Adding and Maintaining Resources

Posted06/16/2022

Updated05/18/2023

This article explains the Resource Data page in ResourceFirst, and shows how to add, edit and deactivate resources.

Overview

Resource Data

The Resource Data page shows all loaded resources along with their attributes. On this page you can add, delete (or inactivate) resources, and edit resource attributes (if you have the appropriate right level).

Below is the Resource Data page.

Note in particular the actions possible using the buttons at upper left. Hovering over the buttons shows the functionality:

From left to right, the icons represent:

Add (Resource)
Delete (selected Resource(s))
Show Skills Grid (for assigning secondary skills)

Resource Data Fields (Attributes)

The View you select on the Resource Data page determines which resource fields appear on the page. In addition to system views created by an administrator, you can create your own personal views.

See the article Managing and Editing Views for details on creating and editing views.

Some important resource data fields are:

Resource– The name of the resource.

Resource Org– The resource OBS node of which the resource is a member.

Primary Skill – The primary skill (or Role) of the resource.
[Although this field is not mandatory, values in this field enable some of the most useful resource supply-demand analytics of ResourceFirst.]

Key– The user login ID is required in this field to link the resource to a user in the user table. This is necessary to enable actuals tracking using timesheets, and Home Page functionality.

RActive– The current state of the resource in the system. Inactive resources are not loaded by default. The Data Load field filter set to “Y, N” will load inactive resources.

Date Hired– The date the resource was hired.

Date Terminated– The date the resource was terminated (or will be). If active employee, this field will be blank.

User Defined Fields– Additional fields may be configured for customer specific purposes. Common examples are Resource Type (employee, contractor, temporary), Employee Number, Cost Center, and Supervisor.

How To

Add Resource

Step 1: On the Resource Data page, click the + sign

Step 2: Select a Resource Organization Breakdown Structure (OBS) node from the drop down list, or type a portion of the desired node name and all partial matches will appear for selection.

For information on adding and/or maintaining the Resource OBS, please refer to Administering the OBS.

Step 3: Enter Resource Name, e.g., Williams, Cynthia, and click the Add button.

[NOTE: We strongly recommend “Last Name, First Name” format for sorting and consistency reasons.]

The new resource is saved to the database and visible on the Resource Data page.

Step 3: Edit other field values as needed for the resource and save your changes using the Save button at upper right.

Edit Resource

Step 1: Click on the cell you want to edit, e.g., change Primary Skill. The grid will automatically change the input control to match the data required for the field (e.g., text, list, or date).

You can edit multiple records before saving your changes to the database. Each edited cell will have a small red mark at the upper left to indicate a change (see screenshot below for an example). This means the data hasn’t been saved yet. The marks disappear after a Save on the page.

Step 2: Save your changes using the Save button at upper right.

Deactivate Resource

Deactivate Resource

When you uncheck the RActive flag of a resource, a dialog will show up requesting instructions for how to deal with future demand:

Delete Resource

WARNING: We recommend making items inactive instead of deleting them. Delete removes all history and related data such as Assignments with their Actuals and Baselines.

There ARE valid reasons for deleting records. Records can/should be deleted if a mistake is made creating them or if test or training records are no longer needed.

Step 1: Select one or more rows and click the trash can icon at the upper left of the page.

Step 2: Then respond to the delete warning message.

Convert – will convert all future demand from the day of deactivation (or termination day if that is provided) to a skill assignment

Delete – will delete all future demand from the day of deactivation (or termination day if that is provided)

Step 3: Save your changes using the Save button at upper right.

Managing Skills of a Resource

Primary Skill is a system field available on the Resource Data page. Resources can have secondary skills which are used in searching for candidates to satisfy Requests or unsatisfied Skill demand.

Primary Skill

The simplest approach is to enter/modify the Primary Skill field on the Resource Data page. If the new primary skill does not exist for the Resource in the detailed skill list, it will automatically be added in the detailed list with the highest proficiency rating.

Resource Skills List

To see and manage all skills for a resource, click the Show Skills Grid button . The Resource Skills pane is displayed at the right of the screen. It shows detailed skill and proficiency information for the selected resource.