When to allocate operatives
Allocating an operative is how you assign a named person to do a sub-package on a specific day. You'll do it when:
- The work is planned and ready for the team to start
- You're balancing several jobs and need to commit a particular operative to one of them
- A trade has been confirmed and you want to lock in who's actually showing up
- You're working out who's free against who's needed where
Allocations live on sub-packages, not on the parent Work Package. You pick the sub-package first, then the person.
Once an allocation is in place, it feeds the availability calendar, pre-populates timesheets, and makes the work count as "allocated" on the Kanban and Gantt views.
Two ways to start an allocation
There are two routes to the allocation form from the Work Package detail page — pick whichever one you find quicker.
- From the Sub-packages card — open the actions menu on the sub-package you want to allocate, and choose Allocate
- From the Operative Allocations card — click the allocation button to allocate to any sub-package in the Work Package
Either route opens the same Allocate Operative form.
Reading the suggested operatives
When the form opens, Project Commander shows a ranked list of operatives whose profile matches the sub-package's required trade and skill level. The best matches are at the top.
Each suggestion shows you:
- The operative's name and trade
- Their skill level — Apprentice, Tradesperson, Supervisor, and so on
- A match score — a number summarising how well they fit, based on trade, skill level, and other parts of their profile
- Match reasons — the factors that fed into the score (for example, "matches required trade: Electrician" or "higher skill level than required")
- Their availability on the date you've picked
The availability shows up as one of three states:
- Available — they're clear on that date
- Partial — they've got another allocation on the same day but still have hours left
- Unavailable — they're fully booked, on leave, or otherwise can't do it
If someone is unavailable, you can expand their entry to see the conflict — the other sub-package or reason that's blocking them — so you can make an informed call instead of just moving on.
Completing the allocation
- 1
Pick an operative from the suggestions, or click Show all operatives to see the full list if the person you want isn't in the suggestions.
- 2
Set the Scheduled Start Date — the day they should start on this sub-package.
- 3
Confirm the hours. The form pre-fills these from the sub-package's estimated duration, so usually you don't need to touch them.
- 4
Click Allocate. A confirmation appears and the Operative Allocations card on the Work Package updates straight away.
What the Operative Allocations card shows
This card on the Work Package detail page lists every operative allocated to any sub-package inside that Work Package. Each row shows you:
- The operative's name and ID
- Their trade and skill level
- The sub-package they're allocated to
- The allocated date
- The hours
It's the single place to look when you want to see who's on a Work Package without clicking into each sub-package individually.
Editing an allocation
Click the edit button on a row to change the date or the hours. The form opens pre-filled — adjust the values and save. The change is reflected on the availability calendar straight away.
Removing an allocation
Click the remove button on a row. You'll be asked to confirm. Removing an allocation frees the operative's availability on that date.
If an operative is pulled off the job mid-way, you'll usually want to change the end date or reduce the hours rather than remove the allocation outright — removing it loses the history of who was on what.
Real-world examples
- A new sub-package gets added — open the allocation form, pick the top match from the suggestions, and you've assigned the right trade in seconds
- Two jobs need the same chargehand — open the form on each job in turn, see the conflict on the second one, and reassign to a different operative who's free
- An apprentice is being moved up — when the suggestions show an apprentice for a tradesperson sub-package, expand their match reasons to confirm whether the skill gap matters before deciding
Next steps
- Sub-packages — for the trade and skill level fields that drive the matching.
- Allocating assets — for assigning equipment to sub-packages.
- Availability — for the company-wide operative calendar that allocations feed into.