to be able to level only in their own open project
file, should we set project priority in each project to 1000. Does this cause
leveling to only affect tasks in the open project?

Thanks!