10 fine-tuning project plan

Microsoft Project 2010

Fine-Tuning Project Plan – (Part 10)

Soe Naing WinEmail: [email protected]

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• Look at how resources are scheduled to work over the duration of a project.

• Edit a resource assignment to resolve a resource overallocation.

• Resolve resource overallocation automatically.• See the project’s overall cost and finish date.

In this chapter, you will learn how to:

Examining Resource Allocations over Time

Under-allocated The resource’s assignments do not fill the resource’s maximum capacity to do work. For example, a full-time resource who has only 25 hours of work assigned in a 40-hour workweek is underallocated.

Fully allocated The resource’s assignments fill the resource’s maximum capacity. For example, a full-time resource who has 40 hours of work assigned in a 40-hour workweek is fully allocated.

Overallocated The resource’s assignments exceed the resource’s maximum capacity for any period of time. For example, a full-time resource who has 65 hours of work assigned in a 40-hour workweek is overallocated.


Exe: look at resource allocations and focus on a

resource who is overallocated

• View tab, in the Resource Views group, click

Resource Usage.

• On the Task tab, in the Editing group, click Scroll to

Task.


assignments grouped per resource, the total work assigned to each resource, and each assignment’s work

assignment details (work, by default) arranged on a timescale


Next : you will collapse the outline in the table to see total work per

resource over time. • Click the Resource Name column heading. • View tab > Data group > Outline >Hide Subtasks.


• Project collapses the outline (assignments per resource) in the

Resource Usage view.


• Resource Name > Carole Poland • Next, you will look at two work resources and their allocations. • Point to the M column heading (for Monday) for the week of April 1

at the top of the timescaled grid.


Currently, the timescale is set to display weeks and days. You will now change the timescale to see the work data summarized more broadly • View > Zoom > Timescale > Months. Project changes the timescaled grid to show scheduled work values per month


As you can see in the timescaled grid, Carole Poland is overallocated in April and June.


You will focus on Carole Poland first by changing the timescale settings.• View > Zoom > Timescale > Days.

◦ Project adjusts the timescale to its previous setting

Examining Resource Allocations over Time Click the plus sign next to Carole’s name in the Resource Name column.

◦ Project expands the Resource Usage view to show Carole’s individual assignments

◦ Scroll the Resource Usage view horizontally to the right to see Carole’s assignments the week of April 15.

◦ Carole’s total work that Monday, April 16, is 9 hours. This is formatted red, indicating the overallocation


• Carole has two assignments on April 16: eight hours on the Content edit task and the one hour task Editorial staff meeting 2 (one instance of a recurring task).

• Click the minus sign next to Carole’s name in the Resource Name column.

Resolving Resource Overallocations Manually

Editing an assignment manually is just one way to resolve a resource overallocation. Other solutions include the following: • Replace the overallocated resource with another resource

using the Replace button in the Assign Resources dialog box. • Reduce the value in the Units field in the Assignment

Information or Assign Resources dialog box. • Assign an additional resource to the task so that both

resources share the work. • Add leveling delay to an assignment manually


In this exercise, you will use the Resource Usage view to examine one overallocated resource’s assignments and edit the assignment to eliminate the overallocation.• View > Zoom > Timescale > Weeks.


Horizontally scroll the usage view to the right to examine the more severe overallocations per week.


Click the plus sign next to Hany’s name in the Resource Name column. • View > Zoom > Timescale > Days. • Horizontally scroll the usage view to display the

August 19 timeframe.


You decide to reduce Hany’s work on both the Proof and review and the Create mockup tasks.


You decide to reduce Hany’s work on both the Proof and review and the Create mockup tasks.• In the timephased grid of the Resource Usage view, select Hany’s

assignment of 8 hours on Monday, August 20, on the task Proof and review.

• Type 4h, and then press the Tab key. • With Hany’s 8-hour assignment on the same task for Tuesday, August 21,

selected, type 4h, and then press Tab.


You decide to reduce Hany’s work on both the Proof and review and the Create mockup tasks.• Select Hany’s assignment of 8 hours on Monday, August 20, on the task

Create mockup. • Type 4h, and then press Tab. • With Hany’s 8-hour assignment on the same task for Tuesday, August 21,

selected, type 4h, and then press Tab.

Leveling Overallocated Resources

Resource leveling is the process of delaying or splitting a resource’s work on a task to resolve an overallocation. • The options in the Level Resources dialog box enable

you to set parameters concerning how you want Project to resolve resource overallocations.

• Project will attempt to resolve such overallocations when you choose to level resources. Depending on the options you choose, this might involve delaying the start date of an assignment or task or splitting the work on the task.


Exercise : you level resources and view the effects on assignments and the project finish date. • View > Resource Views > Resource Sheet. • Resource > Level > Leveling Options.

Leveling Overallocated Resources• Leveling calculations > Manual.

• This setting determines whether Project levels resources constantly (Automatic) or only when you tell it to (Manual). Automatic leveling occurs as soon as a resource becomes overallocated.

