Microsoft Project 2003 – Planning Resources
5. Enter an initial for the resource in the
Working with Resources
Resources are the people, equipment and
materials that are used to perform the project
tasks. In Project, you can add resources, assign
them to tasks, add cost and scheduling
information for the resources, and then monitor
the work and the costs of each resource.
There are two types of resources, work
resources and material resources. A work
resource is a person/skill or piece of equipment
that uses effort to complete a task. A material
resource is a supply or other consumable item
used to complete a task. Work resources affect
the scheduling of tasks (ie. get the work done
more quickly) whereas material resources do not.
Creating a Basic Resource List
Resources are created in the Resource Sheet
View, which displays resource information in a
table format. In this view, each column
represents a different field in which you can enter
data and each row represents a different
resource entry.
To create a pool of resources to use on your
project.
1. Click View, Resource Sheet.
2. Enter a name for the resource in the first
row of the Resource Name column. This
can be an individual person (eg. Tom, Kate,
Jo) or a generic name for a group of
resource (eg. Consultant, IT Team, Typist).
3. Specify whether the resource is Work
(contributes effort to getting the work done)
or Material (supplies or components) in the
Type column.
4. If the resource type is material, enter the
unit that the material is used (eg. Tons,
Boxes, Each) in the Material Label column.
Resource Initial column (optional).
6. Enter a category to classify the resource
(eg, Internal, External, Contractor) in the
Group column (optional).
7. Enter the availability of the resource in the
Max. Units column. Project uses this figure
to determine the maximum amount of work
that a resource can do in a day. It will then
give you a warning if you plan too much
work for (over-allocate) a resource.
In the case of individual resources (Tom,
Kate, Jo), it is advisable to keep this figure
at 100%. In the case of groups of resources
(eg. Consultant, IT Team, Typist), multiply
the number of resources by 100. For
example if you have a group of 6
consultants working on the project, enter a
Max. Unit of 600%. Project will then
calculate that the Consultant resource can
do 6 x 8 hours work/day (48hrs).
Max. Units are not entered for material
resources. Project assumes an infinite
supply of these!!
Entries into other columns of the Resource Sheet
will be covered later in this guide.
Assigning Resources to Tasks
This can be done in a variety of ways. Three of
the more popular methods are given below:
Task Information Dialog Box:
Although the most time-consuming, this is the
preferred method because it offers the most
control over how the data is entered and makes it
easier to add multiple resources.
1. Double-click the name of the task that you
want to assign resources to.
2. Click the Resources tab.
3. Click into the first row of the Resource
Name column.
4. Click the drop-down list.
1
6. Type as a percentage, the number of units
of this resource that you want to assign to
the task.
7. Type a closing square bracket ( ] ).
8. Press Enter.
Tip: To enter multiple resources by this method, type a
comma to separate them.
Toolbar Button:
1. Select on the Gantt chart table, the task that
5. Select the name of the resource. you want to resource.
6. Click into the Units column. 2. Click the Assign Resources button on the
7. Enter as a percentage, the number of units
Standard toolbar .
of this resource that you want to assign to
the task. 3. In this dialog box, click in the Units column
of the resource that you want to assign to
Project uses this figure to calculate how the task.
much effort (manhours) the resource needs
4. Enter as a percentage, the number of units
to work on the task. For example, if you
of this resource that you want to assign to
assign 100% units of Tom to a task, Project
the task.
will calculate that Tom is required to work
on the task 100% of his time. If, therefore,
Tom works an 8hr day and Tom is assigned
to a 5-day task, Project will calculate that
Tom needs to perform 5 x 8 hours (40
manhours) work on the task.
8. If necessary, repeat steps 4 - 7 above in
other rows of the Resource Name/Units
columns, to assign more resources to the
tasks.
9. Click OK when finished.
Resource Name column:
1. In the Gantt Chart View, drag the split bar
between the table and the chart across to 5. Click Assign.
the right to reveal the Resource Name
column. 6. Repeat steps 2 - 4 above to assign more
resources to your plan.
2. Click into the resource name
cell for the task that you want Tip: The Assign Resources dialog box does NOT have to
to assign a resource to. be closed each time a resource is assigned. Keep it open
for as long as you need to use it.
3. Click the down-arrow at the
right of the cell. Tip: Use the Ctrl key to select multiple tasks or resources
to assign simultaneously.
