Expert Assignments

Sometimes the scheduler needs stronger guidance than skill matching alone. Workable gives you three ways to do that: pinned assignments for must-have people, team assignments for keeping a whole team together, and consulting roles for people who need visibility without being counted as delivery staff.

Pinned Assignments

Pinning locks a specific person to a project for its entire duration. Once a person is pinned, the scheduler must assign them to that project.

When to use pinned assignments:

• A subject matter expert is critical to the project’s success
• A specific person has unique knowledge or context needed throughout
• Client or stakeholder requirements specify certain team members

To pin someone:

1. In the Plan tab, find the project you want to staff.
2. Open the person assignment section.
3. Click the Pin icon or button next to the person.
4. That person is now locked to the project for its full duration.

Keep these effects in mind:

• Pinned people count toward the project’s team size requirement
• Too many pins can over-constrain the scheduler
• Pinned assignments reduce the scheduler’s flexibility
• If a pinned person lacks the required skills, the project may still fail validation

Team Assignments

Team assignments let you assign an entire team to a project. When you do this, every member of that team is assigned to the project as if you had pinned each person individually.

When to use team assignments:

• A specific team owns a domain or area
• You want to keep established teams together
• Multiple team members with complementary skills need to work together
• Organisational structure dictates team ownership

To assign a team:

1. In the Plan tab, find the project.
2. Open the team assignment section.
3. Select a team from the dropdown.
4. All members of that team are then assigned for the project’s full duration.

Keep these effects in mind:

• Team assignments are exploded into individual pinned assignments before scheduling
• All team members count toward the project’s team size requirement
• The scheduler treats team-assigned people the same as pinned individuals
• Duplicates are automatically handled
• A person included via both Required people and Required teams counts once in scheduling analysis

Consulting Assignments

Consultants are people who support a project part-time but are not part of the core delivery team. They can provide expertise, guidance, or oversight without being counted toward team size requirements.

When to use consulting roles:

• An architect provides technical guidance
• A manager oversees the project without being a full-time team member
• A specialist reviews work periodically
• Someone needs visibility without blocking their availability

To add a consultant:

1. In the Plan tab, find the project.
2. Open the consulting section.
3. Assign the person as a consultant.
4. They appear on the project but do not count toward team size.

Keep these effects in mind:

• Consultants do not count toward team size requirements
• Consultants are not factored into resource availability for other projects
• Consultants appear in the schedule visualization but are visually distinct from committed team members

Combining Assignment Types

You can combine assignment types on the same project:

• Assign teams to keep established groups together
• Pin individual must-have team members
• Add consultants for oversight

This gives you precise control where you need it while still leaving the scheduler room to optimize the rest of the plan.

Best Practices

Use assignment controls sparingly. The more people and teams you lock in place, the less flexibility the scheduler has to find a workable result.

Assign teams when:

• You want to keep established teams together for continuity
• Organisational structure dictates team ownership
• It’s faster than pinning multiple individuals

Pin individuals when:

• Client requirements mandate specific people
• Domain expertise is irreplaceable
• Political or strategic reasons require certain assignments

Use consulting for:

• Stakeholders who need awareness but are not doing the work
• Subject matter experts who provide periodic input
• Managers or oversight roles

Review after scheduling:

• Check the Schedule and Resource Allocation tabs after building
• Verify that team assignments and pinned people are not creating bottlenecks
• Look for over-allocation caused by too many assignments

Important

The scheduler uses your project list order to decide what gets built first. If there aren’t enough resources, projects at the bottom of the list may not be scheduled. Team assignments and pinned assignments further constrain the scheduler, so use them judiciously.