1. Improve user interface for allocating planned hours across a project by job role/assignments. The flash tool is difficult to use. Inline editing is easier but can't provide a holistic view by resource/role - which is necessary when allocating hours out based on an estimates. It's also difficult to assign & maintain planned hours on tasks with multiple assignees currently so the solution needs to allow for easier access to each individual resource for faster/more efficient hour allocation/modification.
2. Allow for the creation of an estimated "baseline" of planned hours based on job roles. This would allow the project owner to easily capture and maintain the planned hours by role (reflective of the project estimate) in a separate field for use as a comparison point to how the planned hours actually evolve during work. We see small amounts of acceptable scope creep (unpaid hours) as well as additional effort that's accepted through a change management process (paid hours) - both of which we evaluate and track slightly separately form what the original estimated effort should be. Baseline should allow for modifications to the hours by job role - without pulling info directly from tasks as the only means so that Paid work and Unpaid work can remain clear. Paid would be incorporated into the baseline, Unpaid would just be hours added to tasks so that resourcing tools can be used.
3. Display burn report by resource rolled up to the job role. Burn report should show the Baseline Estimate by job role, the total planned hours by job role, the "Planned-to-date" hours that should be consumed up to the current date by job role, and the actual hours logged by job role. This report needs to show ALL actual hours (not just hours associated with assignments) logged by that job role. This report would be used by the project manager running the project. It would also be used by Department heads and team leads to take a broader view of planned hours vs. actual hours for their independent groups. A burn report for departments showing just the resource roles they're responsible for is one of the most frequent requests I hear. This should allow for reporting at the portfolio, program or project level, as well as a highlevel view providing user utilization in the system (compared to the FTE of the user).
