Working with Resource Pools and Consolidated Projects

Transcription

1 L E S S O N 7 Working with Resource Pools and Consolidated Projects Suggested lesson time minutes Lesson objectives To be able to create and work with a resource pool and work with a master project and subprojects, you will: a b Use a resource pool. You will open a resource pool and link it to a project. Work with subprojects and master projects. You will link two subprojects to a master project and examine the relationship by working with resources. 7-1

2 Microsoft Project 2000: Level 2 Ashbury Training a Concepts > Working with a Resource Pool Most of the projects that you create will probably contain the resources within the same project file. At some point, however, you may want to put your resources in a separate file. For example, you might have several projects occurring at the same time that require the same resources. Or, you might have a series of projects over a long period of time that require the same resources. A resource pool is a list of resources available to be assigned to tasks in one or more projects. A project with a resource pool can contain resources and tasks, or it can contain just resources. Task A-1: Opening a resource pool 1. Before you begin, let's review the following questions. What is a resource pool? A list of resources available to be assigned to tasks in one or more projects. 2. Think about some situations when you would place your resource pool in a separate file. Answers might include: if you have several projects happening at the same time and you're using the same resources for each of them; or if you have a series of projects over a period of time that will be using the same resource pool. 3. Open the file C:\Student\Resource Pool. The Open Resource Pool dialog box is displayed. If you select the third option in the dialog box in step 3, Microsoft Project combines the resource pool and all shared project files into a master project. This allows you to see any overallocations and view reports across all files. 4. Click OK to accept the default option and open the file. 5. Notice that there are no tasks listed. This file contains only resources. 6. View the Resource Sheet. Ten resources are listed, along with information about each. 7-2

3 Ashbury Training Lesson 7: Working with Resource Pools and Consolidated Projects Concepts > Linking a Project to a Resource Pool After you create the resource pool file, you can then link it to other project files. Each project that uses resources from a resource pool is called a sharing file. By default, when you share resources, the resource pool overwrites resource information in the sharing files if that information is conflicting. At some point, however, you may want the resource information in the sharing file to take precedence over the resource information in the resource pool. You can change that default option in the Sharing Resources dialog box by selecting Sharer Takes Precedence. To link a project file to a file containing the resource pool: 1. Open the file containing the resource pool. 2. Open the file containing the project to be linked to the resource pool. 3. Choose Tools, Resources, Share Resources. 4. In the From drop-down list, select the name of the file containing the resource pool. 5. Verify that Pool Takes Precedence is selected. 6. Click OK.Let's link a file to a resource pool. Task A-2: Linking a project to a resource pool Before you begin: The file Resource Pool appears in the project window. 1. Open the file C:\Student\Link2. 2. View the Resource Sheet. No resources are currently assigned to this project. Let's link it to the resource pool. 3. Choose Tools, Resources, Share Resources. The Share Resources dialog box is displayed. 4. Under Resources For Link2, select Use Resources. You want to use the resources that are contained in the resource pool. 5. In the From drop-down list, select Resource Pool. 6. Verify that Pool Takes Precedence is selected. If there is a conflict with a calendar or resource information, the resource information in the Resource Pool file will take precedence over resource information in the Link2 file, the sharing file. 7. Click OK. The resources from the resource pool appear on the Resource Sheet for the Link2 file. 7-3

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5 Ashbury Training Lesson 7: Working with Resource Pools and Consolidated Projects Updating and Refreshing a Resource Pool Concepts > Updating a Resource Pool If you have multiple projects that share the same resource pool, you can update the information in the resource pool file periodically. If you update the resource pool file, it allows others who are using the file to see the most up-to-date changes before you close the file. To update a resource pool file: 1. Open the sharing file. A dialog box is displayed. 2. Choose Open Resource Pool To See Assignments Across All Sharer Files. 3. Click OK. 4. Choose Tools, Resources, Update Resource Pool. If you open the resource pool file with read-write file access, the Update Resources Pool command is unavailable, because the sharing file automatically contains the most up-do-date information. Refreshing a Resource Pool You can also refresh the resource pool when you are working in a sharing file. When you first open the sharing file, choose Tools, Resources, Refresh Resource Pool. To see the changes, you will have to compare the fields before and after refreshing the data. 7-5

6 Microsoft Project 2000: Level 2 Ashbury Training Task A-3: Updating the resource pool Before you begin: The files Resource Pool and Link2 are open. Link2 is the active file. 1. Display the Resource Pool file. (Click the Resource Pool button on the taskbar.) 2. Display the Share Resources dialog box. (Choose Tools, Resources, Share Resources.) 3. Look at the Sharing Links list box. It indicates that two files are linked to the resource pool. One of them is the one you just established. 4. Click OK to close the Sharing Links dialog box. Because changes have been made to the resource pool links, let's update the resource pool. 5. Choose Tools, Resources, Update Resource Pool. 6. Display the Link2 file, and save it as My Link2. 7. Close all open files. 7-6

