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# Project Resource Management

1. Physical resources include equipment, materials, facilities, and infrastructure. Human
resources include Team resources or personnel.
2. Trends in resource management lean management, just in time (JIT), manufacturing,
Kaizen, total productive maintenance (TPM), theory of constraints (TOC).
3. Resources can be obtained from the organization’s internal assets or from outside the
organization through a procurement process.
4. Data Representation: The Objective is to ensure that each work package has an
unambiguous owner and that all team members have a clear understanding of their roles
and responsibilities.
✓ Hierarchical charts: The traditional organizational chart structure
can be used to show positions and relationships in a graphical, top-
down format.
▪ Work breakdown structure (WBS): designed to show how
project deliverables are broken down into work packages and
provide a way of showing high-level areas of responsibility.
▪ Organizational breakdown structure (OBS): is arranged
according to an organization’s existing departments, units, or
teams, with the project activities or work packages listed
under each department. You may see all project
responsibilities by looking at OBS.
▪ Resource breakdown structure: hierarchical list of team and
physical resources related by category and resource type that
is used for planning, managing and controlling project.
✓ Assignment Matrix:
▪ Responsibility Assignment Matrix (RAM) shows the project
resources assigned to each work package. It is used to
illustrate the connections between work packages, or
activities, and project team members.
▪ High-level RAM can define the responsibilities of a project
team, group, or unit within each component of the WBS.

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▪ Lower-level RAMs are used within the group to designate

roles, responsibilities, and levels of authority for specific
activities.
▪ Matrix shows all activities associated with one person and all
people associated with one activity. To ensure that there is
only one person assigned to one task to avoid confusion.
▪ Example of RAM is a RACI (responsible, accountable,
consult and inform) chart.
▪ RACI chart is a useful tool to use to ensure clear assignment
of roles and responsibilities when the team consists of internal
and external resources.
✓ Text-oriented Formats: Team member responsibilities that require
detailed descriptions can be specified in text-oriented formats.
Document provides information like responsibilities, authority,
competencies, and qualifications. This document may be called
(position description and role-responsibility) and it may be used as
template for future projects.
5. Organizational theory:
✓ Provides information regarding the way in which people, teams, and
organizational units behave.
✓ Effective use of common techniques identified in organizational
theory can shorten the amount of time, cost and effort needed to create
the Plan Resource Management process outputs and improve planning
efficiency.
6. Resource Management Plan:
✓ Role: function assumed by, or assigned to, a person in the project
✓ Authority: The rights to apply project resources, make decisions, sign
approvals, accept deliverables, and influence others to carry out
project work
✓ Responsibility: assigned duties and work that a project team member
is expected to perform in order to complete the project’s activities
✓ Competence: skill and capacity required to complete assigned
activities within the project constraints. If project member doesn’t

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have required competencies, proactive response such as training,

hiring, schedule changes, or scope changes are initiated.
✓ Project organization charts: graphic display of project team members
and their reporting relationships. It can be formal or informal based
on the need of the project.
✓ Project team resource management: Guidance on how project team
resources should be defined, staffed, managed, and eventually
released.
✓ Recognition plan: Which recognition and rewards will be given to
team members and when.
7. Team Charter:
✓ Document that establishes the team values, agreements, and operating
guidelines for the team.
✓ Includes (Team values, Communication guidelines, Decision-making
criteria and process, Conflict resolution process, meeting guidelines
and Team agreements).
✓ Establishes clear expectations regarding acceptable behavior by
project team members (Ground Rules).
✓ Early commitment to clear guidelines decreases misunderstandings
and increases productivity.
✓ Team charter works best when the team develops it, or at least has an
opportunity to contribute to it.
✓ Team charter can be reviewed and updated periodically.
8. Resource Breakdown Structure:
✓ Hierarchical representation of resources by category and type.
✓ Categories include labor, material, equipment, and supplies.
✓ Resource types may include the skill level, grade level, required
certifications.
✓ It is used to guide the categorization for the project. In this process it
is a completed document that will be used to acquire and monitor
resources.

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9. Negotiation: Many projects need to negotiate for required resources. The team ability to
influence others is an important role in negotiating resource allocation. The project
management team may need to negotiate with
✓ Functional Manager: Ensure that the project receives the best
resources possible in the required timeframe and until their
responsibilities are complete.
✓ Other project management teams within the performing organization.
✓ External organizations and suppliers: Provide appropriate, scarce,
specialized, qualified, certified, or other specific team or physical
resources.
10. Pre-Assignment:
✓ When physical or team resources are determined in advance, they are
considered pre-assigned.
✓ This occur if the project is the result of specific resources being
identified as part of a competitive proposal or if the project is
dependent upon the expertise of particular persons.
✓ Pre-assignment might also include the team members who have
already been assigned in Develop Project Charter Process or other
processes before the initial Resource Plan has been completed.
11. Virtual Teams:
✓ The use of virtual teams creates new possibilities when acquiring
project team members.
✓ Virtual teams are defined as groups of people with a shared goal who
fulfill their roles with little or no time spent meeting face to face.
✓ The availability of communication technology has made virtual teams
feasible.
✓ Communication planning becomes increasingly important in a virtual
team environment.
12. Physical Resources Assignments:
✓ Documentation of the physical resource assignments records the
material, equipment, supplies, locations, and other physical resources
that will be used during the project.

