Use staffing profile to track resource demand

Staffing profiles enable a project manager to track the forecast demand of resources.

In this topic:

Overview of using staffing profiles

The following table outlines the process of using staffing profiles to track resource demand:

Action	Description
Create a staffing profile	Create a staffing profile and configure staffing profile notifications.
Add positions	Add positions to the staffing profile to track resource demand.
Send resource requests	Send resource requests to resource pool managers. Resource managers receive these resource requests and proceed with the relevant resource pool to begin making assignments.
View forecast labor costs from staffing profile	After you plan resource demand and assignments, you can view forecast labor costs directly from the Staffing Profile page.
Clear future forecast and assignments	Clear a staffing profile's future forecast and assignments when a staffing profile is completed or canceled.

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Recommendations for using staffing profiles to track forecast demand

We have the following recommendations for project managers when using staffing profiles to track forecast demand:

• From a high-level planning for the long cycle, it is recommended to use a staffing profile which represents the workload imposed by the project. At this phase, a rough estimation from an FTEs level is sufficient for both project managers and resource pool managers to have an overall understanding of resource demand.
• When the project turns to the execution phase, project managers then use project work plan to breakdown the work to pieces of tasks and assign the resource at an accurate (hours) level. At this phase, we recommend project managers track the forecast demand using the Hours view. When switching to this view, managers can see more detailed and accurate data. For example, for an allocated position which requires 40 hours in a week, project managers may have concerns such as whether the assigned engineer is available during this period and will the assigned engineer take a vacation during this period? If so, project managers need to request other resources to fulfill the unmet gap.
• For large projects, it is recommended that project managers and resource pool managers use staffing profile in the FTE view. This view enables the project managers to have a big picture when plan and schedule the project, without concerning small deviations such as holidays and personal leaves.
• For small projects whose work plan is fully defined and scheduled, it is recommended to use the Hours view which provides more accurate data.
• Typically, we recommend that you plan resources and make assignments in the same view (FTE or hours). For examples about FTE view and hours view, see Unmet demand calculation sample scenarios.

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Use staffing profile regional calendar to calculate demand in the FTE unit

By default, PPM calculates demand in the FTE unit based on the resource pool's regional calendar. If the Use Staffing Profile Regional Calendar When Converting Demand Effort feature toggle is turned on, PPM calculates the demand in the FTE unit based on the staffing profile's regional calendar. For details, see Use feature toggles to turn on/off features.

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See also:

• Analyze staffing profiles associated with projects
• Analyze staffing profiles associated with assets