This page describes how to set up and work with the Resources > Usage tab, which provides detailed resource assignment information in histogram and spreadsheet format.
Notes:
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The customize options described in this topic also apply to the customize options for the View Role Usage page, except where noted. See Customizing the View Role Usage page for information specific to customizing and working with the View Role Usage page.
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The resource usage data displayed on the Usage tab is based on summary data, so it reflects values as of the last date the summarizer was run for a project. Assignment changes within a project after that date will not be reflected until the project is again summarized from the Projects > Tools page. For more detail about summarized resource data, see Resource Data and Summarization.
To display the Usage tab
- From the Resources Home page, select a resource, resource code, resource team, or primary role, then select the Usage tab.
Tip: When you select a resource code, resource team, or primary role on the Resources Home page, the Usage tab displays summary data for the entire resource group; to view allocation data for an individual resource that belongs to the selected code, team, or role, select the resource from the View menu.
When customizing the Usage tab, you can:
- display a histogram or spreadsheet
- choose a display format (units or costs), timescale interval, and limit line
- display past period actuals data
Display a histogram or spreadsheet
In the Display field, choose Spreadsheet or Histogram.
What information does the histogram provide?
Histograms enable you to analyze the resource allocation for the item you select on the Resources Home page, whether the item you select represents one resource or a group of resources such as a resource team. It also enables you to easily identify resource allocation requirements and shows when a particular resource is overloaded.
Red bars indicate that the resource
is overallocated in a particular time period.
Red
horizontal lines show resource availability limits (the
cutoff at which the resource becomes overloaded).
Blue bars represent actual usage.
Green bars indicate forecasted (future,
estimated) usage.
Yellow horizontal lines show the resource's maximum availability based on allocated planning values specified in the Resource Planning spreadsheet.
Tip: The information described above is available as a legend you can display in the histogram. To display the legend, right-click in the histogram and choose Show Histogram Legend.
What information does the spreadsheet provide?
The spreadsheet shows more resource usage detail by displaying actual resource allocation values per time period and per project. For example, you can view each resource's work hours by project. The table indicates if and when the individual is overallocated, and also identifies time periods where the resource is underallocated.
To save resource allocation data in the spreadsheet to an Excel spreadsheet file (*.xls), click Export to File.
Choose a display format, timescale interval, and limit line
Click Customize to choose the display format (units or costs), select the timescale interval, and choose to show or hide a Limit line and Allocation Limit line.
- Choose units to view resource use over the selected timescale interval; choose costs to view how much money is being spent over time.
- In the Timescale field, choose a calendar interval (for example, Month/Week), or choose Financial Period to display the range of financial periods defined in the Project Management module. To display a calendar timescale, resource and role data must be summarized by calendar intervals; likewise, to display the Financial Period timescale, resource and role data must be summarized by financial period intervals. Administrative options for summarizing resource and role data are set in the Project Management module; if the options for summarizing data by calendar or financial period intervals are not selected, the corresponding timescale options are not available.
- The Limit line shows maximum availability based on the resource's calendar and Max units/time setting, along with application settings for hours per time period.
For more information about hours per time period settings, see Global Preferences.
- The Allocation Limit line shows the resource's maximum availability based on Allocated planning values specified in the Resource Planning spreadsheet. Use this limit line to evaluate whether detailed activity assignments are in line with what was planned.
Display past period actuals data
In addition to the customize options previously described, you can set a Global preference option that enables you to view actuals values based on data that has been stored for custom financial periods. When you choose this option, stored actuals data is spread evenly from the start to the finish date defined for financial periods. If you do not choose this option, actuals data is spread evenly from the actual start to the data date or actual finish date of the assignment if there is one.
Notes:
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If you choose the option to use financial period data, but period performance has not been stored, total reported actuals display in the timescale period representing the data date. You can define financial periods and store period data only in the Project Management module. For more information, contact your P6 administrator or Project Management Office.
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If projects are summarized by financial period (which is controlled by an administrative setting in the Project Management module), this global preference setting for displaying past period actuals is ignored. In this case, when you display a Financial Period timescale, the tab displays past period actual values if performance has been stored for a financial period; for financial periods that do not have stored performance, the tab displays all unit and cost values in financial period intervals.