Created 13 December 2024
Rather than relying on a project manager to establish a project baseline, a resource manager or traffic manager can access the Backlog module in PSOhub. They can search for available resources within a specific business unit or identify individuals who possess the necessary skills or competencies for a given timeframe.
PSOhub's Copilot provides a self-driving solution for resource and project management, allowing you to concentrate on daily human relationships. Utilizing the backlog effectively will improve your utilization percentage by enabling better resource allocation decisions.
Important: Only users with Admin or Controller access levels will have access to the Resource Planning, Capacity Planning, Utilization Report and Backlog modules.
How to get started?
1. Set the project demand baseline
When planning a project in PSOhub, best practice is for a project manager to select the roles needed at that moment and calculate the estimated hours per role, either using the Budget Grid to budget the hours for each deliverable at high-level, or the project plan and define the granular detail by creating tasks by role, effort (hours) and set start and due dates:
Estimated hours in the Budget grid will be pushed to the resource planning by clicking on the Update button and selecting Update planning:
If budgeting tasks, the project plan effort can be pushed to the project's resource planning:
The hours will appear in the project's resource planning, displaying the total hours To be planned per role per contract line. If budgeting came from the budget grid, the hours will have to be manually distributed at month level in the resource planning. With budgeted tasks, the hours are automatically distributed based on the start and due dates.
2. Request resources based on demand
In the example below, a project manager has distributed a total of 20 hours needed for a consultant for the contract line 10.001 - Front-End Design for January 2025. This means that a request for a resource for 20 hours in January has been raised and will be flagged in the resource management's backlog:
3. Review backlog and schedule resources
The resource manager or traffic manager (only with Admin/Controller access level), will see resource requests in the Backlog module. To find the Backlog, choose from the menu Resource Management > Backlog:
All resource requests are listed in the backlog, which displays the requests per role and the number of hours needed throughout the year. The backlog is visible at a Month/Week/Day level:
The roles can be expanded to see the demand per project and per contract line.
In the month view, where a request for a resource has been triggered, a Schedule button will appear:
Click the Schedule button to open the Schedule role overview:
PSOhub's Copilot identifies the best matched resources across the organization who are available based on capacity and resource planning for the requested time period; in this case, January. The list of best-matched resources can also be narrowed by filtering based on Business Unit and/or Skill:
To select the best matched resource, click on the green % Match button:
Note: The example above shows resources at a 100% match. In reality, your resource matches will likely vary based on their capacity and current planning:
Upon selecting the resource, a Confirmation message will appear. Click Confirm & Schedule:
Burt has been assigned as the Consultant for the project, and the project manager will see this in the project's resource planning.
Important: Currently, the resource planning by role using the 'Schedule' button is only possible at Month level.
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