# Welcome to LOFT Resource

_LOFT Resource › Getting Started_

## What is LOFT Resource?

LOFT Resource is a workforce planning and resource management platform built for studios, agencies, and professional services firms. It brings together scheduling, cost tracking, utilization reporting, and team management into a single workspace so production leaders can plan with confidence and protect their margins.

## Key Features

-   Role Planner — Visual timeline for scheduling people across projects with drag-and-drop
-   Crew Planner — Manage crew assignments and availability across your organization
-   Cost Tracking — Real-time cost analysis with bid rate, loaded rate, salary, and net margin views
-   Scenario Planning — Model alternative staffing plans side-by-side before committing
-   Utilization Reports — Track team utilization rates and identify capacity gaps
-   Cost Reports — Periodic cost breakdowns by project, role, and time period
-   Material Tracking — Manage software licenses, hardware, and other cost categories
-   Timesheet — Record and review actual hours worked against planned schedules
-   Multi-Currency — Full support for global teams with automatic currency conversion

## Getting Started

When you first sign in, you will see the **Projects** overview. From there you can create projects, set up your organizational groups, and begin planning your workforce.

-   Set up your organizational Groups (departments, divisions, locations)
-   Add Crew members with their roles, rates, and availability
-   Create Projects and define their timelines
-   Open the Role Planner to start scheduling people to projects
-   Switch to Cost mode to see the financial impact of your staffing plan
-   Use Reports to track utilization and costs over time

## Navigation

Use the **sidebar** on the left to navigate between sections. The sidebar is organized by what you are doing:

-   PROJECTS — the portfolio; open one and the sidebar switches to that project's Plan, Produce and Account views
-   PLAN — Role Planner, Crew Planner, and Task Gantt across all projects
-   TRACK — Timesheet and Work Hours as they are logged and approved
-   REPORTS — Weekly Status, Utilization, Cost Report, and Composer
-   SETUP — Crew, Groups, Pipelines, Cost Categories, Software, Hardware, and Security Groups

Tip: Click the theme toggle icon in the top-right corner to switch between dark and light mode.