Resource Management | Definition, Importance & Techniques

In the last few decades, resource management has become a very crucial part of modern business structure. This area is quite a bit mature. An array of novel ideas has been introduced ever since it started growing. Resource management has appeared as an independent discipline after organizations became complex with matrix structure and extended in multiple geographies.

Organizations consume a lot of time and cost in building the right talent pool. Therefore, when their skills are utilized to their maximum potential, it enhances overall productivity and profitability.

Definition of Resource Management

Resource management is the process of promoting various types of business resources efficiently and productively. These resources can be human resources, equipment, facilities, assets, and more.

It includes the planning, scheduling, and future allocation of resources to the right project at the right time and cost. Resource management plan permits businesses to optimally apply the skilled workforce and enhance profitability.

Why Resource Management is Important?

1. Minimize project resource costs significantly

With enterprise-wide visibility, resource managers can take advantage of cost-effective global resources from low-cost locations. Having the proper mix of local and global resources helps in cutting down project costs. Allocating the right resource for the right project facilitates them to complete the delivery within time and budget. Resource managers can control costs by sharing key resources uniformly across all projects instead of a top priority project.

2. Provides a safety net

 Let’s say the project was unsuccessful due to lack of resources. Resource planning and management establish that you gave everything you could with what you had.

3. Better Employee Satisfaction

An employee who works regularly beyond the schedule, or taking part in too many simultaneous projects, is going to feel disturbed and disappointed with their job. Therefore, resource management is an important asset to the company. Resource management evaluates the work an employee has on his or her plate and supports project managers to make more strategic decisions about whom to include on new projects and when to do so. This helps to prevent work overload, which can enhance employee’s satisfaction and morale.

4. Improved Project Success

Most project managers appreciate that, in order to deliver a successful project, one requires a successful plan in place. A resource plan acts as a model or roadmap for project accomplishment, helping to detail which resources are necessary at what time, as well as which deliverables will be taken at which time.

5. Bridge the capacity vs. demand gap proactively

Demand estimating, a function of project resource management, grants managers to understand the resource demand ahead of time. It enables them to evaluate and analyze the skills gap within the remaining capacity. After investigating the shortages and excesses, resource managers can design an action plan to bridge the capacity vs. demand gap proactively.

6. Continuously Monitor and improve organization health index

Employees look up to their managers for their pro development. Failing to motivate and provide career development opportunities will often lead to reduced commitment, productivity and random attrition. Regular monitoring of their techniques and performances is useful to help them improve and add more interest to the organization.

7. Improved Project Flow

Resource management is crucial for filling the gaps between where you are now and where you want to go. It helps to set up a roadmap for the project, helping the project to move between departments—if needed—more smoothly and effectively. By setting objectives and improving communication and transparency, project managers find that projects flow is much more smoothly.

8. Effective Use of Resources

While not overloading employees is one side of the project management coin, the other is assuring that the company is carrying out the most of the resources they have. This is especially true in companies that have diminished resources. Resource management is necessary for observing what percentage of a resource’s time is currently being used and who is available, assuring more balanced workloads and more effective use of resources.

Resource Management Techniques

1. Resource Scheduling

Resource scheduling means to calculate the resources involved to complete a task within a specified timeframe. Resource scheduling describes two categories of resource—consumable (materials, money etc.) and re-usable (machinery, human workers, etc.)—and requires three steps to the scheduling process:

1. Allocation
2. Aggregation
3. Scheduling

In the allocation stage, project managers choose what resources they need to complete the work, whether it’s the overall quantity for accessible resources, or the total time and effort needed by re-usable resources.

Aggregation involves sharing these resources over the length of the project—be it days, weeks, or months.

Finally, the scheduling stage considers the limited availability of resources. These limitations are usually identified through resource leveling.

2. Resource allocation

 Resource allocation helps us to get the most from your available resources. Based on team members’ experience, skills and capacity, resource allocation is dealing with the projects using the resources you have at your disposal in the most productive manner possible.