4. Select the name of the resource from list.
Scheduling Resource Assignments
NB In order for this list to be populated, you must have set
up the resource sheet first. Microsoft Project uses Effort Driven Scheduling.
This means that when you change the resource
5. Type an opening square bracket ( [ ).
units assigned to a task, Project has to keep the
amount of work fixed and therefore changes the
duration of the task.
 Microsoft Project 2003 – Planning Resources
If, for example, you initially assigned 100% of the
Tom resource (who works an 8-hour day) to a 5-
day task, Project calculated that the task requires
8 x 5 hours work (40 manhours). If you then
assign 100% units of a second resource to the
same task, Project has to keep the work at 40
hours but in order to do that, has to reduce the
duration of the task to 2.5 days. To put it more
simply, Project works of the premise that two
people can do the same amount of work as one
person in half the time.
The formula used for this calculation is:
Work = Duration x Units
If a change is made to the units of that formula,
Project keeps the work fixed and changes the
duration.
For further information and explanation of this
and other scheduling issues, search for “About
effort-driven scheduling” in Microsoft Project
Help.
Modifying Resource Assignments
Once you have assigned resources to tasks, you
may have to make changes. This can be done in
a variety of ways. Three of the more popular
methods are given below:
Task Information Dialog Box:
1. Double-click the name of the task for which
you want to modify the resources.
2. Click the Resources tab.
3. Add additional resources and their
respective units to the next available row in
the table.
4. Remove existing resources by clicking onto
the name of the resource that you want to
remove and pressing Delete on the
keyboard.
5. Replace existing resources and units by
clicking into the appropriate cell of the table
and typing, selecting from the drop-down list
or clicking the spin button.
6. Click OK when finished.
Resource Name column:
1. In the Gantt Chart View, drag the split bar
between the table and the chart across to
the right to reveal the Resource Name
column.
2. Click into the resource name cell for the 2. Click the option button. Five different combinations can be set by making
task for which you want to modify the changes to the Task Type list and the Effort
resources. 3. Select a different option from the list for how Driven check box. The behaviour of each is
you wish the task to be re-scheduled. outside the scope of this guide, but by clicking
3. Click into the Entry Bar the Help button at the bottom left of the
Advanced tab, useful explanations and
information about the options available can be
. accessed.
4. Make changes as necessary. Tip: Set all your tasks to Fixed Duration, not Effort Driven
NB The indicator and option button will disappear as soon
BEFORE starting to enter them in your project plan by
5. Press Enter on the keyboard (or click the as you make other changes to the plan, so it must be used
clicking Tools, Options..., Schedule tab. Select Fixed
as soon as possible.
blue tick ). Duration in the Default task type: box and uncheck the
Method B - Override with a Manual Change New tasks are effort driven: box.
Toolbar Button:
1. Select on the Gantt chart table, the task that If you make a change to the assigned units for a Identifying Resource Overallocations
task and Project re-calculates the duration,
you want to modify the resource(s) for.
simply click into the duration column for the task Overallocation occurs when you assign more
2. Click the Assign Resources button on the that has been affected and type the duration work to a resource than he/she/it can do in one
back to whatever you wish it to be. day.
Standard toolbar .
Method C - Changing the Task Type Project will not stop or warn you that resources
3. Select in this dialog box, the name of the are over-allocated, but will instead just highlight
The manner in which the Work = Duration x
resource that you want to modify (it will them in red on the Resource Sheet.
Units calculation behaves, can be permanently
have a check mark at the changes for individual tasks by changing the task
type.
left).
4. To remove the resource, click the Remove A popular setting for this that will always allow
the duration of the task to remain unchanged
button.
when the units assigned to it are modified, is to The simplest way of answering the question:
5. To replace the resource with a different make it Fixed Duration and not Effort Driven. “Why, where and when are my resources
one, click, the Replace... button. 1. Double-click the task for which you want to overallocated,” is by using the Resource Usage
change the task type. view. This is the closest that Project can get to
6. To modify the units for a resource, click in showing you a timesheet. The view breaks down
the Units column for the resource that you 2. Click the Advanced tab. the work being done for each resource on a day-
want to modify and type or spin to a by-day basis.
different percentage of units. 3. Click the Task Type: drop-down list.
