How to Configure the Resource Type Add-On in Project Insight

Resource types in Project Insight help you organize resources by role, discipline, skill set, or type of work. Examples include Project Manager, Engineering, Designer, Carpenter, Mason, Electrician, or any other category your organization uses to plan and assign work.

The Resource Type add-on is especially useful for project templates because it allows you to assign tasks to a type of resource before assigning a specific person.

What is the Resource Type add-on?

The Resource Type add-on allows administrators to create and manage the resource types used in projects, tasks, templates, resource assignments, and reports.

Instead of assigning the same individual user to a template task every time, you can assign a resource type such as Project Manager or Engineering. Later, when the project is ready to begin, the project manager can select the appropriate person from that resource type.

When should you use resource types?

Use resource types when you want to:

• Assign work by role, discipline, or skill set.
• Build reusable project templates.
• Plan projects before specific people are known.
• Filter resources when using Suggest a Resource options.
• Report on work by Resource Type.
• Support resource planning and forecasting.

How do you configure the Resource Type add-on?

1. Go to Administration.
2. Select Add-ons.
3. Find the Resource Types add-on.
4. If the add-on is not installed, select Get More Add-ons and install it.
5. Click Configure.
6. Add the resource types your organization wants to use.

By default, your workspace may not have any resource types created. You can add the resource types that match the way your organization plans, assigns, and reports work.

What fields are available for resource types?

When you configure a resource type, you may see the following fields:

• Name: The name of the resource type, such as Project Manager, Engineering, or Project Resource.
• Code: Used for external integrations. Most teams do not need to use this unless an integration requires it.
• Default Expense Code: Sets the default expense code for the resource type.
• Default Time Code: Sets the default time code for the resource type.
• Active: Determines whether the resource type is available in dropdown lists.

If you are phasing out a resource type, you may want to make it inactive instead of deleting it. This keeps historical data available while preventing the resource type from being selected for new work.

How do you assign a resource type to a user?

1. Go to Administration.
2. Select Users.
3. Find the user you want to update.
4. Open the user’s edit options.
5. Go to Resource Info.
6. Select the user’s resource type.
7. Save the change.

Once a resource type is assigned to a user, Project Insight can use that information when assigning resources, filtering available users, working with templates, and reporting on resource-related work.

How are resource types used in project templates?

Resource types are commonly used in project templates when you know what type of resource is needed, but you do not yet know the specific person who will be assigned.

For example, a template may include tasks that need Engineering, Project Manager, or Project Resource support. Instead of assigning the same person to those tasks every time, you can assign the appropriate resource type to the task.

When the template is used to create a project, the project manager can choose the actual resource from users associated with that resource type.

How do resource types help with reporting?

Resource types can be used in reports to show work by role, discipline, skill set, or type of work.

For example, you can create a task report that shows all tasks assigned to the Project Manager resource type.

To create a task report by resource type:

1. Go to Reports.
2. Select Reports Home.
3. Create a new Task Report.
4. Use the task filters to select a specific resource type.
5. Select the project groups, templates, summary tasks, or non-summary tasks you want to include.
6. Run the report.

You can also add the Resource Type column to the report grid by right-clicking the top row, selecting Insert, and searching for Resource Type.

Why use resource types instead of assigning people directly?

Resource types make project planning more flexible. They allow you to define the kind of work needed before every person is known.

This is useful when a project is waiting for approval, the schedule is still being determined, or the project is being used for forecasting.

Need more help?

If you need help deciding which resource types to create or how to use them in templates, reports, or resource planning, contact Project Insight Support for further clarification.