HKSM

Preassignment is confirming specific people or resources for the project before the formal acquire-resources effort, often because they are named in the charter, contract, or proposal. It secures critical talent early and sets constraints the team must plan around.

Key Points

• Occurs when specific individuals, teams, or vendors are committed to the project in advance.
• Common sources include the project charter, statement of work, contracts, proposals, or sponsor directives.
• It reduces staffing risk for scarce skills but limits flexibility in selection and scheduling.
• Must be documented and reflected in team assignments, calendars, and the resource management plan.
• Does not replace negotiation; conflicts or gaps still require coordination with functional managers or procurement.

Purpose of Analysis

• Verify which commitments are mandatory versus preferred and the authority behind them.
• Assess impacts on cost, schedule, quality, and risk due to constrained choices.
• Confirm availability windows and any onboarding, training, or access lead times.
• Align role definitions, reporting lines, and performance expectations with the preassigned resources.
• Determine if change requests or procurement actions are needed to honor the commitments.

Method Steps

• Identify all preassignment sources: charter, SOW, contracts, proposals, sponsor emails, and regulatory requirements.
• Validate authority and scope: confirm with sponsor, legal, procurement, or PMO that the commitment is binding.
• Match roles to named individuals or suppliers and verify skills fit and certifications.
• Confirm availability and calendars, including part-time allocations and time zone constraints.
• Document in project team assignments and update the resource management plan and RACI.
• Plan onboarding: access, equipment, training, facilities, and vendor kickoffs.
• Update schedule and cost estimates; raise change requests if baselines are affected.
• Communicate expectations, deliverables, and reporting cadence to preassigned resources and stakeholders.

Inputs Needed

• Project charter with named roles or resources.
• Statement of work, contracts, proposals, and vendor agreements.
• Organizational policies, union rules, and HR guidelines.
• Resource calendars, skills inventories, and capacity reports.
• Risk register, stakeholder register, and assumptions log.
• Regulatory, customer, or security requirements that mandate key personnel.

Outputs Produced

• Project team assignments identifying named individuals and start dates.
• Resource calendars reflecting confirmed availability and constraints.
• Updates to the resource management plan, RACI, and onboarding plan.
• Procurement updates for mandated vendors or subcontractors.
• Assumptions and risk register updates, including dependency and capacity risks.
• Change requests if preassignments alter scope, cost, or schedule baselines.

Interpretation Tips

• If a resource is explicitly named in the charter or contract, treat it as a constraint to plan for, not a suggestion.
• Distinguish preassignment from negotiation: negotiation is used when you have options; preassignment is a prior commitment.
• Verify availability early; if conflicts exist, escalate through governance or procurement rather than substituting unilaterally.
• Reflect preassignments in calendars and work packages to avoid over-allocation and hidden delays.
• Use preassignment to de-risk critical path roles, but reassess for single-point-of-failure risks.

Example

A customer’s SOW mandates that a specific cybersecurity architect and a certified cloud vendor be used. The project manager validates the contract clause with procurement, confirms the architect’s availability for 50% allocation, updates team assignments and the resource calendar, and schedules onboarding and access. The PM also updates the risk register for a single-point-of-failure risk and raises a change request to adjust the schedule to the architect’s availability window.

Pitfalls

• Assuming availability without confirmation, leading to late staffing gaps.
• Overlooking total cost impact of mandated suppliers or premium talent.
• Ignoring organizational policies or security clearances needed for preassigned personnel.
• Locking in individuals who lack exact skills or certifications required.
• Failing to capture constraints in calendars and plans, causing over-allocation.
• Not communicating expectations early, resulting in slow onboarding and delays.

PMP Example Question

During planning, the sponsor informs you that the signed SOW requires a specific data architect to be on the project. What should you do next?

1. Ask HR to negotiate with functional managers for any available architect.
2. Request the customer to remove the clause to increase staffing flexibility.
3. Confirm the architect’s availability and document the preassignment in team assignments and resource calendars.
4. Proceed without the architect and plan to add them later if needed.

Correct Answer: C — Confirm the architect’s availability and document the preassignment in team assignments and resource calendars.

Explanation: A preassignment is a prior commitment that must be honored. The PM should validate availability and integrate it into assignments and calendars; negotiation or deferral is inappropriate here.