Organizations undertake projects to achieve their business goals. Projects must be conceptualized, planned, and executed with the resources available to the project manager. Smart and timely resource management can make or break a project. This can be a complicated process, especially if there are multiple concurrent projects. Managers use resource management reports to professionally monitor and allocate resources and rely on resource planning software to do this.
What is resource management?
The process of planning, assigning, and scheduling resources (both human and equipment and technology) for different tasks that complete a project is called resource management. Organizations need resources to achieve their goals, and good resource management ensures that the right resources are available for the right task at the right time.
Project managers must prioritize tasks and use resources to their optimum capacity. To do this they need to have accurate information on:
- What resources and skill sets are available in the organization?
- Are available resources being used to their full capacity?
- What demands will ongoing and anticipated future projects have on these resources?
- What is the balance between resource demand and resource capacity?
- Is it necessary to hire more resources?
- Are resources allocated based on project and task priority?
- Are work schedules balanced for all resources?
- What are budgets and financial data?
- Are project deadlines and deadlines being followed?
In addition, managers must also ensure that the projects they take on are aligned with corporate strategy. These are the key factors that drive the profitability and sustainability of the organization, and these all fall within the realm of resource management, which is critical to timely and successful project delivery.
How does resource planning software help managers?
We saw how important resource management is for the successful execution of a project. Traditionally, it was possible to follow manual systems to do this, but as projects expand and grow in complexity, managers can find it difficult to do justice to all tasks by following ad-hoc systems. They are now increasingly using resource planning software to manage resources. The myriad tools this offers allow the manager to get an overview of the entire project, and the full visibility and transparency help you allocate resources to various tasks.
Resource management reports are a project manager’s go-to tools that allow you to check resource availability, assign the right resource to the right task, and schedule available resources in a way that ensures there is enough capacity to complete all tasks. ongoing projects. and accurately plan future ones as well. These reports provide managers with an overview of their projects and allow them to plan and execute them efficiently and effectively, with optimal resource utilization and maximum profitability.
Resource planning software like eResource Scheduler has many features that make the project manager’s job easier by simplifying and assisting in short- and long-term planning. These give them more visibility, a key feature that helps them schedule and allocate resources and set realistic deadlines.
eResource Scheduler Top 5 Reporting Features
eResource Scheduler comes with several tools that help in resource planning by ensuring:
- detailed planning
- more efficient programming
- maximum utilization of resources, and
- better overall project management.
eRS Cloud by eResource Scheduler helps managers profile, identify and schedule qualified resources for various tasks and projects, making sure that all resources are used efficiently. The dashboard feature provides real-time visibility with all resource availability, assignment, and scheduling information accessible in one place. This makes it easier for administrators to monitor and track resources. They can also move or reallocate resources for optimal utilization.
Managers can use the eRS Cloud to generate various resource management reports that give them better insight into how resources are performing and where the project is headed. Project managers can match the skills of available resources to the right tasks, leading to stronger teams and more efficient project implementation. Access to financial data helps them monitor project costs and ensure that it is completed within predetermined timeframes and budget.
Let’s look at the top 5 reporting features of this software and the benefits they offer to businesses and project managers:
1. Measure resource availability and utilization at all levels: Resource utilization reports help measure how many resources and skills are available across the organization, and how well they are being used for various tasks across projects in progress. eResource Scheduler calculates and reports on the utilization of every task and project in the organization. Information is at the project, branch, and geographic location levels, making this software especially beneficial for businesses with multiple locations.
Managers can also create pools of resources, teams, locations, etc. and then you can filter the usage data for each of the pools. This gives managers the information they need to identify areas that require optimization. They also have the option to organize reports according to their preferences and then quickly switch between them. Different users have different preferences. The various basic and advanced settings in the reports can be configured to suit individual preferences.
2. View utilization levels by projects or resource types: Users can configure reports according to their preferences. Reporting data can be organized and viewed by projects or resources, or by any other grouping that has been created. Resources can be divided by teams, project managers, departments, etc., while projects can be grouped by managers, business units, geographic locations, etc. By using these different options, managers can gain a holistic view of what resources are available within the organization and how they are used.
Project management is a dynamic process. By comparing actual and planned reports, managers can compare utilization and capacity. This comparison highlights resource scarcity or skill gaps and helps them better plan future tasks and projects.
3. Provides always up-to-date reports in real time: All reports of availability and resource utilization are updated in real time as soon as a reservation is created, deleted or modified. This gives users complete transparency, and they can see the latest updated information and make efficient scheduling decisions. Real-time resource availability, assignment, and schedules give managers an idea of remaining capacity and also tell them when resources may be available for other project work.
Resources must be used optimally. This is an ongoing process, and managers need periodic feedback on the present and expected utilization of available resources. This is possible with the eRS Cloud, which organizes and delivers reports with resource utilization data in the short, medium and long term.
4. Visual display makes it easy to compare resource utilization across projects – eRS Cloud gives managers the option to view data across different projects side by side, making comparisons on utilization and allocation more expeditious efficient. This provides managers with better perspective and leads to more informed decision making.
Reports are generated with charts and tables that make the reported data easy to read and understand. These are also useful for seeing at a glance how all your projects, tasks, and resources are working together. Managers can also quickly interpret and compare data for different variables. Charts can be designed to display the information required for particular projects.
5. Allows for color coding of data to highlight: Good reports emphasize easy identification of important data. Therefore, it is essential that all key information is highlighted in the reports. This resource planning software allows managers to define and color-code utilization levels based on organizational requirements. This ensures that they can easily identify which resources are being overused or underused. These resources can then be reallocated to ensure a balanced workload. Managers can easily focus on problem areas. This saves time as projects can continue without interruption and also ensures optimal utilization.
Resource management and usage reports give project managers the arsenal they need to plan and execute projects intelligently, effectively, and efficiently. Having easily and accurately available information makes it more convenient to schedule resources. The panoramic view of resource capacity and availability provided by eResource Scheduler helps managers forecast future requirements and plan workflows. The modification of schedules and plans, as well as the treatment of shortages or bottlenecks are also expedited.
Subscribe to our latest newsletter
To read our exclusive content, sign up now. $5/month, $50/year
Categories: Technology
Source: vtt.edu.vn