To get an unobstructed view into allocation, project managers will often use resource allocation reports. These can give anywhere from a high-level view to a detailed review of resource availability — helping you prevent schedule delays and going over budget. The better the reporting capabilities at your disposal, the more clarity and efficiency you will have over your projects.

3. Resource Leveling

Resource levelling is basically another type of resource management. This procedure aims to discover under-used or ineffectively used resources within the organization and work them to your advantage. An illustration of resource leveling is having a content writer who has experience in graphic design helps the design team by taking on small content tasks that require design work. If a team member can flex their design skills, the design team won’t need to employ a freelancer if they suddenly get overwhelmed with design requests.

4. Resource Forecasting

Resource Planning skills are vital for getting the most out of an organization’s materials, workers, and budget for the project at hand, but the best project managers know you can never do enough planning.

Resource forecasting is predicting your future resource requirements ahead of time. During the initiation and planning stages, resource forecasting can help figure out the project’s scope, constraints, and probable risks. These factors require a project manager to be as correct as possible when making their forecasts about the project life-cycle, and so requires a comprehensive understanding of the resources in your business, what they’re doing and where they’re going.

To get that transparent, project and resource managers usually invest in technology with planning, modelling and forecasting skills.

Human Resource Management

Human Resource Management (HRM) is the term used to define formal systems devised for the handling of people within an organization. It is a strategic approach to the acquisition, motivation, development and management of the human resources of an organization.

The responsibilities of a human resource manager fall into three vital areas: staffing, employee compensation and advances, and defining work. Essentially, the purpose of HRM is to extend the productivity of an organization by optimizing the effectiveness of its employees. This directive is unlikely to change in any significant way, despite the ever-increasing pace of change in the business world.

Principles Of Human Resource Management

• A business cannot be successful without effectively managing this resource. 
• business success is most likely to be achieved if it closely linked the personnel policies and procedures of the enterprise with, and contribute majorly to, the achievement of corporate targets and strategic plans.
•  Related to scope, holds that it is the HR’s duty to find, secure, influence, and develop employees whose talents and ambitions are compatible with the operating needs and future objectives of the company. 
• Whether by favoring integration and cooperation across the enterprise, establishing quantitative performance measurements, or taking some other action.

Importance of Human resource Management

• Recognizing and valuing individuals.
• HRM manages people, and people bring innovative ideas and skills that help the growth of an organization.
• Quality of work life is a genuine concern, and that employees have a right to safe, clean, and cheerful surroundings, which is one of the duties of HRM.
• It recognizes the need for continuous learning.
• It facilitates continual work adaptation.
• Satisfaction of every employee is the responsibility of HRM.

Credence Resource Management

Employees look up to their managers for their pro development. Failing to motivate and provide career development opportunities will often lead to reduced engagement, productivity, and unplanned attrition. Regular monitoring of their skills and performances is beneficial to help them improve and add more value to the organization.

Terms Related to Resource Management

Project Management

Project Management is leading the work of a team to achieve goals and meet the success criteria of an organization at a specified time.

The primary challenge of it is to complete all the project goals within given constraints. The initial constraints are time, budget and scope. The secondary challenge is to improve the allocation of vital inputs and apply them to meet pre-planned aims. read more>>>

Management Process

Management as a process shows that all managers, regardless of their specialized skills, act in certain interrelated exercises in order to reach their desired objectives.

Definition: Management process is basically a process of defining goals, planning, organizing, controlling and leading the execution of any type of activities, such as a project or a process.

Management process comprises these functions:

• Planning
• Organizing
• Staffing
• Directing
• Coordinating
• Controlling read more>>>

What is Management?

Management may be defined as the art of work done by the people, with the satisfaction of the organisation, employees, and the public. To do this, it is needed to guide, direct, control human effort towards the achievement of the target of the enterprise.

What are the characteristics of management :

• Management is goal-aligned. It fulfils the organizational goal through coordination of the efforts of the personal.
• If labour, materials and capital are input and goods, services are output, then management works as an incentive medium.
• Management displays a system of authority a hierarchy of command. Managers at different levels possess varying degrees of authority. read more>>>