Change work time in Microsoft Project

In Microsoft Project, adjusting the working time is essential to reflect realistic schedules for your project. Working time defines the days and hours that resources are available to work on tasks. This article will guide you through how to change working time for the project and resources and assign it appropriately.

Changing Working Time for the Project

Changing working time for the entire project helps you define the workweek and holidays, which impacts the scheduling of tasks. Here's how you can modify the working time for the project:

  1. Go to the "Project" tab in the ribbon.
  2. Click on "Change Working Time" in the "Properties" group.
  3. In the "Change Working Time" dialog box, select the calendar you want to modify (e.g., Standard Calendar or a custom calendar).
  4. To change working days, select the "Work Weeks" tab, then click "Details" and modify the workdays and working hours.
  5. If you need to add non-working days or holidays, go to the "Exceptions" tab and enter the date and description for the holiday or non-working day.
  6. Click "OK" to save the changes.

Example: Changing Working Time for the Entire Project

If you want to modify the workweek to include Saturday as a working day from 9 AM to 1 PM, follow these steps:

  1. Open the "Change Working Time" dialog.
  2. Choose the "Standard" calendar.
  3. In the "Work Weeks" tab, click "Details" and modify Saturday to be a working day with 9 AM to 1 PM.
  4. Click "OK" to save your changes.

This change will apply to all tasks in your project that are assigned to this calendar.

Changing Working Time for Resources

In addition to modifying the project-wide working time, you can also set specific working hours for individual resources, such as workers or equipment. Here's how to change working time for a resource:

  1. Go to the "Resource Sheet" view.
  2. Double-click on the resource you want to modify.
  3. In the "Resource Information" dialog, select the "General" tab.
  4. Click the "Change Working Time" button to open the "Change Working Time" dialog for that resource.
  5. In this dialog, you can modify the working time by selecting specific days or entering custom hours.
  6. Click "OK" to save the changes for that resource.

Example: Changing Working Time for a Resource

Imagine you have a worker named "John Doe," and you want to set his working hours to 8 AM to 12 PM on Mondays instead of the default 9 AM to 5 PM. Here's how you can do it:

  1. Open the "Resource Sheet" view and find "John Doe."
  2. Double-click on "John Doe" to open the "Resource Information" dialog.
  3. Click "Change Working Time" to open the working time settings.
  4. In the "Work Weeks" tab, click "Details," and set Monday's working hours to 8 AM to 12 PM.
  5. Click "OK" to save the changes.

Now, John Doe's working time is set to 8 AM to 12 PM on Mondays, and his tasks will reflect this schedule.

Assigning Working Time to Project and Resources

Once you have adjusted the working time for the project and individual resources, you can assign it to the tasks appropriately. The working time will determine when the task can be scheduled based on the availability of the resources.

  1. Go to the "Gantt Chart" view.
  2. Click on the task you want to assign a resource to.
  3. In the "Resource Names" column, type the name of the resource you want to assign to the task (e.g., "John Doe").
  4. The task's schedule will automatically adjust based on the resource's working time.

Example: Assigning Working Time to a Task

Let's say you have a task called "Foundation" and you want to assign "John Doe" with the modified working time (8 AM to 12 PM on Mondays). Here's how to assign the resource:

  1. In the "Gantt Chart" view, select the "Foundation" task.
  2. In the "Resource Names" column, type "John Doe" to assign him to the task.
  3. Since John Doe's working hours are set to 8 AM to 12 PM on Mondays, the task will be scheduled accordingly, and the duration may change based on his availability.

Practical Example

Consider a simple project for building a house. The project is set to have standard working hours (9 AM to 5 PM), but "John Doe" works only from 8 AM to 12 PM on Mondays. Here's how you would assign resources:

Task Name       | Resource Names
--------------- | --------------
Foundation      | John Doe
Superstructure  | Jane Smith
Roofing         | Crane
Finishing       | Emily Davis

For the "Foundation" task, John Doe's working time will be factored into the task's schedule, ensuring that his availability is accurately reflected.

Conclusion

Changing and assigning working time in Microsoft Project allows you to better align your project schedules with actual resource availability. By adjusting both project-wide working time and resource-specific working hours, you can ensure that tasks are scheduled correctly and efficiently, leading to a more realistic and manageable project timeline.




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