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Project Management Orientation

What Is Utilization?  

Utilization is the amount of time a full-time equivalent (FTE) can be used on a project.  An FTE is not necessarily a specific  individual but can be the combining of two or more individuals whose efforts equal one work day (for example, eight hours) or a portion of a work day.  In reality, personnel are not available full time, eight hours per day, 40 hours per week, 52 weeks per year.
  
Utilization rates are affected by the time required for education, vacation, holidays, administration, personal time off, travel, and sick leave.  Utilization is usually expressed as hours per day, but can be expressed as a percentage of duration: for example, 50% of the time during a two-week task.
  
Availability indicates whether the resource can be used during a particular period on your project.  Remember, good people are usually in high demand.  When creating an estimate, you need to determine the impact that vacation time has on a task to which key personnel are assigned.

 

What Are Utilization Factors? 

Utilization factor describes the amount of time a full-time equivalent (FTE) can be used for the length of the project.  An FTE can be a specific person or a combination of different people's hours to equal a work day.  You should rely on utilization factors to arrive at high-level planning estimates.  Estimates should constantly be refined based on assumption validations, changes to requirements, and use of actuals.
  
The following is an example of how the utilization factor is calculated and the effect it has on your project.

Therefore, for this example, the effective utilization factor is 77%, or 134 hours per month.

1: Getting Started
2: Define the Project Team
3: Team Management
4: Identify and Validate Requirements
5: Create Decomposition Structures
6: Risk Management
7: Project Estimates
8: Project Schedules
9: Change Management
10: Project Control and Execution
Defining the Project
11: Project Management Review
12: Project Closeout
13: Project Management Tool Suite
14: Self-Assessment and Final Exam
Fast Points
Concepts
Seven Keys
Case Study
WWPMM
Mentor
Check Point
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