Jen Elsam, Project Manager - “Project management is like conducting an orchestra. Each element, no matter how small, plays a crucial part in creating a harmonious and successful symphony of deliverables. Stay organized, communicate clearly, and lead with purpose."
The statement of Jen Elsam clarifies that even small aspects of the project determine the performance of the project. Among the various aspects of project management, research allocation, and time management are very crucial in project management and balancing project demands. Before diving into the main agendas of their significance, let's delve into their depictions.
Resource Allocation: Resource allocation is the process of assigning and entrusting the available resources to the projects or works on the basis of their priority and significance keeping effectiveness and economizing perspective in mind. Research allocation is done in such a way that they should be available for various tasks in a very mindful way. Resources are generally available in low manners but the demand always remains high hence the responsibility of strategizing the possible options for utilizing available resources lies upon the project managers. It exemplifies the roles and responsibilities of project managers that effective resource allocation is required for balancing project demands and meeting project goals.
Time Management: It is the process of completing tasks within the stipulated deadlines by organizing and managing every task within the managed time frame. If the deadlines are not met, the outcomes of the entire project may get hampered.
Resource allocation and time management are like the two sides of a coin of project management. Both processes have to be managed very precisely. If the right resources are available at the right time and time is managed effectively to utilize the available resources, the projects can be completed within time considering budget constraints. If the resource allocation is done based on the priority and importance of the project, it helps to manage the costs incurred during the operation of the project. As mentioned earlier, resources and time are very limited but project demands are always increasing. The benefits of research allocation and time management can be enumerated as below:
i) Underutilization and overutilization of resources are eschewed due to optimal utilization of resources indicating the project is going on the right track considering time and budget.
ii) With efficient time management, a stable workload apportionment is maintained resulting in efficiency and productivity of the human resources.
iii) There are certain types of risks associated with project management. With the allocation of resources in the proper manner and management of priorities in a time frame, such risks can be mitigated.
iv) Any project can't be operated straightforwardly. Certain changes and unanticipated disturbances may arise at any time. With the earlier strategization of resource allocation and time management whenever the project demands arise or preferences change, reallocating becomes easier without affecting the project outcomes or deliverables.
v) The right people are allocated at the right time for specific tasks and when the skills align with the tasks, it avoids wastage of time and boosts team morale and job satisfaction.
Effective project management leads to job satisfaction of the team members, incoming businesses, and organizational eminence.
There are various methods of resource allocation such as:
1. Software allocation: No full utilization of resources capacity
: Full flexibility in allocating resources to other projects
: Temporary allocation done with specific reasons
: Done for planning purposes
2. Harder allocation: Full utilization of resources’ capacity
: Allocation of resources to an entire project
: Long-term allocation committed to the single project
: Possibility of conversion from soft allocation to hard allocation
3. Bottom-to-top approach: Creation of project work breakdown structure by project managers
: Identification of the tasks that need to be performed within a time frame
: Allocation of resources on the basis of determined tasks
: Suitable for projects when all the information is known earlier
4. Top-to-bottom approach: Used when the project details are not fully available
: No idea of the overall project scope to the project or resource manager
: Reservation of resources just to be in a safe space to conduct the project tasks later
Process of Research Allocation in Project Management
Resource allocation is one of the pivotal aspects of project management. For effectiveness in project operation, resource allocation procedures should be followed very squarely.
Before allocating the resources to any specific task, there should be the identification of resources, roles, and responsibilities required such as project managers, team leaders, engineers, and materials needed. The resources should be singled out on the basis of project requirements. Without recognizing what resources and what kind of expertise are required, the further processes of research allocation are impracticable.
After the resources’ identification for project requirements, the process of assessing the available resources must move ahead. The availability of resources such as human resources, materials, expertise, and caliber with the pool are reviewed. The machinery, software, inventory levels, working personnel, and everything else are assessed in the second process.
Certain factors are to be considered in this process including project deadlines, monetary discipline, strategies, clients’ demands, and many more. Based on these factors, the projects undergo prioritization. Those projects with limited deadlines and higher resource allocation are considered as high priority projects whereas vice versa for projects with longer timelines and lower budget allocation. Based on prioritization, the project execution task is moved ahead.
Based on high and low-priority projects, resources are allocated to the projects. Considering the availability of resources, other requirements are identified such as job roles, and equipment for the definite projects. When human resources, machinery, and other software are assigned to the projects, the project execution can improve.
There should be flexibility in adaptation to new changes if required. For example, it may involve assigning new personnel to other projects if their capability matches with other projects rather than the existing projects. Additional materials may also add up in the project to cater the project demands. Whenever adjustments are required, there should be pre-planning strategization for adjustments and new optimizations in the project.
How can Time management be executed for effective project management?
To meet the designed deliverables and accomplish all the tasks before project deadlines/timelines, there should be allocation of time to the projects in a wise manner that can be termed as time management. Time is also a resource in project management. Some points pinpointed below for effective time management:
i) Designing a well-defined project plan from Phase I to Phase (last)
ii) Engagement and regular communication with all the project stakeholders
iii) Proper strategy-making regarding flexible options and adjustments
iv) Developing a befitting task breakdown/workload structure
v) Neglecting the clueless/purposeless meetings and discussions
vi) Monitoring and evaluating individual performances
vii) Strict disciplinary actions within the team members to maintain work discipline
viii) Open ideas, feedback, and recommendation platform for all the team members for quick and prompt action in project management
Difficulties regarding Resource Allocation and Time management
1. Frequent changes in client requirements leading to Scope Creep
2. Frequent adjustments and reevaluations in project management
3. Finding the right person for the right job at the right time
4. Chances of miscommunication if information is not disbursed properly
5. Tracking of multiple tasks and projects in a single time
To minimize these uncertainties, there should be maintained a proper communication channel among the project team members. The usage of project management software is a plus point as such software provides real-time updates and helps to assign tasks and people based on budget, skills, availability, and comparatively. There should be encouragement in the creation of cross-functional teams to enhance disciplinary collaboration and ideas’ sharing environment for good project execution.
In a nutshell, resource allocation and time management are critical aspects of project management. For balancing and managing the project demands, these components have to proceed with chronological procedures and corrective actions.