Resources Other Settings

The Resources application lets you request, book and track resources (active OpenAir employees) against one or several projects in OpenAir. There are several settings within the application that control the rights and permissions available to specific Roles. These options are indicated below.

In addition, the Resources application lets you enter particular skills, education, and industries to an employee's profile to create a skills-experience database for your resources that you can search. See Search - Resources Application.

To access the Resources Other settings:

1. Go to Administration > Application Settings > Resources > Other settings.

Notify booked resource when a booking is added, modified, or deleted: When you activate this option, OpenAir creates email notifications and sends them to any resource who has a booking entry created, modified, or deleted for the resource.

Note:

Notifications are sent for each booking entry. When using the booking worksheet, entries into each column creates individual booking entries, which causes an email notification to be sent for each booking.

Prepend 'OpenAir' on the subject line of booking notifications emails: The email subject for booking notifications defaults to New Booking Created. Selecting this option appends 'OpenAir' at the beginning of the subject line to make it clear to the employee that the email is coming from OpenAir. You can customize the booking notification subject and email body per your company's needs.

Notify manager of booked resource when a booking is added, modified, or deleted: If you activate this option, OpenAir creates email notifications to a resource's manager for each booking entry created, modified, and deleted.

Note:

Notifications are sent for each booking entry. When using the booking worksheet, entries into each column creates individual booking entries, which causes an email notification to be sent for each booking. If an employee's Demographic form does not have a Manager identified, emails are not generated.

Require booking type when booking resources: If you have implemented booking types, this option lets you make this field required for all bookings created in your OpenAir account. This requires you to define a complete set of booking types so that a valid value is always able to be selected for any type of booking entry. At least one booking type must be active for the option to be available. If there are no booking types active, then this feature does not have any impact.

Always 'Book by' for bookings, booking requests, and deal booking requests: By default, OpenAir permits bookings to be entered by hours or by a percentage. Setting this option for strictly a percentage or strictly hours removes the ability to override the booking by the other option (for example, If set to Percentage, all bookings must be set in percentages and cannot be entered in hours).

Default 'book by' value to use for new bookings when the default value is not otherwise implied: This is a default setting for how an employee is booked to a project/task, by hours or by percentage. This can be overridden on the booking form or worksheet for each entry.

Default 'book by' value to use for new booking requests when the default value is not otherwise implied: If you have activated the use of booking requests within the resource application, this option sets a system default for how a booking request entry is created, by hours or by percentage. This can be overridden on the booking request form for each entry. If you do not have booking requests enabled, activation of this option does not have any impact.

Enable customer experience in resource searches: The Quick Search and Custom Search tabs within the Resource application by default do not include customer experience, which are the past Customer : Project worked within OpenAir. Activating this option provides customer Experience as a search option allowing you to select specific customers in the search criteria.

Note:

If you have set up a skill database and created a profile category to capture customer experience, this option should not be confused with skill database entries. Customer Experience within OpenAir is strictly based on Customer : Project association of the employee within OpenAir (that is, Timesheet entries).

Allow searches for inactive resources: Inactivating a resource removes the resource from various dropdowns and selection fields throughout OpenAir. Some forms allow the inclusion of inactive resources within a specific dropdown or selection list. By default, the search functionality within the Resources application does not include inactive resources. By activating this setting, an Include inactive resources box displays on the custom search field, which permits the inclusion of inactive resources in the search. If the Redesigned Advanced Filters feature is also enabled for your account, you can also search and select both active and inactive employees as values in your advanced filter conditions.

Enable resource substitution searching on bookings: Bookings created for employees may need to be changed due to resource conflicts or the replacement of a generic placeholder resource with an available employee. Activating this setting permits a substitution option to appear on booking list views and individual booking forms. How substitution candidates are identified is dependent on the criteria option listed below. The substitution feature saves data entry time should bookings require modification.

