Using the resource planner on Keka PSA

The resource planner helps resource managers keep track of resource availability and allocation on Keka PSA. If you are a resource manager, you need to be aware of the various resources available for allocation at any time as well as the current allocation of the resources. The resource planner does exactly this and some more. 

Let us take a look at the resource planner and learn a bit more about how it can be used to manage resources on projects more effectively. 

To view the resource planner, go to Project (1) from the left navigation pane and then select Resources (2). You should be on the Resource Planner (3) tab by default. 

The first section on the top of the page gives you an understanding of the resource availability across the various departments. These are resources that are eligible for allocation on projects. If you need more specific information about a department, or project, or you want to view the resources as per their availability as a % of time, you can do this through the filters available to you on top. 

Say if you want to view the number of resources with 50% or more availability in the CS team as you want to allocate them to projects first. You can select CS in the Department filter and select >=50% in the Availability % to view the number of employees who fit this criteria. 

This way, you can assess if you have enough resources for a project in-house for the time period you are looking at. This helps you make decisions on whether you want to hire more resources or reallocate some of the resources to make room for what you want to do. 

The second section shows the various resources in the organization and their current allocations. You filter down the list of resources depending on the specific conditions. The right pane of this section shows the current allocation of resources. You can toggle between viewing the allocation for the month or for a specific week on this section. 

Use the filters at the top to narrow down the list and make it easy for you to locate the resources you are looking for. Keka PSA allows you to filter resources by Department, Job Title, Projects they are allocated to and their Availability %. 

Once you locate the resource or the set of resources you are looking for, allocating them to a project is quite easy! Staying with the last example, say you want to assign the employees in CS with more than 50% availability to a project. 

Filter the list as per the criteria and then select the required employees and click on Allocate Project. 

In the Bulk Allocate Project window, select the project you want them to be assigned to. Enter other details such as the Duration, Allocation %, Billing Role and Billing Rate. 

Click on Allocate Project to add these resources to the selected project. 

The allocations can be viewed now on the screen. Ensure you are selecting the right date range especially if you have allocated the resources for a later date. 

Well, hope you have a clear understanding of how the resource planner in Keka PSA works. Do reach out to our product experts if you have more questions!