Relationship between Resource Plan and Project Task

[normjohnson]

What is the relationship between the resource plan and the project task?  We know we can tie a resource plan to the project task.  We are not sure of what the behavior is after that.  For example: You create a project task with 100 hours and tie a resource plan to the task.  You go in later and update the project task to indicate that you have actually used 50 hours of the planned 100 hours.  Does this information get updated or recorded some how on the resource plan that you have used up 50 of the 100 hours so that the resource manager can see how much effort is still needed on the resource plan to complete it?  It appears to me that you eventually need to complete a resource plan somehow or else the resource will always show unavailable.

[Uncle Rob · Accepted solution]

The expected input for time executed (whether planned or not) is the Time Sheet/Card interface.  When Time cards are submitted, the system looks for ALLOCATED resources all the way up the project.  This would be in Resource Plans at the project task all the way up to the Project itself.  It then logs actuals against the resource plan.

For this, and many other reasons, I much prefer doing resource plans at the project level, and not the project task level.  The scripts at the moment aren't really advanced as to what happens if TWO allocated resource plans are found for the same user across the project (it appears the system logs actuals against only the first one that it finds).

Resources will only show unavailable when they've got allocations for a given period.  "Availability" is only affected by allocation records, not the resource plans those allocations belong to.  To that end, the "completion" of a resource plan has little mechanical significance (other than clearing out lists of active RPs).

Here's a little video I did that approaches the topic from a different angle:  what happens if you have someone who logs time but DOESN'T have a resource allocation.  It touches on the different flavors of actuals and also cost plan implications.

[normjohnson]

Thanks Robert,

This made a lot of sense and was very helpful.  I appreciated the video as well.  

[Mark Carson]

I agree. Useful video. Thank you.