7 Ashbury Training Lesson 7: Working with Resource Pools and Consolidated Projects b Concepts > Working with Subprojects and Master Projects Subprojects and Master Projects Another way to organize your project into manageable subsets is to create subprojects. Subprojects are complete projects within themselves, but they are linked to another project, referred to as a master project. A single task in the master project is used to represent the subproject. One master project can contain one or more subprojects. When viewing a master project and its subprojects, you can leave them as separate files or you can consolidate many projects into a single file. The number of separate files that you can open depends on the amount of available RAM, available system resources, and the FILES = # in your CONFIG.SYS file. One advantage to having subprojects is that they you can open them separately and only as needed. This saves computer memory. The one situation when you would need all subprojects and the master project open is when you're leveling your resources for these projects. Because subprojects are projects themselves, they're sometimes managed by different people. This takes some of the burden off of the manager of the master project. To coordinate an effort like this, you can store the project file on a network where all managers have access to update the project. Or, you can create separate files, one being the master project managed by one person and the others containing the subprojects managed by other people. Generally, when you're creating subprojects, the master project is created first, the subprojects are created second, and finally they are linked. Within the master project, a single task is used to represent the subproject. Because the duration of this task is dependent on the subproject itself, you can use the default duration of one day temporarily. When the subproject is linked to the master project, as this topic will show, the subproject updates the master project with the appropriate duration. Task B-1: Determining when to use a subproject This task contains questions that you can use to promote discussion. Ask students to contribute any related experiences. 1. If a different person is responsible for managing a subset of tasks in your project, how can you coordinate your information? Answers might include: storing the project file in a network directory where all project managers can access and update the project, or creating separate files for the master project and each subproject(s). 2. What are the advantages of using subprojects rather than outlining? Outlining is limited to ten levels of detail, while the numbering of subprojects is not limited, except by the number that can be consolidated in a single file (1000). A single outline can become too large to work with and require large amounts of computer memory. Subprojects can be opened separately, and therefore, require less computer memory. 3. When is it necessary to open all subprojects and the master project at once? You must open all projects and a master project at once when you're identifying and resolving resource conflicts. 7-7

8 Microsoft Project 2000: Level 2 Ashbury Training 4. What is the maximum number of subprojects that can be open at one time? There are no strict limits on the number of subprojects that can be opened at one time. However, if you choose to consolidate, you can have up to 1000 subprojects and a master project consolidated in a single file. Concepts > Linking a Subproject to a Master Project You can create any subproject just as you would create any other project, and then insert it into a separate master project file. The master project file may already contain some tasks of its own. When you insert the subproject, it becomes another task. To insert a subproject into a master project file: 1. Open the master project file. 2. Change to Gantt Chart view, if necessary. 3. Click in the row below where you want to insert the subproject file. 4. Choose Insert, Project to display the Insert Project dialog box. 5. Select the subproject file and click Insert. The Insert Project dialog box provides you with a few options and they include the following: If you don't want the inserted subproject linked to the original file, select the Link To Project option to clear it. You can maintain the link between the subproject file and the master project file without having the ability to make changes to the subproject file from the master project file. Simply click the drop-down arrow on the Insert button and choose Insert Read-Only. If you make changes in the master project file to the subproject file, Microsoft Project will ask you to save the subproject file as a different name when you close the master project file. Let's go ahead and insert some subproject files into a master project file. Task B-2: Linking a subproject to a master project Before you begin: Microsoft Project 2000 is running. No files are open. 1. Open the file C:\Student\Master Project. This is the project file into which you're going to insert two subprojects. 2. Place the insertion point in the Indicators field below the Project Summary task (Development Of ABC Books). You're going to insert a subproject below this task. 3. Choose Insert, Project to display the Insert Project dialog box. 4. Select Link1 and click Insert to insert the subproject file into the master project file. 7-8