Note:

If you have email notifications activated for Bookings, the substitution of resources generates an email notification to both the original resource of the booking and the substituted resource of the booking. The only exception is when a generic resource is substituted as they do not have an email address specified in OpenAir.

Criteria to use when searching for a resource to substitute for another a resource on a booking: Searching the criteria for substitution candidates can be one of two types: by Profile or by Job code. The Job code is more of a one-to-one mapping that identifies resources with the same job code as the current resource in the booking. Profile uses the entries from the skills database to look for comparable matching resources. If your skill database is robust, the search may often times return few or no results. In these instances, the Job code substitution option would be best. The job code is derived from the Job code setting identified on the Employee Demographic form.

Enable multiple booking resource substitutions in one action: When enabled, resource managers have the ability to replace multiple resource bookings on the bookings list view by selecting multiple resources and using the Run an action function.

Show the related profile name on profile type drop-downs and pickers: When configuring a skills database within OpenAir, several dimensions such as Skill, Industry, Location, and Education are defined. Each dimension may be associated with another dimension. When this is enabled, you may optionally choose to display the related profile dimension in the drop-down selection associated with another dimension. For example, you may want to relate a skill with a particular industry. In the drop-down list for the skill dimension, you see ABC Industrializes Skill.

Respect filter sets when generating availability reports

Enable booking requests: Bookings may be created/modified/deleted by employees with granted Role permissions. Depending on your business process, the resource who creates a booking within OpenAir may not know whether a specific resource is needed or what type of resource is required. Enabling Booking requests enables the booking request feature to be available to employees with the appropriate role permissions to submit booking requests (optionally through an approval process) for a particular employee or a generic resource for a particular duration and effort. Approved booking requests automatically create booking entries, either to the specified employee or to the generic resource.

Important:

To enable this setting the following internal switches must be disabled: Enable approvals for bookings and Enable project booking automation. Contact OpenAir Customer Support or OpenAir Professional Services to discuss these options.

Booking requests can only be created for generics: By default when the Booking request feature is activated, any specific or generic resource may be entered on the request. Activating the Generic only feature supports a business process of having only a generic resource available to be chosen on the booking request. The resource reviewer/approver provides the named resource to be booked to the project. This would also require the option to Edit a submitted booking request to be enabled. When the generic resource request has been approved, another business process to book a named resource to the project is required. This would replace the generic booking with a named employee.

Booking request approvals are for the requested resource: This option directs how the Booking request is routed for approval. If this selection is enabled, the booking request is sent to the requested resource's approver. If left unchecked, the booking request is forwarded to the approver of the person making the request. To avoid confusion with approval routings, it is suggested that an Approval process is created to direct booking requests to the proper individuals. For more information, see the Approval Routing.

Enable additional required category in resource request queue for absolute requirements: Use the “Required” category in resource requests to include only resources with the skills selected. The “Required” category works as a filter, and when a resource search is performed, only resources with the skills selected in this category will appear in results.

Note:

Available when the Resource Demand Request feature is enabled for your account.

The booking type field on booking requests cannot be modified: When a Booking request is initially created, the booking type field can be entered if you have configured Booking types and have at least one active entry. When the Booking request has been submitted, the booking type field cannot be modified if this option is activated.

Copy the approved booking request notes to the automatically generated booking: Notes may be entered on a Booking request. This information may be useful for reference in the Booking after the booking request has been approved. Activating this option permits the notes to be automatically copied to the booking. This is extremely useful to identify the appropriate named resource when generic resources are used on booking requests.

Do not allow booking request submission if time is booked to an inactive option: Employees entering booking requests against Customers : Project (or Customers, and possibly at the Task level) are provided a drop-down lists of these items. This option prevents the submission of a booking request if the employee is able to view a Customers : Project when the booking request is created but later the Customers : Project is inactivated before the booking request is completed and submitted. If this option is unchecked and the Customers : Project is inactivated during the booking request creation and submission process, the booking is allowed against an inactive project since the booking request was already in progress.

