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Function documentationStaffing of Roles with Resources

 

You can staff roles with resources.

The role type determines how roles are staffed with resources. You can use the Staffed By field in Customizing for Project Management under Start of the navigation path Resource Management Next navigation step Basic Settings for Roles Next navigation step Define Role Types End of the navigation path to control which application is used to staff the roles. You have the following options:

  • Project Lead:

    The project lead staffs roles directly in Project Management.

  • Resource Manager via Authorization:

    The role is staffed through an external application that has authorization for staffing via the project definition. Staffing can also take place through Project Management.

  • Resource Manager via Responsible Organization:

    The role is staffed through an external application. In this case, the user is the staffing manager for the responsible organizational unit specified in Project Management. Staffing can also take place through Project Management.

The following external options are available for resource planning: The Web-based Resource Planning Application (RPA) from service resource planning in SAP Customer Relationship Management (SAP CRM) and the Resources iView from the Business Package for SAP Portfolio and Project Management.

Note Note

For more information about Service Resource Planning, see SAP Library under Start of the navigation path SAP Business Suite Next navigation step SAP Customer Relationship Management Next navigation step Components and Functions Next navigation step Service Next navigation step Service Resource Planning End of the navigation path.

End of the note.

When you create a staffing, the default value for the assigned effort is taken from the minimum remaining, unstaffed capacity of the role and the minimum availability of the resource.

Integration

To staff roles with internal resources, you have to create the resources as business partners in Project Resource Planning. You cannot staff any roles with external resources in Project Management. Roles are staffed with external resources in SAP Supplier Relationship Management (SAP SRM).

You can create business partners in the following ways:

  • You can create business partners manually from the SAP menu by choosing:

    Start of the navigation path Project Management Next navigation step Master Data Next navigation step Business Partner Next navigation step Maintain Business Partner End of the navigation path.

  • If you use SAP Human Resources, you can transfer your master data.

    For more information, see Customizing for Project Management under Start of the navigation path Resource Management Next navigation step Basic Settings for Resource Management Next navigation step Application Link Enabling (ALE) for HR Integration End of the navigation path and SAP Notes 312090 and 390380.

  • You can create new business partners in Resource Management by choosing:

    Start of the navigation path Resources Next navigation step Detail Next navigation step Staffing End of the navigation path.

    For more information, see Creating a Business Partner.

If you use Project Management together with the resource planning application (RPA) from SAP CRM, note the following special feature: When the resource planner creates appointments (that is, concrete assignments) in the RPA, they appear as role staffings (that is, capacitive staffing assignments) in Project Management. You cannot tell that these staffings come from the RPA. If you then change and save one of these assignments, you actually create a staffing. The staffing then appears in this (possibly unintentionally) changed form in the RPA too.

Recommendation Recommendation

When using Project Management with the RPA, we recommend that you only use role types that do not permit distribution because distribution is not supported in the RPA.

End of the recommendation.

Prerequisites

If you want to update the dates, effort and effort distribution of role staffing based on the tasks the individual resources should complete, you should have made the appropriate entry for area 0011 Staffing and Resource Management, setting 0001 Updating Staffing According to Tasks in Customizing for SAP Portfolio and Project Management under Start of the navigation path Project Management Next navigation step Basic Settings Next navigation step Override Default Global Settings End of the navigation path.

Features

You are on the Project screen where you choose Start of the navigation path Resources Next navigation step Details End of the navigation path and then the Staffing tab.

Role List

The project definition screen area on the left displays the roles with their status and assigned resources.

Role Staffing in Time Frame <…>

This displays the resources assigned to the selected role with the assigned effort and time frame assigned. You can also choose to display a configurable staffing action (Staffing Action) that supports the staffing process.

You can display the availability of the resource. This is based on the time frame and assigned effort.

When making assignments, you have the following options:

  • Multiple resources to a single role

    If you select the Edit in Parallel checkbox in Customizing for Project Management under Start of the navigation path Resource Management Next navigation step Basic Settings for Roles Next navigation step Define Role Types End of the navigation path, staffings are allowed to overlap.

  • A single resource to multiple roles

  • You can assign a single resource to a role more than once, that is, for different time frames.

  • When you select a row, you can display the distribution for the staffing, provided that distribution is permitted for the role.

  • If you click the link that is the name of the resource, you can display detailed information about the resource.

    Note Note

    You make the required settings in Customizing for Project Management, by choosing Start of the navigation path Resource Management Next navigation step Business Partner Next navigation step Define Display Details for Business Partner End of the navigation path.

    End of the note.

  • If you want to staff the role with a placeholder temporarily, use the Staff with N.N. function.

    Note Note

    You cannot delete, change, or copy staffings that were created using the Shopping Cart tab page via SRM directly at this point.

    End of the note.

To staff a role with a suitable resource, you can:

  • Use the resource search

  • Directly assign a preferred candidate

  • Save a preferred candidate and also use the resource search function to find other suitable resources. For more information, see Candidates.

Resource Search for Role

You reach this view if you used the Resource field to search for a business partner that is not unique. The resource search opens with the search results. You also reach this view if you choose Enter in the Resource field.

The following options are available in this group box:

  • Search for existing resources, organizations, or business partners

    To select a resource in the search result, first select the relevant row. You can then use the pushbuttons to make the assignment.

  • Store resources as candidates

  • Staff roles with resources

  • Create new resources and business partners

    Note Note

    Before creating a business partner, use the search function to check that it does not already exist.

    End of the note.

After storing resources as candidates or assigning them to a project, you can e-mail the selected resources or their managers from the application to notify them that they have been assigned to a project or have received a task.

Candidates

You see all resources you have saved as candidates in this area. You can also choose to display a configurable staffing action that supports the staffing process. For more information, see Candidates. To select candidates, you can either use the input help or enter the name and choose Enter.

Note Note

When you click the name of a staffing in the Role Staffing group box or click the name of a candidate in the Candidates group box, the system displays a dialog box that shows the details of the business partner. Here, the system displays the projects in which the business partner is responsible for at least one project element, on the Projects tab page. You can also create a new tab page with the name Staffings that displays the role staffings of the business partner, enables you to branch to the relevant role, and contains detailed information about previous staffings.

For more information about creating the Staffings tab page, see SAP Note 979978.

End of the note.

Updating Staffing According to Task Assignments

Once you have staffed your roles, you can assign the selected resources to the tasks that they should complete (see Task Assignment). You can update selected staffing based on these assignments by using the Update Staffing According to Tasks pushbutton in the Detail subview of the Resources view. The system then calculates the following data:

  • The start and finish dates of the staffing are determined respectively from the earliest and latest task assignments.

  • The assigned effort of the staffing is calculated by summing up the work specified in all task assignments of the staffing.

  • For distributed roles, the effort distribution of the staffing is determined by distributing the work of the various task assignments over the corresponding periods in proportion to the number of workdays in the periods.

See also: