Resource allocation across multiple projects

[ederlyn.lacson]

I'm an intern being tasked with creating multiple projects utilizing a
shared resource pool of managers and contractors. Right now, the
projects are fixed resources with a "% complete" column for the
subtasks.

I'm quite low on the org chart, so the managers and contractors don't
let me know exactly how many hours they're devoting to Projects A
through E. They just want to be able to see their task deadlines, and a
list of their daily tasks across the various projects, and have a Gantt
chart.

In the various projects, the resources are beginning to look
overallocated because I have left the resource units at 100%.

I'm wondering if MS Project is simply too complex a tool to use for
this purpose. However, it's the only tool I have, and I was wondering
what would the best way be to "clean up" my resource allocation and
remove the [XX %] after each resource name? I've tried setting the
resource units to 0% (since we already have the % complete column), but
the [XX %] still shows up.

Thank you for your time and consideration in the matter.

 

[Jan De Messemaeker]

Hi Ederlyn,

What nobody gives you, you cannot show, so don't worry too much about these
(real or unreal, who will tell?) overallocations.
Here's the trichk yto sow resources without percentages:
In the Resource sheet, copy the resource names into the Resource Initials
column
Now in the Gantt Chart Table replace Resource names by resource initials
And in Format, Bar Styles, look for those bars that do have resource names
to the right, lookup text, right, and replace resource names by resource
initials.

You may be helped by reading FAQ 31 (URL of FAQs in my signature)

HTH

 

[John]

I'm an intern being tasked with creating multiple projects utilizing a
shared resource pool of managers and contractors. Right now, the
projects are fixed resources with a "% complete" column for the
subtasks.

I'm quite low on the org chart, so the managers and contractors don't
let me know exactly how many hours they're devoting to Projects A
through E. They just want to be able to see their task deadlines, and a
list of their daily tasks across the various projects, and have a Gantt
chart.

In the various projects, the resources are beginning to look
overallocated because I have left the resource units at 100%.

I'm wondering if MS Project is simply too complex a tool to use for
this purpose. However, it's the only tool I have, and I was wondering
what would the best way be to "clean up" my resource allocation and
remove the [XX %] after each resource name? I've tried setting the
resource units to 0% (since we already have the % complete column), but
the [XX %] still shows up.

Thank you for your time and consideration in the matter.

ederlyn,
It sounds like you have quite a mess and a whole lotta managers and
contracts that know very little about project management. First of all %
Complete does not relate to resource utilization, they are two
completely different concepts. Percent complete is a parameter that
relates to the Duration field which is the task's span in working time
from start to finish. For example, if a one week (duration) task is half
done, it is of course 50% complete. That value may or may not adequately
describe how much of the task's work content is complete. Work content
completion is described by the field, % Work Complete. On the other
hand, Percent Units is a parameter that describes how much of a
resource's time will be assigned to any particular task. For example,
100% represents full time, 50% half time and so forth.

It also sounds like maybe all your management wants is a pretty picture
(i.e. tasks with deadlines on a Gantt Chart). Yeah, Project can do that
but the plan won't be worth much. To be useful a project plan must have
realistic task descriptions with estimated durations and dependencies.
Resources must also be assigned in such a manner that the project
manager can tell if resource work levels and times are compatible with
the project tasks. Knowing, understanding, and managing resource
allocation levels is important, otherwise the plan will fail.

Again, if all you want is a pretty picture, then do not assign ANY
resources. You could use Project but you could also create a pretty, but
meaningless, schedule picture with a graphics package (e.g. PowerPoint,
Visio, etc.). If on the other hand you really do want to manage your
project then do assign resources in a meaningful way.

Since you are apparently new to Project, I suggest you take a look at
fellow MVP, Mike Glen's series on Project lessons and techniques. Go to
our MVP website at: http://www.mvps.org/project/links.htm
and click on the link to Mike's lessons on the left side of the page.

John
Project MVP

 

[ederlyn.lacson]

J -

Thank you for your considerate and thoughtful reply.

