Managing Resource Requests

This how-to article will help users to approve, reject, or substitute resource requests. The user must have access to the Resource Management application in Work Management.

Overview

Resource requests are used to approve and track the addition of resources to projects. They give project managers and leaders visibility into whether users are over- or under-capacity during a given time period, such as a month.

Resource requests are organized under Resource Pools, each managed by a Pool Manager who reviews, approves, or rejects incoming requests. The Pool Manager evaluates whether resources in their pool are over- or under-capacity and available for project work. They can also adjust a resource's estimated capacity for a given time period.

When a project manager or someone staffing a project request attempts to add a member of your resource pool to their project, you receive an email notification if your pool requires approval. The notification includes project-specific details and a link to review the request. Administrators can customize the content of these notifications.

Review the Getting Started with Resource Planning article for information on resource request administration.

Approving, Rejecting, or Substituting Resource Requests

To review and edit resource requests:

  1. In Work Management, navigate to View Applications, and select the Resource Management application.
  2. Click Resource Requests in the left navigation. The Requests page provides high-level information about requests, such as the person and project.
  3. Click a request ID or name in the list.
  4. On the Resource Request Details page, click the Actions button.
  5. Select Approve or Reject.
  6. Enter comments about the decision you made. Emails will be sent to the appropriate parties informing them of the result. 
  7. Click Save

If other resources in your pool share the same functional role as the originally requested resource, you can substitute a different resource in their place. On the Resource Request Details page, review the Alternative Resources section to identify a suitable replacement. Click Substitute Resource to begin the substitution. You are prompted to confirm, then taken to a review screen. From there, click Actions to approve the substitution and replace the originally requested resource.

Withdrawing a Resource Request

A project manager may need to withdraw a resource request if the requested resource is no longer needed. Only the requestor can withdraw a resource request; the request must still be pending.

To withdraw a resource request from the Project application:

  1. In Work Management, navigate to View Applications, and select the appropriate Project application.
  2. Click the project Name in the left navigation under Projects.
  3. Click Resources in the left navigation.
  4. On the Resources page, click the person's name.
  5. Click the Actions button and select Withdraw from the dropdown. 
  6. Enter Comments about why you're withdrawing the request. 
  7. Click the Save button.

To withdraw a resource request from the Resource Management application:

  1. In Work Management, navigate to View Applications, and select the Resource Management application.
  2. Click Resource Requests in the left navigation. The Requests page provides high-level information about requests, such as the person and project.
  3. Click a request ID or name in the list.
  4. On the Resource Request Details page, click the Actions button.

Once the request has been withdrawn, the resource will no longer appear on the project's Resources page.

Gotchas & Pitfalls

  • If you need to make a substitution, ensure the person in your pool is added to the project the initial request is on.
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