1. Click the View menu.
4. Select Fixed Duration.
Changing the Scheduling Method
2. Select Resource Usage.
5. Click the Effort Driven: box to remove the
As described earlier in this guide, by default, check mark. 3. Observe the overallocated resources (they
Microsoft Project uses effort-driven scheduling. will be in red).
This can, however, be changed so that when an 6. Click OK.
edit is made to the assigned units of a tasks,
Project carries out a different calculation to the
Work = Duration x Units formula.
This can be achieved in three ways:
Method A - Option Button
When a change is made to either the units
assigned, or the duration of a task, a green
“indicator” appears in the top left-hand corner of
the cell .
1. Point at the cell and an option button will
appear at the left .
2
 Microsoft Project 2003 – Planning Resources
4. Scroll the “timesheet” until you get to where
the figures show in red. This will indicate on
which days the overallocation(s) occur.
5. Note the date of the overallocation(s) by
reading the timescale at the top of the
“timesheet.”.
6. Note what the total hours assigned to the
resource on that day are.
7. Note which tasks are causing the problem.
It’s usually because the resource has been
assigned too many tasks at the same time.
Another useful view when identifying and
analysing overallocations is the Resource
Graph. This shows a stacked column chart for
each resource, plotted against a timescale.
On days when the column is blue, there is no
problem with overallocations. On days when the
column has a red section in it, there is a problem.
1. On the Resource Sheet or Resource Usage
View, click the name of the resource for
which you want to see the Resource Graph.
2. Click View.
3. Click Resources Graph.
By reading the height of the various column
sections, you can ascertain:
a) Total height of column - How many
units of the resource you need on a
particular day.
b) Blue section of column - How many
units of the resource you have
available on a particular day.
c) Red section of column - How many
units you are overallocated by on a
particular day.
Tip: You can view graphs for other resources by clicking the
horizontal scroll bar at the bottom left of the resource graph
view or pressing the up/down arrow keys on the keyboard.
Resolving Overallocations
Once an overallocation is identified, it must be
decided what to do about it. As mentioned,
previously, Microsoft Project does not stop you
working normally with the software even if
overallocations exist. Some possible solutions,
however, are:
1. Do nothing. If the overallocations are few or
very small, they will normally balance
themselves out when it comes to
implementing the project.
2. Increase the Max. Units for the
overallocated resource(s). The Resource
Graph will show how many you need on any
particular day.
3. If the overallocation is being caused by a
resource being assigned to too many
simultaneous tasks, replace the resource
on some of the tasks with underallocated
ones.
4. Change the dependencies of the tasks
causing the overallocation so that they don’t
conflict. This will invariably delay the project
but that is a price you may have to pay for
ensuring that the work is carried out
effectively and in a quality manner.
5. Use Microsoft Project’s “Leveling” feature.
(see below).
Levelling a Project
You can use the Project’s leveling feature to
alleviate resource overallocations. Leveling re-
schedules by adding delay to tasks and/or by
splitting tasks until the resources assigned to
these tasks are no longer overloaded. Because
of these changes to the tasks, leveling can
extend the project's finish date. When leveling,
Project does not change who is assigned to
tasks and only work resources (people and
equipment) are leveled, not material resources.
To carry out simple levelling:
6. Click the Tools menu.
7. Select Level Resources....
3
8. Click the Level Now... button.
To see which tasks have been delayed or split
and to ascertain how the project has been
affected by the levelling, use the Leveling Gannt
View.
9. Click the View menu.
10. Select More Views....
11. Select Leveling Gantt.
12. Click Apply.
The Leveling Gantt show two bars for each task,
one green and the other black. The green bars
shows where the tasks were scheduled before
leveling. The black bars show where the tasks
have been re-scheduled to after leveling.
Leveling is too detailed a subject to be covered
fully in this brief guide. For further information
and explanations, search for “About resource
leveling” in Microsoft Project Help.
Working with Costs
You can get Project to calculate out some basic
costs for the tasks and resources of your project
by four methods:
a) Getting it to multiply the amount of
work being done by each resource by
their rate of pay.
b) Using a fixed, “Cost per Use” for each
resource.
c) Entering a “Fixed Cost” for each task
to cover things such as overheads and
materials.
d) A combination of all the above.
Project provides a variety of views so that you
can see and print out cost information.
Entering Resource Cost Information
In order for Project to calculate resource costs:
1. Click the View menu.
2. Click Resource Sheet.
3. In the Resource Name column, select the
resource that you want to apply a cost to.