As I previously mentioned, the specific breakdown on hours and time
spent by the management is unavailable to me and will most likely
continue to remain so. And certainly, I did mention that MS Project is
probably overkill at this point, but it is the tool that I was
requested to work with, so needs must make do. (It may be a possibility
that these hourly breakdowns will be available to me in the future, as
they get into the spirit of MS Project.)

I wish that I could bypass resources entirely for now, but one of the
requests that I had received was the ability to see all the specific
tasks that an individual had across the varying projects. Insofar as I
have learned, setting individuals up as resources is the best way to do
this. If you are aware of other methods, I would be most grateful to
benefit from your experiences.

Once again, thank you for your time and consideration in replying.

-E.

I'm an intern being tasked with creating multiple projects utilizing a
shared resource pool of managers and contractors. Right now, the
projects are fixed resources with a "% complete" column for the
subtasks.

I'm quite low on the org chart, so the managers and contractors don't
let me know exactly how many hours they're devoting to Projects A
through E. They just want to be able to see their task deadlines, and a
list of their daily tasks across the various projects, and have a Gantt
chart.

In the various projects, the resources are beginning to look
overallocated because I have left the resource units at 100%.

I'm wondering if MS Project is simply too complex a tool to use for
this purpose. However, it's the only tool I have, and I was wondering
what would the best way be to "clean up" my resource allocation and
remove the [XX %] after each resource name? I've tried setting the
resource units to 0% (since we already have the % complete column), but
the [XX %] still shows up.

Thank you for your time and consideration in the matter.

ederlyn,
It sounds like you have quite a mess and a whole lotta managers and
contracts that know very little about project management. First of all %
Complete does not relate to resource utilization, they are two
completely different concepts. Percent complete is a parameter that
relates to the Duration field which is the task's span in working time
from start to finish. For example, if a one week (duration) task is half
done, it is of course 50% complete. That value may or may not adequately
describe how much of the task's work content is complete. Work content
completion is described by the field, % Work Complete. On the other
hand, Percent Units is a parameter that describes how much of a
resource's time will be assigned to any particular task. For example,
100% represents full time, 50% half time and so forth.

It also sounds like maybe all your management wants is a pretty picture
(i.e. tasks with deadlines on a Gantt Chart). Yeah, Project can do that
but the plan won't be worth much. To be useful a project plan must have
realistic task descriptions with estimated durations and dependencies.
Resources must also be assigned in such a manner that the project
manager can tell if resource work levels and times are compatible with
the project tasks. Knowing, understanding, and managing resource
allocation levels is important, otherwise the plan will fail.

Again, if all you want is a pretty picture, then do not assign ANY
resources. You could use Project but you could also create a pretty, but
meaningless, schedule picture with a graphics package (e.g. PowerPoint,
Visio, etc.). If on the other hand you really do want to manage your
project then do assign resources in a meaningful way.

Since you are apparently new to Project, I suggest you take a look at
fellow MVP, Mike Glen's series on Project lessons and techniques. Go to
our MVP website at: http://www.mvps.org/project/links.htm
and click on the link to Mike's lessons on the left side of the page.

John
Project MVP

 

[John]

J -

Thank you for your considerate and thoughtful reply.

As I previously mentioned, the specific breakdown on hours and time
spent by the management is unavailable to me and will most likely
continue to remain so. And certainly, I did mention that MS Project is
probably overkill at this point, but it is the tool that I was
requested to work with, so needs must make do. (It may be a possibility
that these hourly breakdowns will be available to me in the future, as
they get into the spirit of MS Project.)

I wish that I could bypass resources entirely for now, but one of the
requests that I had received was the ability to see all the specific
tasks that an individual had across the varying projects. Insofar as I
have learned, setting individuals up as resources is the best way to do
this. If you are aware of other methods, I would be most grateful to
benefit from your experiences.

Once again, thank you for your time and consideration in replying.

-E.

ederlyn,
OK, as you say, you are at the bottom of the food chain so let's see if
we can help you out. Jan had one suggestion in his reply. You might try
that to see how well it works for you.