9 Ashbury Training Lesson 7: Working with Resource Pools and Consolidated Projects 5. Look at task 1 (ABC Book Development). It is the inserted subproject. The Indicators column includes a subproject icon. The plus sign next to the task name indicates that the subproject is collapsed. 6. Place the insertion point over the subproject icon. The pop-up box indicates the name and location of the inserted subproject. Let's insert another subproject. 7. Place the insertion point below task 1 (ABC Book Development). 8. Choose Insert, Project. 9. In the Insert Project dialog box, select Link2 and click Insert. Concepts > Linking Tasks That Cross Projects After you insert some subproject files into a master project file, you may find that you want to link some of the tasks. For example, maybe some of the tasks share the same resources. To link tasks in a master project file: 1. In the master project file, expand the appropriate subprojects, if necessary. 2. Select the task that you want to link. 3. On the Standard toolbar, click Link Tasks. Task B-3: Linking tasks in a master project q Objective: To link two tasks between subprojects that use the same resource. Before you begin: The file Master Project appears in the project window. 1. In the Task Name column for task 1, click on the + (plus sign) to expand the contents of the subproject, Link1. The Open Resource Pool Information dialog box is displayed. 7-9

10 Microsoft Project 2000: Level 2 Ashbury Training Note: This subproject just happens to be linked to a resource pool. 2. Click OK to accept the default option to open the resource pool. The subproject is expanded and the file Resource Pool is opened. 3. Press F5 to display the Go To dialog box. 4. In the Date text box, type 3/01/03 and click OK to view the end of task 12 (Write Content). You're going to link that task with another task in the Link2 subproject because they use the same resource. 5. Expand the second subproject (the Link2 file). 6. Scroll down until you can view both subproject tasks, Write Content. (You might have to collapse some of the summary tasks.) 7. Look at the two Write Content tasks. Currently, there is no relationship between them. The first Write Content task started on 2/6/03 and is scheduled to finish on 3/7/ In the first subproject, select task 12 (Write Content). 7-10

11 Ashbury Training Lesson 7: Working with Resource Pools and Consolidated Projects 9. Press and hold [Ctrl]. In the Link2 subproject, select task 12 (Write Content). Release the Ctrl key. 10. On the Standard toolbar, click the Link Tasks button to link the two Write Content tasks. 11. Look at the second Write Content task. It begins on Monday, 3/10/03, the first workday after the first Write Content task is scheduled to finish because they are both using the same resource, the Writer. Concepts > Adding a Task to a Master Project After you insert some subproject files into a master project file, you may also find that you need to add a task to the master project file. Inserting a task in a master project file works the same way as it does in a regular project file. To add a task to a master project file: 1. Select the row below where you want to insert the task. 2. Press [Insert] to insert a new task. 3. Enter the task name in the Task Name column. 4. Press [Enter]. 7-11

12 Microsoft Project 2000: Level 2 Ashbury Training Task B-4: Adding a task to a master project q Objective: To modify inserted project information and add a task to the master project. Before you begin: The files Master Project and Resource Pool appear in the project window. Master Project is active. 1. Scroll up to the Link1 subproject Project Summary task and double-click on the task name to display the Inserted Project Information dialog box. Let's modify the task name so that it is more specific. 2. Select the General tab, if necessary. 3. In the Name text box, place the insertion point before the word Development. Type1 and press the Spacebar. Click OK to close the dialog box. 4. Change the name of the Link2 subproject Project Summary task to ABC Book 2 Development. Now, let's add a task to the master project. 5. In the ABC Book 2 Development subproject, select task 19 (Review Phase). 6. Press [Insert] to insert a row. 7. In the new task 19 Task Name column, type Make changes and press [Enter]. Sharing Resources Note: Although we work with subprojects that are linked to a resource pool, you can insert subprojects into a master project that don't share a resource pool. As you have seen in the previous topic, you can share resources between two or more separate projects that are not linked in a subproject/master project relationship. You can also share resources between a master project and a subproject, which you have done in this topic. Now, let's assign a resource and use a rate table to apply a new rate for the resource. The rate table for a resource is displayed in the Resource Information dialog box. To display that table: 1. From the Assign Resources dialog box, double-click on the appropriate resource. 2. In the Resource Information dialog box, select the Costs tab. 3. Change the rate in the Cost Rate Tables area as appropriate. 7-12