Allow an approver to edit a submitted booking request: When booking request approvals are used, booking requests are submitted for review by a defined employees who then approves or rejects the booking request. To avoid time delays introduced by having the reviewer reject a booking request and then the owner changing and resubmitting the request, activating this option gives the reviewer the ability to edit the booking request worksheet entries directly before continuing with an approval. This feature is useful to allow a booking request approver to substitute resources, if necessary, such as when a generic resource is selected in the request and a replacement of an available resource is required. This action is independent of any employee application role settings.

Weekly booking worksheets start on: The first day of the week for the booking worksheet can be set to any specific day of the week or to the first day of the week defined in the user demographics by selecting “From Employee demographics” in the dropdown. Selecting a day of the week for this option identifies the definition of a week within OpenAir. The OpenAir permits weekly reporting and worksheet displays of weekly time periods. Each of these are dependent on what the specific week start setting that has been selected. This is most obvious in the Reports application under the Advanced tab for Timesheet and Expense status reports. Selecting several weeks to display show the defined employee week start values, which may not align with your particular employee week start setting. If this is the case, it may appear as if multiple timesheets have been submitted for a particular week, when in actuality it is the misalignment of the week start setting throughout OpenAir.

Add booking custom fields to dynamic booking worksheet: The dynamic booking worksheets are available in the Resources application under Booking requests and Bookings. By default, these worksheets do not include custom fields that may have been created for display and entry on the individual booking forms. Activating this feature includes the custom fields on the worksheet as well as the booking forms for proper data entry.

Allow an approver to edit a submitted booking: This option is mutually exclusive with the booking requests feature.

Do not allow booking submission if time is booked to an inactive option: This option is mutually exclusive with the booking requests feature. This option prevents the submission of a booking if any of the following properties are set to a record that is not marked as active: Customer, Project, Resource and Booking Type. If an employee attempts to submit a booking associated with an inactive customer, project, resource or booking type using the Booking form, the dynamic booking worksheet, the advance booking worksheet, or actions in the Bookings list view, an error message will be displayed and the booking will not be submitted. For example:

• An employee creates a new booking, selects a Customer:Project from the dropdown options and saves but does not submit the booking. The customer or project associated with this booking is inactivated before the booking is submitted. The employee will not be able to submit the booking and will be prompted to verify the customer or project associated with the booking.

• An employee navigates to the Advanced Booking Worksheet and copies an existing row to create a new booking. If the booking is associated with an inactive project or resource, on Save and submit, an error message will appear listing the inactive records preventing bookings from being submitted and the corresponding cells will be highlighted in the Advanced booking worksheet.

Require a task selection on bookings: This option requires specifying a Task when booking a resource to a project. If this is not selected, the task field does not display on the booking form. If tasks do not exist on the project to which the booking is being created, the booking does not save.

Resource planner booking bar format - text options in drop down : This sets the format of the text displayed on the booking bars in the resource booking planner.

Disable daily option in resource planner : This disables the daily utilization option in the resource booking planner, which calculates utilization for each day.

Disable weekly option in resource planner : This disables the weekly utilization option in the resource booking planner, which calculates utilization as the average of all bookings within a particular calendar week.

Disable monthly option in resource planner : This disables the monthly utilization option in the resource booking planner, which calculates utilization as the average of all bookings within a particular calendar month.

Note:

To enable the “Resource planner booking bar format” and “Disable daily/weekly/monthly option in resource planner” settings, the following internal switch must be enabled: Enable resource planner. Contact OpenAir Customer Support to request this feature.

Preferred landing page for resources: This sets the default landing page for all users opening resources, for example, Allocations Planner.

Note:

Administrators can also set a preferred landing page for individual users in the user demographic settings. Users can set their own preferred landing page from User Center > Personal Settings > Resources Options.

Hide inactive skills on resource profiles: Check this box to hide inactive skills in consolidated resource profiles.

Note:

The option to hide inactive skills is available only if the consolidated resource profiles feature is enabled for your OpenAir account.