Project Server 2007 - Resources

[Phyl]

I am using the enterprise resouce pool to great my resource pool to assign to
tasks; however, there are some resources that are needed that not in the
resource pool and the will not be added for logisitical reasons. The
resources will not have access to MSPS 2007 or PWA. Can I just create my own
resources and add it to the task? Do I just manually status these tasks
since the resources will not have access? In doing so how does this affect
PWA results, timesheets, managing tasks, and reporting?

 

[TonyZink]

Hi Phyl --

When you say that these resources will not be added to the Enterprise
Resource Pool for "logistical reasons"... can you be more specific?
Will they NEVER be added? Will it take a long time to add them? Other?

If you cannot add these resources to the Enterprise Resource Pool,
then you can add them to an individual project as Local Resources;
simply open the project schedule with Project Pro, visit the Resource
Sheet view, and enter the resource information there. You can then
assign them to tasks within that project and track their progress
manually within Project Pro.

When you publish the project schedule to Project Server, these Local
Resources will not be visible in the PWA Resource Center, so you will
not be able to view their overall workloads and availability. If this
is a requirement, then you'll need to find a way to get them added to
the Enterprise Resource Pool in order to get this visibility. However,
if you view the project schedule via the PWA Project Center, you will
see the resources and their assignments there... you just won't see
their assignments across projects.

If your problem is not getting the resources added into the Enterprise
Resource Pool, but that they will simply not be able to log in to PWA
to update their task progress, then their updates can be handled in a
couple of ways... (1) the PM updates their tasks on their behalf
directly in the project schedule via Project Pro, or (2) the new
resources can have someone designated as their Default Assignment
Owner who will be able to update their tasks on their behalf via PWA.
A big benefit of taking this route is the ability to view the new
resources' workloads and availability via the PWA Resource Center.
However, if this is not important to you (i.e. the resources are
contractors, and you're not interested in managing their workloads),
then you may want to simply add them as Local Resources to your project
(s) and be done with it.

Good luck!

----------

Tony Zink, MCTS, MCITP
MSProjectExperts
Project Server Consulting: http://www.msprojectexperts.com
Project Server Training: http://www.projectservertraining.com
Project Server Books: http://www.projectserverbooks.com
Project Server FAQS: http://www.projectserverexperts.com
Project Server Help Blog: http://www.projectserverhelp.com
Project Server Web Parts: http://www.projectdaddy.com

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[Dale Howard [MVP]]

Phyl --

Excellent questions! Yes, your PMs can add local resources to any
enterprise project by typing their names in the Resource Sheet view of the
project. The PMs can then assign the local resources to tasks, just like
they would with any enterprise resource. The PMs will need to manually
status the tasks assigned to local resources since the local resources will
not be using PWA to report progress. The tasks assigned to local resources
will not show up on anyone's My Tasks page or My Timesheet page, but the
numbers will be reportable in Data Analysis views. Hope this helps.

 

[Phyl]

Wonderful answer Tony eventhough there were holes in my question! Thanks for
your time and very precise answer!

 

[Phyl]

Another excellent response. Thanks Dale!

Phyl --

Excellent questions! Yes, your PMs can add local resources to any
enterprise project by typing their names in the Resource Sheet view of the
project. The PMs can then assign the local resources to tasks, just like
they would with any enterprise resource. The PMs will need to manually
status the tasks assigned to local resources since the local resources will
not be using PWA to report progress. The tasks assigned to local resources
will not show up on anyone's My Tasks page or My Timesheet page, but the
numbers will be reportable in Data Analysis views. Hope this helps.

 

[TonyZink]

You're quite welcome, Phyl!

----------

Tony Zink, MCTS, MCITP
MSProjectExperts
Project Server Consulting: http://www.msprojectexperts.com
Project Server Training: http://www.projectservertraining.com
Project Server Books: http://www.projectserverbooks.com
Project Server FAQS: http://www.projectserverexperts.com
Project Server Help Blog: http://www.projectserverhelp.com
Project Server Web Parts: http://www.projectdaddy.com

----------

 

[Dale Howard [MVP]]

Phyl --

You are more than welcome, my friend! Tony and I "teamed up" to give you a
thorough and complete answer.

 

[ITPM]

This is great news! After looking through all the cubes and dimensions, I
can't seem to decipher where this local resource data would reside for
reporting. Can you point me in the right direction?

Thanks!

 

[Dale Howard [MVP]]

ITPM --

I assume by the nature of your question that you want to determine which
projects are using Local resources, and to what extent. To do this, create
a Data Analysis view that contains the following:

Row Fields drop area = Resource List dimension
Row Fields drop area = Project List dimension (to the right of the Resource
List dimension)
Filter Fields drop area = Resource Status
Total Fields drop area = Work

After you add the Dimensions and Total Fields as listed above, click the
Resource Status pick list in the Filter Fields drop area and select only the
Local Resources item, and then click the OK button. The resulting Data
Analysis view will show you which projects use Local resources and how much
Work they are committed to in each project. Hope this helps.