Auto-Staffing Overview

Auto-staffing enables you to automatically match a resource to a resource request, and either hold or assign the resource. Auto-staffing is based on Intelligent Staffing which is explained in Intelligent Staffing for a Resource Request.

When auto-staffing holds or assigns a resource, a new schedule is created for the resource request unless it has a preferred schedule and your org is configured to retain it. If a new schedule is created, it is calculated using the scheduling strategy specified in the resource request's staffing preference, otherwise the default scheduling strategy specified in the Assignment Settings custom setting is used. For more information about scheduling strategies, see Scheduling Strategies Overview.

To use auto-staffing, your administrator must complete the setup described in Setting up Auto-Staffing. Once the setup is complete, you can select a resource request's Auto-Hold or Auto-Assign checkbox when doing any of the following:

  • Creating a resource request using the Create Resource Requests action on projects. For more information, see Creating Resource Requests for Projects and Opportunities.
  • Creating a resource request from a project task using the Create Resource Requests from Project Tasks action on projects. For more information, see Creating Resource Requests from Project Tasks.
  • Adding resource requests from a template using the Add Resource Requests from Template action on projects or opportunities. For more information, see Adding Resource Requests from a Template.
  • Editing a resource request via the resource request record page.
  • Editing resource requests in bulk via a list view on the Resource Requests tab if the Auto-Hold and Auto-Assign checkboxes have been added to the list view.

If the Auto-Hold and Auto-Assign checkboxes are not available to you when doing any of the above, contact your administrator.

For information about what happens when the auto-staffing process runs, see How Resources are Matched, and Held or Assigned in Auto-Staffing.

Notes:

You can select either Auto-Hold or Auto-Assign for a resource request, but not both.

You cannot select Auto-Hold or Auto-Assign for a resource request that is already held or assigned.

You cannot select Auto-Assign for a resource request that is not associated with a project.

Manually Editing Resource Requests During Auto-Staffing

If the Auto-Hold or Auto-Assign checkbox is selected for a resource request and auto-staffing is in progress, note that:

  • If you assign a resource to the resource request, the auto-staffing process continues but records an error for that resource request. The resource you assigned manually is not overridden.
  • If you hold a resource against the resource request, the auto-staffing process continues regardless of the held resource. The resource that you held manually might be overridden.
Warning:

Do not deselect the Auto-Hold or Auto-Assign checkbox if the resource request's processing stage is "In Progress". Doing so will not stop the auto-staffing process, and it could result in unexpected behavior.

You can stop the auto-staffing process by deselecting Auto-Hold or Auto-Assign when the resource request's processing stage is "Pending".

Resource Request List Views

The following packaged list views are available on the Resource Requests tab. They list resource requests according to the outcome of the auto-staffing process:

  • Auto-Staffing: Completed. Displays resource requests where a resource has been matched and held or assigned.
  • Auto-Staffing: Error. Displays resource requests where an error was encountered during the process.
  • Auto-Staffing: No Matched Resources. Displays resource requests where no suitable resource was found.