Community Post

3 December 2010

Managing Resource Allocation Across Multiple Projects

By Ginger Levin, DPA, PMP, PgMP, OPM3 Certified Assessor and Consultant

Today, it is rare to have all the resources we need in our work as program and project managers. Continual changes, downsizings, mergers, acquisitions and the complexity of our programs and projects mean we are constantly forced to do more with less.

Increasingly, more organizations are using program management as a way to better manage multiple projects. Programs are set up if the projects in the program have interdependencies among them. If we use program management, we can deliver more benefits to our stakeholders than if the projects were managed in a standalone manner.

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Through program management, it is easier to optimize resource use and productivity and resolve any conflicts among resources that affect the projects in your program. This is especially necessary when resource use is a key priority of your executive team.

The role of the program manager is more challenging than that of the project manager. As a program manager, you have a far larger scope and must deal with more diverse stakeholders. You also must expect and embrace change and use change to your advantage. Your goal is to make sure your project teams complete the assigned work and meet their objectives, but a major issue is how to best leverage resource use across the program.

Resource Plan
One approach you can use is to develop a program resource plan. This is different from a staffing management plan, as you are looking at all program resources—people, tools, facilities, materials and finances.

But with change so constant on programs, you then must track and adapt the use of your program’s resources and monitor resource allocation. This means you need up-to-date information on resource availability to see if one project in your program has resources that are underallocated and can be better used on another project. And you may have key subject matter experts who are required on several projects.

Tool Ideas
A tool that is helpful is a program management information system (PMIS). This system focuses on resource productivity to enable you to quickly identify any resource conflicts that may occur in advance, since many projects in a program will have both high and low resource demands. It is broader than a project management information system, as its purpose is to collect status and performance data to assist in identifying early any resource issues and evaluate their effect on the program.

Developing such a system and maintaining it is easier said than done. You do not want to have so much information that it takes too much time to analyze it, and you do not want to overload your project managers with the need to continually prepare and submit status reports. You also want to easily locate the information you need to assist you in leveraging resources on your program.

Another useful tool is to prepare a resource breakdown structure (RBS) and link it to your program work breakdown structure. You then can see the resource requirements for each of the program and project work packages. Use of the RBS can help you determine the specific skills and competencies you require, as well as the quantity, for each of your program’s activities. You want to make sure you have the team members and other resources you need available when you need them to meet your objectives.

You also can prepare resource histograms to show when a resource may be overused or underused at various time periods to help you determine whether you can adjust your resource plan. Your PMIS can help you decide whether some activities on your program can be delayed until an overcommitted resource can be reassigned to work on another project. If your PMIS is using software, strive to understand how it handles resource allocation so you know the logic that is being used and the process to shift the timing of your program’s activities.

Resource management is a demanding and challenging task but totally essential to achieve the program’s goals and objectives and to make sure deliverables are completed as planned. It is especially difficult if the schedule end dates for the projects in your program, and for your overall program, are fixed. As the program manager, you are the leader and must be proactive and work diligently to manage resource allocation and identify and resolve any conflicts as early as possible.

Dr. Ginger Levin, PMP, PgMP, and an OPM3 Certified Assessor and Consultant, has been active in project, program, and portfolio management for more than 40 years as a practitioner and educator. She is the author of Interpersonal Skills for Portfolio, Program, and Project Managers (2010) and the co-author of 10 other books. Dr. Levin welcomes your comments.