Resource allocation is the process of assigning available resources to specific tasks, projects, or purposes. It is a fundamental aspect of effective resource management and successful project execution. Key considerations in resource allocation include resource availability and the time required for various roles throughout a project’s lifecycle.
Learn more about resource allocation as a practice in our blog post:
This article covers:
What is an Allocation?
An allocation (also known as a booking) represents the assignment of a specific amount of time to a resource, individual, or project. You can allocate resources to projects and book non-project time using People Schedule or Timeline.
In Forecast, there are two main types of allocations:
- Project Time
- Non-Project Time
Project Time
To use project allocations, your company’s resource management setting must be one of the following:
Project allocations are especially helpful when the exact tasks a resource will work on are still unknown. They provide flexibility and allow you to reserve time at the project level.
Forecast supports two types of project allocations:
- Soft allocations – Tentative bookings, often used for planning or forecasting.
- Hard allocations – Confirmed assignments, representing committed resource time.
- Learn more in: Using Soft and Hard Allocations
Placeholder Allocations
Project time allocations can also include placeholders. Placeholders represent unconfirmed or future demand for a specific role or resource and help in planning upcoming workload before named resources are assigned.
- Learn more about forecasting demand with placeholders: About Capacity Planning
Non-Project Time
Non-project time refers to allocations that are not directly tied to a client or billable project. These fall into two categories:
- Internal Time
- Time Off
These allocations can be created regardless of your company’s resource management setting.
Internal Time Allocation
Internal time allocations are used to block out time for non-billable internal activities, such as:
- Team meetings
- Stand-ups
- Training sessions
- Company events
Allocating internal time ensures that internal commitments are reflected in each team member’s availability, providing a more accurate picture of their capacity.
- Admins configure internal time categories in your company's Time Management settings.
- For details, see: Overview of Time Management Settings
Time-Off Allocation
Time-off allocations represent non-working time, including:
- Paid time off (PTO)
- Annual leave
- Public holidays
- Sick days
Time-off can be created from either People Schedule or Timesheets. Including time-off in a resource’s schedule ensures their availability is accurately reflected in project and capacity planning.
- Read more: Time-Off Management Updates
As with internal time, time-off types are configured by Admins in your company's Time Management settings.
HR Integrations and Time-Off
If your organization uses an HR integration such as BambooHR or HiBob:
- Time-off must be created and managed in the integrated HR system.
- Time-off entries are automatically synced to Forecast.
- You cannot create, edit, or delete time-off allocations directly in Forecast.
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