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13. Project Team Assignments:

✓ Documentation of team assignments records the team members and
their roles and responsibilities for the project. Documentation can
include a project team directory and names inserted into the project
management plan, such as the project organization charts and
schedules.
14. Resource Calendars:
✓ Identifies the working days, shifts, start and end of normal business
hours, weekends, and public holidays when each specific resource is
available.
✓ Information on which resources are potentially available during a
planned activity period is used for estimating resource utilization.
✓ Resource calendars also specify when and for how long identified
team and physical resources will be available during the project.
✓ The information may be at the activity or project level.
15. Tuckman ladder which includes five stages. Projects with team members who worked
together in the past may skip a stage:
✓ Forming: a phase where the team members meet and learn about the
project and their formal roles. Team members tend to be independent
and not as open in this phase.
✓ Storming: the team begins to address the project work, technical
decisions, and the project management approach. If team members are
not collaborative or open to differing ideas and perspectives, the
environment can become counterproductive.
✓ Norming: team members begin to work together and adjust their work
habits and behaviors to support the team. The team members learn to
trust each other.
✓ Performing: Teams that reach the performing stage function as a
well-organized unit. They are interdependent and work through issues
smoothly and effectively.
✓ Adjourning: the team completes the work and moves on from the
project. This typically occurs when staff is released from the project

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as deliverables are completed or as part of the Close Project or Phase

process.
16. Colocation:
✓ Colocation involves placing many or all of the most active project
team members in the same physical location to enhance their ability
to perform as a team.
✓ Colocation strategies can include a team meeting room or common
places to post schedules.
17. Team Building:
✓ Team building is conducting activities that enhance the team’s social
relations and build collaborative approach and cooperative working
environment.
✓ Team building activities can vary from a 5-minute agenda item in a
status review meeting to an offsite, professionally facilitated event.
✓ Objective of team-building activities is to help individual team
members work together effectively.
✓ While team building is essential during the initial stages of a project,
it should be a continuous process. Changes in a project environment
are inevitable, and to manage them effectively, a continuous or
renewed team-building effort may be applied.
18. Recognition and Rewards:
✓ Part of the team development process involves recognizing and
rewarding desirable behavior.
✓ The original plan for rewarding people is developed during the Plan
Resource Management process.
✓ Money is viewed as a tangible aspect of any reward system, but
intangible rewards could be equally or even more effective.
19. Training:
✓ Examples of training include classroom, online, computer-based,
training from another project team.
✓ Scheduled training takes place as stated in the resource management
plan.

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✓ Unplanned training takes place as a result of observation,

conversation, and project performance.
✓ Training costs could be included in the project budget or supported by
the performing organization if the added skills may be useful for
future projects.
20. Individual and Team Assessments:
✓ Helps project managers assess team members’ preferences,
aspirations and how they process.
21. Team Performance Assessments:
✓ As project team development efforts such as training, team building,
and colocation are implemented, the project management team makes
formal or informal assessments of the project team’s effectiveness.
✓ Effective team development strategies are expected to increase the
team’s performance, which increases the likelihood of meeting the
project objectives.
✓ As a result of conducting evaluation of the team’s overall
performance, the project team can identify the specific training,
coaching or changes required to improve the team performance.
22. Conflict management:
✓ Conflict is inevitable in a project environment. Sources of conflict
include scarce resources, scheduling priorities, and personal work
styles.
✓ Successful conflict management results in greater productivity and
positive working relationships. When managed, differences of
opinion can lead to increased creativity and better decision making
✓ Conflict should be addressed early and usually in private, using a
direct, collaborative approach. If disruptive conflict continues, formal
procedures may be used, including disciplinary actions
✓ There are five general techniques in resolving the conflict:
▪ Withdraw/avoid: Retreating from an actual or potential
conflict situation; postponing the issue to be better prepared
or to be resolved by others.

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▪ Smooth/accommodate Emphasizing areas of agreement

rather than areas of difference; conceding one’s position to the
needs of others to maintain harmony and relationships.
▪ Compromise/reconcile: Searching for solutions that bring
some degree of satisfaction to all parties in order to
temporarily or partially resolve the conflict. This approach
occasionally results in a lose-lose situation.
▪ Force/direct: Pushing one’s viewpoint at the expense of
others; offering only win-lose solutions, usually enforced
through a power position to resolve an emergency. This
approach often results to a win-lose situation.
▪ Collaborate/ problem solve: Incorporating multiple
viewpoints and insights from differing perspectives, requires
a cooperative attitude and open dialogue that typically leads
to consensus and commitment. This approach can result in a
win-win situation.
23. Emotional Intelligence: Ability to identify, assess, and manage the personal emotions
of oneself and other people. The team may use it to reduce tension and increase
cooperation by identifying, assessing, and controlling the sentiments of project team
members and follow up on their issues.
24. Leadership: Successful projects require leaders with strong leadership skills. Leadership
is the ability to lead a team and inspire them to do their jobs well. It encompasses a wide
range of skills, abilities and actions. Leadership is important through all phases of the
project life cycle.
25. The Control Resources process is concerned with physical resources such as equipment,
materials and facilities. Team members are addressed in the Manage Team process.
26. Performance reviews: Performance reviews measure, compare, and analyze planned
resource utilization to actual resource utilization.
27. Trend Analysis: Trend analysis examines project performance over time and can be used
to determine whether performance is improving or deteriorating.

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