Within Productive, the Resource planner within the Resourcing tab is your go-to tool for making big-picture time allocations across your team.
Ever wondered who's tackling which project and for how long? What if someone needs to swap in last minute? The Resource planner has you covered, not just for today but for the next days, weeks, and even months—keeping you in the know without the stress.
Its key features include:
Clear visibility on who is assigned to each service and for how long.
Integration of sick leave, vacations, and off-time into your scheduling.
Efficient distribution of workload to prevent burnout.
Streamlined time tracking, where every scheduled event automatically becomes a time-tracking suggestion.
No need for external tools like Hub Planner or Float; the Resource planner is included in Productive at no extra cost.
Acts as a foundation for future forecasting and prognosis, allowing you to anticipate revenue and profit for the upcoming 3, 6, or 12 months.
Important: Tasks and Services
Tasks and services have distinct purposes in Productive.
Time tracking and booking activities (scheduling) are primarily associated with services within budgets or sales deals, while tasks are typically used for detailed project management and organization within the team or project.
Here's a breakdown of how these elements work:
✅ You create a budget for the services you will sell to your client. When you create a service, you track time on it, and the name of the service appears on the invoice you send to your client.
✅ You schedule time for services (not tasks) in the Resource planner, assigning bookings to team members.
✅ Optionally, you assign tasks to projects or team members. Tasks complement services but are lower in the hierarchy and may not always be necessary if services are specific enough!
In the Resource planner, you have three main layouts (or perspectives) to choose from:
People
Projects
Time off
Each option serves a specific purpose in organizing and managing resources effectively. Let's take a look at each below!
Resource planner > People
When you select People from the dropdown, you'll notice all your employees listed on the left, allowing you to ensure optimal utilization of your teammates and prevent over or underworking them.
Learn how to book people on budgets and deals from the People perspective here!
Resource planner > Projects
When selecting Projects from the dropdown, your data is grouped by project rather than person, making it easier to organize and plan the work needed to deliver a project.
Learn how to book people on budgets and deals from the Projects perspective here!
Resource planner > Time off
The Time off section prioritizes time-off categories, simplifying the process of booking people for time off in just a few clicks.
Here's how to add time-off bookings in the Resource planner.
Tip: Placeholders
Whether you're using the People or Projects perspective in the Resource planner, consider using Placeholders when planning upcoming projects or hiring new team members.
Placeholders allow you to add bookings for individuals not currently on your team, similar to how you would book existing teammates.