13 Ashbury Training Lesson 7: Working with Resource Pools and Consolidated Projects Leveling Shared Resources When a subproject and a master project share the same resource pool, you can identify and resolve any resource conflicts that might arise. When both files are open, a leveling message is displayed in the status bar if an overallocation has occurred. You can level resources by using the same method you would use in the case of a single file resource overallocation. Choose Tools, Resource Leveling and click Level Now. In the Resource Leveling dialog box, there is an option for Leveling Order. This option allows you to control the order in which leveling priority occurs. The criteria that Microsoft Project uses for standard leveling includes task relationships, slack time, duration, constraints, and priority. However, you can assign higher or lower priorities to specific tasks and have Microsoft Project consider priority first when it levels. By default, Microsoft Project automatically assigns each task a priority of 500. You can set priorities between 1 and 1,000, with 1 the lowest, and 1,000 the highest. To change task priorities: 1. Display the Task Information dialog box for a task. 2. In the Priority text box, enter the appropriate priority. 3. Click OK. To level by task priority: 1. Choose Tools, Resource Leveling. 2. In the Leveling Order text box, enter the appropriate priority. 3. Click Level Now. Task B-5: Assigning resources q Objective: To assign a resource and create and apply a rate table to the resource. Before you begin: The files Master Project and Resource Pool appear in the project window. The file Master Project is active. 1. In the ABC Book 2 Development subproject, select task 13 (Write Content). Let's first assign the Writer to this task. 2. Display the Assign Resources dialog box. (Click the Assign Resources button.) 3. In the Name field of the Assign Resources dialog box, select Writer and click Assign. 4. Double-click on Writer to display the Resource Information dialog box. You're going to enter a new rate in the rate table. 5. Select the Costs tab, if necessary. Click in the second row of the Effective Date column to select it. You're going to enter a date on which the new rate will be effective. 6. Type 3/10/03 and press [Enter]. The Standard Rate of $45 is automatically entered. You want to change that to $

14 Microsoft Project 2000: Level 2 Ashbury Training 7. In the second row of the Standard Rate column,click to select the field.type 50 and press [Enter]. 8. Click OK to close the Resource Information dialog box. 9. Click Close to close the Assign Resources dialog box. Concepts > Setting Baselines in a Master Project You can set a baseline in a master project file just as you would for a single project file by using the Save Baseline dialog box. You can also view multiple critical paths in a master project. Before you do, you must turn on the Calculate Multiple Critical Paths option in the Options dialog box. It's located on the Calculation tab. Then, simply change the view to Tracking Gantt to view the critical paths. Task B-6: Setting baselines for a master project q Objective: To set baselines for a master project and view multiple critical paths in a master project. Before you begin: The files Master Project and Resource Pool appear in the project window. The file Master Project is active. 1. Choose Tools, Tracking, Save Baseline. The Save Baseline dialog box is displayed. 2. Verify that Save Baseline and Entire Project are selected. 3. Click OK to save the baseline for the master project. Now, let's view multiple critical paths. 4. Choose Tools, Options to display the Options dialog box. Before you can view multiple critical paths, you must turn the option on. 5. Select the Calculation tab. 6. At the bottom of the tab, check the option Calculate Multiple Critical Paths and click OK. 7. Change the view to Tracking Gantt. 8. Display the Gantt bars for the first project. 9. Scroll to view the critical paths of both subprojects. 10. Choose File, Save As. 11. In the File Name text box, type My Master Project and click Save. A message box appears confirming that you want to save the changes to the Link1 file. 12. Click Yes. The Planning Wizard dialog box is displayed. 13. Click OK to accept the default option. A message box appears confirming that you want to save the changes to the Link2 file. 7-14

15 Ashbury Training Lesson 7: Working with Resource Pools and Consolidated Projects 14. Click Yes. The Planning Wizard dialog box is displayed. 15. Click OK to accept the default option. A message box is displayed confirming that you want to update the resource pool. 16. Click OK. 17. Close all open files and save the changes, if necessary. 18. If you're not completing the Practice Unit at the end of this lesson, close Microsoft Project. 7-15

16 Microsoft Project 2000: Level 2 Ashbury Training ( Practice Unit for Lesson 7 In this activity, you will link a project to a resource pool. 1. Open the file C:\Student\Practice Pool. 2. Open the file C:\Student\Practice Link. 3. View the Resource Sheet in the Practice Link file. 4. Share the resources from the file Practice Pool with the file Practice Link. The resource pool takes precedence. 5. Save the Practice Link file as My Practice Link. 6. Close the file. 7. Display the Share Resources dialog box and view the sharing links. 8. Click Cancel to close the dialog box. 9. Save the file Practice Pool as My Practice Pool. 10. Close the file. 11. Close Microsoft Project. 7-16

17 Lesson 7: Working with Resource Pools and Consolidated Projects ) Wrap-up for Lesson 7 a When would you create a separate file for resources? Answers might include: When several projects being conducted at the same time are using the same resources, or when a series of projects over a long period of time will be using the same resources. b List the steps to insert a subproject file into a master project file. 1. Open the master project file. 2. Change to Gantt Chart view, if necessary. 3. Click in the row below where you want to insert the subproject file. 4. Choose Insert, Project to display the Insert Project dialog box. 5. Select the subproject file and click Insert. 7-17