Here is another suggestion. From your original post I glean three
requirements. First, you need a Gantt display - basically a pretty
picture. Second, you need to show deadlines - without a comprehensive
plan this is disaster waiting to happen but unfortunately many bosses
and customers tend to think in these simplistic terms. Third, you need a
list of tasks for each resource - a "who does what and when" type of
report.

For lack of work content or resource allocation information I would
simply assign resources at 100% as you have already done. As Jan
mentioned, overallocation isn't an issue, at least in the eyes of your
bosses. It really is but we'll let them figure that out when things go
South in a hurry. If your schedule has realistic task descriptions with
good estimated durations and interdependencies, the Gantt Chart
requirement will fall out automatically via the Gantt Chart view. In
addition of the basic fields such as Task Name, Duration, Start, and
Finish, you could add the Deadline field. Use that field to specify any
required deadlines in the plan. Hopefully your bosses aren't looking for
a deadline on each and every task. If so, this is truly a lost cause.
Deadlines are a valid part of a schedule but must be used sparingly and
with a great deal of thought put into their date, otherwise it is purely
wishful thinking. At any rate, inclusion of the Deadline field should
meet the need for showing deadlines. I would also go to Format/Bar
Styles and select the very first bar style (it should be for a "normal"
task). Select the "Text" tab on the lower part of the Bar Styles window
and delete Resource Names from the "Right" row.

For the list of resource assignments, I would set up the Resource Usage
view to show only the Resource Name, Start and Finish fields. Pull the
vertical divider to the extreme right because you don't care about the
timescaled data anyway.

Hopefully this helps.
John
Project MVP

I'm an intern being tasked with creating multiple projects utilizing a
shared resource pool of managers and contractors. Right now, the
projects are fixed resources with a "% complete" column for the
subtasks.

I'm quite low on the org chart, so the managers and contractors don't
let me know exactly how many hours they're devoting to Projects A
through E. They just want to be able to see their task deadlines, and a
list of their daily tasks across the various projects, and have a Gantt
chart.

In the various projects, the resources are beginning to look
overallocated because I have left the resource units at 100%.

I'm wondering if MS Project is simply too complex a tool to use for
this purpose. However, it's the only tool I have, and I was wondering
what would the best way be to "clean up" my resource allocation and
remove the [XX %] after each resource name? I've tried setting the
resource units to 0% (since we already have the % complete column), but
the [XX %] still shows up.

Thank you for your time and consideration in the matter.

ederlyn,
It sounds like you have quite a mess and a whole lotta managers and
contracts that know very little about project management. First of all %
Complete does not relate to resource utilization, they are two
completely different concepts. Percent complete is a parameter that
relates to the Duration field which is the task's span in working time
from start to finish. For example, if a one week (duration) task is half
done, it is of course 50% complete. That value may or may not adequately
describe how much of the task's work content is complete. Work content
completion is described by the field, % Work Complete. On the other
hand, Percent Units is a parameter that describes how much of a
resource's time will be assigned to any particular task. For example,
100% represents full time, 50% half time and so forth.

It also sounds like maybe all your management wants is a pretty picture
(i.e. tasks with deadlines on a Gantt Chart). Yeah, Project can do that
but the plan won't be worth much. To be useful a project plan must have
realistic task descriptions with estimated durations and dependencies.
Resources must also be assigned in such a manner that the project
manager can tell if resource work levels and times are compatible with
the project tasks. Knowing, understanding, and managing resource
allocation levels is important, otherwise the plan will fail.

Again, if all you want is a pretty picture, then do not assign ANY
resources. You could use Project but you could also create a pretty, but
meaningless, schedule picture with a graphics package (e.g. PowerPoint,
Visio, etc.). If on the other hand you really do want to manage your
project then do assign resources in a meaningful way.

Since you are apparently new to Project, I suggest you take a look at
fellow MVP, Mike Glen's series on Project lessons and techniques. Go to
our MVP website at: http://www.mvps.org/project/links.htm
and click on the link to Mike's lessons on the left side of the page.

John
Project MVP