• Look for overallocations on a . . . basis box, make sure that Day by Day is selected.

This setting determines the time frame in which Project will look for overallocations. If a resource is overallocated, its name will be formatted in red. If it’s overallocated at the level you choose here, Project will also show the Overallocated indicator next to its name

Leveling Overallocated Resources• Make sure that the Clear leveling values before

leveling check box is selected. ◦Sometimes you will need to level resources repeatedly

to obtain the results that you want. For example, you might initially attempt to level week by week and then switch to day by day. If the “Clear leveling values before leveling” check box is selected, Project removes any existing leveling delays from all tasks and assignments before leveling.

• For example, if you previously leveled the project plan and then added more assignments, you might clear this check box before leveling again so that you wouldn’t lose the previous leveling results

Leveling Overallocated Resources• Under ‘Leveling range for ‘Advanced Plan’, make

sure that Level entire project is selected. ◦ Here you choose to level either the entire project or

only those assignments that fall within a date range you specify. Leveling within a date range is most useful after you have started tracking actual work and you want to level only the remaining assignments in a project.

Leveling Overallocated Resources• In the Leveling order box, make sure that Standard is

selected.You control the priority that Project uses to determine which tasks it should delay to resolve a resource conflict. The ID Only option delays tasks only according to their ID numbers:

numerically higher ID numbers (for example, 10) will be delayed before numerically lower ID numbers (for example, 5). You might want to use this option when your project plan has no task relationships or constraints. The

Standard option delays tasks according to predecessor relationships, start dates, task constraints, slack, priority, and IDs

The Priority, Standard option looks at the task priority value before the other standard criteria. (Task priority is a numeric ranking between 0 and 1000 that indicates the task’s appropriateness for leveling. Tasks with the lowest priority are delayed or split first.)


Make sure that the Level only within available slack check box is cleared. • Clearing this check box allows Project to extend the project’s

finish date, if necessary, to resolve resource allocations. • Selecting this check box would prevent Project from

extending the project’s finish date to resolve resource overallocations. Instead, Project would use only the free slack within the existing schedule. Depending on the project, this might not be adequate to fully resolve resource overallocations


Make sure that the Leveling can adjust individual assignments on a task check box is selected. This allows Project to add leveling delay (or split work

on assignments if “Leveling can create splits in remaining work” is also selected) independently of any other resources assigned to the same task. This might cause resources to start and finish work on a task at different times


Make sure that the Leveling can create splits in remaining work check box is selected. This allows Project to split work on a task (or on an

assignment if “Leveling can adjust individual assignments on a task” is also selected) as a way of resolving an overallocation.


Make sure that the Leveling can create splits in remaining work check box is selected.

This allows Project to split work on a task (or on an assignment if “Leveling can adjust individual assignments on a task” is also selected) as a way of resolving an overallocation.


Make sure that the Level manually scheduled tasks check box is selected. This allows Project to level a manually scheduled task

just as it would an automatically scheduled task.

Leveling Overallocated Resources• Click Level All.

• Project levels the overallocated resources.


Exe: look at the project plan before and after leveling by using the Leveling Gantt view. View > Task Views > Other Views > More Views > Leveling

Gantt > Apply. View > Zoom > Entire Project.

Checking the Project’s Cost and Finish Date

The types of costs that you might encounter over the life of a project include the following: • Baseline costs The original planned task, resource, or assignment costs

saved as part of a baseline plan. • Current (or scheduled) costs The calculated costs of tasks, resources,

and assignments in a project plan. As you make adjustments in a project plan, such as assigning or removing resources, Project recalculates current costs just as it recalculates task start and finish dates. After you start to incur actual costs (typically by tracking actual work), the current cost equals the actual cost plus the remaining cost per task, resource, or assignment. Current costs are the values you see in the fields labeled Cost or Total Cost.

• Actual costs The costs that have been incurred for tasks, resources, or assignments.

• Remaining costs The difference between the current or scheduled costs and the actual costs for tasks, resources, or assignments


You might need to compare these costs (for example, baseline vs. actual) or examine them individually per task, resource, or assignment. Or you might need to examine cost values for summary tasks or for an entire project plan. Some common ways to view these types of costs include the following: • You can see the project’s cost values in the Project Statistics dialog box

(you’ll do so later). • You can see or print formatted reports that include cash flow, budget,

overbudgeted tasks or resources, and earned value (to do this, on the Project tab, in the Reports group, click Reports or Visual Reports).

• You can see task-, resource-, or assignment-level cost information in usage views by displaying the Cost table (to do this, on the View tab, in the Data group, click Tables and then click Cost).


Exercise : look at the overall project costs, individual task costs, and the project’s finish date.Switch to cost table• View >Task Views > Views > Task Sheet.• View > Data > Tables > Cost.


Next, check the project’s finish date. • Project > Properties > Project Information.


Next : look at the duration values for this project • Project Information > Statistics•

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10 fine-tuning project plan