Same-Table Relationship

I have a complex multi-table App used as a Project Management System that supports our End-to-End process from Intake, Governance, Prioritization, Resource Assignments, Status Updates, Multiple Releases, Risks/Issues, Actions, Decisions, Change Requests, etc.   

Our main Project Table has 17 traditional Parent/Child relationships.
We now need to create a 'Same-Table Relationship' to associate numerous projects that are funded under a Big Brother (sibling) project.

Use Case:

• Some projects are funded uniquely and do not have associated sibling projects that are associated.  
• Some projects are Big Brother Projects that are managed as a big complex project and also provide funding for Little Sibling Projects (that are not uniquely funded).
• All Projects that will be funded have a Yes/No condition whether or not the project is a Funded project which also means that it is eligible to be a Big Brother project from a funding perspective.
• The creation of the funding relationship between the Little Sibling Projects and their associated Big Brother Project (which is both a project and a funding source for Little Sibling Projects) will be done be Portfolio Managers AFTER the Little Sibling Projects have been added through our normal intake process.   
  • We would identify that the smaller project will NOT be uniquely funded in a SAFe Triage (governance) meeting.
  • We would then like to 'relate / associate'  these Little Sibling projects to an appropriate Big Brother Projects via a drop down of 'Funded Projects'.   (Drop Down would include the list of Projects for which the Funding Yes/No condition is Yes.)
  • Once the relationship is established, we would report on the rolled up work effort needed for Little Siblings as unique Project rows associated to the Big Brother project.   
  • From an Accounting perspective, only "Funded Projects" are eligible for budgets/actual/projected $. 
• We do NOT see this relationship as Parent / Child Projects due to:
  • All projects (Big and Small) have the same need for relationship to all of the traditional children tables for unique details associated to resources, status reports, governance, decisions, risks, value proposition, attachments, etc.   
  • The only differentiator from a Big Brother project to a Little Sibling project is that the Little Sibling is not uniquely funded, but derives is funding from the Big Brother project.
• Where we are struggling:
  • We have the Same-Table Relationship created, created test rows of funded and non-funded test projects.   We know the relationship from a funding perspective, but are struggling on how to 'relate' the Little Sibling projects to the Big Brother projects.   
    • The Add function tries to create a new project.   These projects will not be created New from this relationship.
    • We wish to simply 'relate' the existing Little Sibling projects to an existing Funded Big Brother project via a drop down of approved Big Brother projects.   (If a Portfolio manager makes a mistake, we would want to alter the relationship when the mistake is discovered.)

Thanks in advance for any guidance you can provide.  :)

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Annetta Coleman
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