What is a BAU activity
Setting up a BAU project - example
Data entry by Users into a BAU project
Reporting off BAU projects

What is a BAU activity?

For example, a software engineer might be seconded to a project team and is also responsible for assisting the Help desk as and when certain support calls are received. Setting up the Help desk as a BAU will allow the engineer to record time spent on support calls. It would be useful, for example, to look at what time support calls have taken up, at the expense of time that was originally assigned to be spent on projects.

The essential difference between a BAU activity and a normal project is that in BAU it is the User him/herself that assigns the activity, whereas in a normal project, the Manager or Stage Manager assigns tasks.

Setting up a BAU project - example

1. Create a Project as normal
2. Set Start and Finish dates - normally something like a 12-month period.
3. Check In and store the Project to the Server
4. Create Sub-Tasks
5. Move each task to the state “In Progress”
6. Create if necessary a User Group which can be used to identify people who will use this BAU task. For example “HELP DESK STAFF”.
7. In Project | Properties - Advanced tab tick BAU project
8. Staying in Project | Properties - Advanced tab select the Public Group for the BAU Project from the drop-down list (in this case the specially created Group called HELP DESK STAFF)

Data entry by Users into a BAU project

1. View | BAU projects
2. The Project and subtask(s) will appear. Select the Sub-task against which the work is to be recorded.
3. Right Click and select “Assign Me”

4. 

5. Enter duration, date and notes describing the activity

6. 

7. Press OK to enter the details

Reporting off BAU projects

(The above report was created using Rows tab entry Accounts - TodoItems)

Using Help File