Enterprise Task Outline Codes

This section examines in detail some planning considerations for Enterprise Task Outline Codes. You may start with a look at your task reporting requirements first and then work your way back to defining a set of task outline codes and custom fields to support your organizational reporting requirements.

The mechanics of creating Enterprise Task Outline Codes are the same as the steps used when creating Enterprise Project Outline Codes.

Generally, Enterprise Task Outline Codes allow creating hierarchical structures that are an alternative or addition to Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) outline code. These additional hierarchical structures can be used in task or resource assignment views to add additional filtering, grouping, and sorting capabilities.

Planning Enterprise Task Outline Codes

Enterprise Task Outline Codes have one, perhaps serious, limitation compared to Enterprise Project and Resource Outline Codes. It is not possible to include Enterprise Task Outline Codes in your Portfolio Analyzer views. Project Server 2003 does not support the use of tasks and associated Enterprise Task Outline Codes in Portfolio Modeler and Portfolio Analyzer. Enterprise Task Outline Codes can be used only for Project Server views available in PWA and Project Professional clients. Because Enterprise Task Outline Codes are not compiled as part of the OLAP cube, it is not possible to use Portfolio Analyzer to perform any analysis based on tasks unless you customize and extend your OLAP cube.

NOTE

See Portfolio Analyzer OLAP Extensions Solution Starter for more details on OLAP extensions available from http://msdn.microsoft.com/office/understanding/project/solution/default.aspx.

The only advantage that Enterprise Task Outline Codes have over standard task fields isthe capability to handle hierarchical structure.

Defining Enterprise Task Outline Codes

Before you can define your Enterprise Task Outline Codes, make sure that the following actions are completed:

• Identify requirements for resource and task assignments reporting.

• Plan Enterprise Task Outline Codes implementation.

• Establish Enterprise Task Outline Codes utilization guidelines.

• Define and develop custom filters and views and define assignment and timesheet views that will use the Enterprise Task Outline Codes.

Enterprise Task Outline Codes can be used as part of two Project Server view types: Assignment views and Timesheet views.

Assignment views provide information about your enterprise resources' task assignments. The Resource Center enables resource managers and other users with appropriate permissions to look at the status of the individual task assignments for a particular resource or group of resources.

Assignment views can use Enterprise Task Outline Codes to filter, group, and sort the tasks that have resources assigned to them. Assignment views are different from other views in PWA and Project Professional clients. Assignment views show the task assignments for your enterprise resources published to your Project Server.

You need to customize or add to the default set of published task fields to be able to use Enterprise Task Outline Codes in the Assignments and Timesheet views first. If you want to make the set of Enterprise Task Outline Codes available for the Assignment or Timesheet views, perform the following steps:

1.	Open the Enterprise Global template.
2.	From the menu, select Tools, Customize, Published Fields.
3.	In the Customize Published Fields dialog box, select required Enterprise Task Outline Codes and Fields listed under Available Fields, and then move them to the list under Fields in the Tasks view as shown in Figure 9.22. Figure 9.22. Use the Customize Published Fields dialog box to make additional Enterprise Task Outline Codes and Fields available for your Assignment and Timesheet views.

Timesheet view is used by your team members to track their actual task assignments progress and can be customized to accommodate your unique reporting requirements. Project managers can set up the custom Enterprise Task Outline Codes and Fields they want their team members to report on to make additional task information available.

Using additional custom Enterprise Task Outline Codes and fields as part of your Timesheet view, you can filter and rearrange the task list to make timesheet reporting faster and easier.

Using Enterprise Task Outline Codes

After you create a list of task attributes and determine their hierarchy and values, you need to configure them in Project Professional client using Enterprise Task Outline Codes structures.

Based on careful analysis of business requirements, the example BBBpm Consulting company decided to use attributes listed in Table 9.3.

Table 9.3. Task Attributes Example

Task Attributes	Values
Progress Status	Ahead of schedule
	On time
	Behind schedule less than 5 days
	Behind schedule more than 5 days
Task Type	Billable
Nonbillable

To create new Enterprise Task Outline Codes, follow these steps:

1.	In the Project Professional client, select Tools, Enterprise Options, Open Enterprise Global Template.
2.	To display the Customize Enterprise Fields dialog box, choose Tools, Customize, Enterprise Fields from the menu. Use the Custom Outline Codes tab and select the Task radio button.

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You need to associate Enterprise Task Outline Codes values with tasks in your enterprise projects before you can manipulate your task and resource assignmentsfilter, sort, or groupusing these Enterprise Task Outline Codes.

CAUTION

Make sure that you understand the potential impact of having many Enterprise Task Outline Codes and Fields defined. If you also have large, unique project schedules with thousands of tasks in your project portfolio, you may spend a lot of time associating task attributes with all your tasks in all your projects.