Fundamental - Max Units

[AC]

Hi all, got a fundamental query, need some
enlightenments...

Max Units can be found in the Resource sheet. Should I
preset at 20% or 80% or even 100%(for example). I am in
the opinion of setting at 20% cos I want only 20% of the
resource time being allocated every time he is being
assigned to a task.
By doing this, I will still have available time on that
resource to be allocated to another task. Is this
thinking correct. If not, how can I achieve this? Or what
is the correct concept?

Next question - Everyone is not efficient to work 8 hrs
per day. How can I cater of this inefficiency? Can I set
the Max Units to 80% or 90% then? The balance will be
allocated for nature call, short break during work...Or is
there another way to configure this setting?

Appreciate your attention.

AC

 

[Steve House]

The way I view it is the resource's calendar whould reflect their actual
working hours - someone works 8 to 5 Mon thru Fri then tht's what there
calendar should show. If they're a part time worker, 1pm to 5 pm M-F again
that what they should have as their calendar. The Mx Units is the perentage
of that time that they can be allocated to ALL tasks happening over a given
time period. So if out full timer has a max of 50%, in any given day he can
do 4 hours of work on one task or 2 hours of work each on two tasks or 1
hour each on 4 tasks. But anything over that and he's over allocated. If
the part timer has a max of 100% he can do the same. It's imprtant to know
the time frame however. If he's allowed to work 4 hours in a day and is
actually assigned to only 2 1 hour tasks he could still be overallocated IF
those two tasks happen to be scheduled between the same two times, like both
sc

 

[Jan De Messemaeker]

Hi Steve,

What is more accurate, to say he works 8-12 or he works 30 secs every minute
from 8-17?
There is no reality behind 50%.

Greetings,

--
Jan De Messemaeker
Microsoft Project Most Valuable Professional
Project Management Consultancy
Prom+ade BVBA
32-495-300 620

 

[Steve House]

That's why I think of it a bit more like "equivalent work" if that makes any
sense. If someone works 50% over an 8 hour task, he has done the equivalent
of 4 hours work over the course of the 8 hours duration that has been
alloted for the task. It may be that he works full speed 8-12 and turns it
over to the next guy at 5pm or it may be that he is doing something else at
the same time, "interleaving" two tasks together, or maybe he's just bs'ing
with a buddy talking over the hockey scores and not working full speed
because it. Whatever the reason, over the course of 8 hours he does the
same work he could have done in 4 if he'd gone full steam and in terms of
the project schedule, it doesn't matter why or what the details are of the
actual distribution of that work within the duration time frame. The effect
is that over the course of 8 hours duration we made 4 hours of progress.

I can just count on every class I do someone asking "I need to allow an hour
a day for email, etc" If they want to do that I suggest that they set a max
of 88% on a calendar showing the full 8 hour work day and let the resource
himself decide which hour of the day he's going to do that stuff rather than
me trying to say "OK, you can do you email between 8 and 9" which is what
setting a 7 hour calendar would mean I was doing. But I also caution that
it may be micro-management overkill to do that. How do I estimate task X is
3 day duration? I look at the historic record, my experience or ask the
resource based on his experience - "Gee, waxing widgets has always taken us
about 3 days before, last year we started on Monday and got finished on
Wednesday." But that historic record already takes into account that the
resource doing it had to do his email, go to the bathroom, share watercooler
gossip, meet with the boss for an update on something else. Our only real
information is that we started Mon and finished Wed. We really don't know
what went on in between, but it's a safe bet that it's going to go about the
same THIS go around. So "100%" this year is like "100%" last year even if
it is not actually 100% of every minute spent working on the task at all.
So in fact, both the modified calendar and the reduced availability
approaches aren't really necessary in most cases IMO.

 

[AC]

Hi, thanks to Steve, Sarah for the input.

I will working on customising the calendar to reflect the
total working hour and adjust the Max Unit accordingly.

Appreciated,
Anthony