4. In the Std. Rate column, type the resource
rates. Press TAB to move to these fields if
they are not visible.
5. In the Ovt. Rate column, enter an overtime
cost for the resource.
6. In the Cost/Use column, enter a fixed
amount that is chargeable whenever the
resource works on a task. This would be
used in cases where there is a one-off ”call
out fee” or agency charge applicable.
7. In the Accrue At column, enter how the
cost of the resource is incurred (this is
required for cashflow analysis). Use:
a) Start – if the full cost for the resource
is incurred as soon as the resource
starts work on a task (“cash up front”).
b) Prorated – if the cost of the resource
is spread on a day-by-day basis over
the total duration of the tasks that the
resource works on.
c) End – if the cost of the resource is
incurred as soon as the resource ends
work on a task.
If you want to enter more than one standard rate
and overtime rate for each resource (if for
instance there is a pay rise in the offing):
1. Double-click the resource name for the
resource that you want to enter more rates
for.
2. Click the Costs tab.
3. Click the A (Default) tab in the Cost rate
tables section.
 Microsoft Project 2003 – Planning Resources
4. In the Standard Rate and Overtime Rate
columns, type the resource rates.
5. In the next row, type for each column a
value or percentage change from the
previous rate.
6. In the Effective Date column, enter the date
the rate change takes effect.
7. To enter additional sets of pay rates for the
resource, click the B tab, and then repeat
steps 7-9.
Viewing Cost Information
To view the calculated resource costs of the
project:
1. Click View.
In both of the above cases, re-apply the Entry To view on the Gantt Chart the non-working
table to view general (default) information about Working with Resource times for a particular resource:
your tasks and resources. Calendars 1. Click Format.
To view the total costs for the project:
When starting a new project, you would normally 2. Select Timescale….
1. Click Project. set up a standard, project calendar. This
determines the default working days and times 3. Click the Non-working time tab
2. Click Project Information…. for the majority of tasks and resources (See the
4. Select the resource name from the
3. Click the Statistics… button in the bottom Project 2003 – Task Planning Quick Reference Calendar: list.
Guide).
left.
5. Click OK.
When you create resources for your project,
Project assumes that the resources will work the Vertical bands will appear on the Gantt Chart
same days and times as shown in the standard, “greying out” the resource’s non-working days.
project calendar. It therefore assigns a copy of
this calendar to the resource. TIP: Reset the timescale to display non-working times for
the Standard calendar when finished.
If, however, the resource works to different days
and times, the resource’s calendar needs to be
edited so that Project schedules the resource’s
4. Observe the Cost section of the window. work into the correct days and times when they
5. Click Close when finished. are available to do it.
To edit a resource calendar:
Entering Task Fixed Cost Information
1. Click View.
In addition to, or as an alternative to, resource-
2. Select Resource Sheet.
based costs, you can enter a single cost for each
task. 3. Double-click the name of the resource
whose calendar you wish to edit.
1. Click View.
4. Click the Working Time tab.
2. Select Gantt Chart.

2. Select Resource Sheet. 3. Click View again.

3. Click View again. 4. Select Table: Entry .

4. Select Table: Entry . 5. Select Cost from the side menu.

5. Select Cost from the side menu. 6. Click into the Fixed Cost column for the
task that you want to add the cost to.
6. Observe the second column of the table
(Cost). This shows the total project cost of 7. Type the cost.
each resource.
8. Click in the Fixed Cost Accrual column.
To view the calculated task costs of the project: 5. Make changes in the same manner as you
9. Select Start, Prorated or End, depending on would for the standard project calendar, ie.
1. Click View. how you want the cost incurred for cash enter non-working days, make non-working
flow purposes. day into working days, etc. (See the Project
2. Select Gantt Chart. 2003 – Task Planning Quick Reference
View the total cost for each task in the fourth
3. Click View again. Guide).
column of the Cost table.
4. Select Table: Entry . 6. Click OK.
As with most resourcing topics, costs can be a
5. Select Cost from the side menu.
complex and diverse subject. For further TIP: As a shortcut, you can access a resource calendar
information and explanations, search for “Costs” from the Gantt Chart view by clicking Tools, Change
6. Observe the fourth column of the table in Microsoft Project Help. Working Time… and selecting the resource name from the
(Total Cost). This shows the total project For: list at the top of the dialog box.
cost of each task.