Microsoft Project 2010 : Setting Up Cost Resources & Documenting Resources

2/7/2012 4:33:43 PM

Setting Up Cost Resources

Another type of resource that you can use in Project is the cost resource. You can use a cost resource to represent a financial cost associated with a task in a project. While work resources (people and equipment) can have associated costs (hourly rates and fixed costs per assignment), the sole purpose of a cost resource is to associate a particular type of cost with one or more tasks. Common types of cost resources might include categories of expenses you’d want to track on a project for accounting or financial reporting purposes, such as travel, entertainment, or training.

Cost resources do no work and have no effect on the scheduling of a task. The Max. Units Standard and Overtime pay rates and Cost/Use fields do not apply to cost resources. After you assign a cost resource to a task and specify the cost amount per task, you can then see the cumulative costs for that type of cost resource, such as total travel costs in a project.

The way in which cost resources generate cost values differs from that of work resources. When you assign a work resource to a task, the work resource can generate a cost based on a pay rate (such at $40 per hour for the length of the assignment), a flat per-use cost (such as $100 per assignment), or both. You set up such pay rates and cost per use amounts once for the work resource. However, you enter the cost value of a cost resource only when you assign it to a task. You can do so in the Cost field of the Assign Resources dialog box or in the Cost field of the Task Form with the Cost detail shown.

In this exercise, you’ll set up a cost resource.

In the Resource Sheet, click the next empty cell in the Resource Name column.
Type Travel and press the Tab key.
In the Type field, click Cost.

Documenting Resources

If a resource has flexible skills that can help the project, it is a good idea to record this in a note. In that way, the note resides in the project plan and can be easily viewed or printed.

In this exercise, you enter resource notes relevant to the new book launch project.You entered a task note via the Task Notes button on the Task tab of the Properties group. You can enter resource notes in a similar way (via the Notes button on the Resource tab of the Properties group) but in this exercise, you’ll use a different method. You’ll use the Resource form, which allows you to view and edit notes for multiple resources more quickly.

In this exercise, you’ll enter notes in the Resource Form.

In the Resource Name column, click Toby Nixon.
On the Resource tab, in the Properties group, click the Details button.

Tip

You can also click Details, Resource Form on the View tab of the Split View group.

The Resource Form appears below the Resource Sheet view.

In this type of split view, details about the selected item in the upper view (a resource, in this case) appear in the lower view. You can quickly change the selected resource name in the upper view by clicking directly on a name, using the up arrow or down arrow keys, or by clicking Previous or Next in the Resource Form.

The Resource Form can display one of several details; initially it displays the Schedule details. Next you’ll switch it to display the Notes details.
Click anywhere in the Resource Form.
On the Format tab, in the Details group, click Notes.

Tip

You can also right-click in the gray background area of the Resource Form and, in the shortcut menu that appears, click Notes.

The Notes details appear in the Resource Form.
In the Notes box, type Toby worked on launch campaigns for Toni Poe’s previous two books.

Notice that as soon as you started typing the note, the Previous and Next buttons changed to OK and Cancel.
Click OK.

In the Resource Sheet view, a note icon appears in the Indicators column.
Point to the note icon that appears next to Toby’s name in the Resource Sheet.

The note appears in a ScreenTip. For notes that are too long to appear in a ScreenTip, you can double-click the note icon to display the full text of the note. You can also see more of long notes in the Resource Form or in the Resource Information dialog box.

To conclude this exercise, you’ll add a note for one more resource.
In the Resource Form, click Previous to shift the focus to Sharon Salavaria and display her details.
Tip

You can also click on Sharon’s name in the Resource Sheet view above the Resource Form.
In the Notes box, type Sharon’s standard pay rate is adjusted for her half-time work schedule. Then click OK.

Finally, you’ll close the Resource Form.
On the Resource tab, in the Properties group, click the Details button.

The Resource Form is closed, leaving the Resource Sheet displayed.

In this exercise, you’ve entered notes for some resources. This information is unique to those resources.