The Resource Plan

A good resource plan consists of a schedule that is as detailed as possible for the information known, and the types of resources needed for each task. A good resource plan will have a single task owner on each task.

Notice the columns called 'duration' and 'resource type' in our Product Development Activity List below. Duration refers to the timeframe in which the task will be performed. Resource type is the skill set required to accomplish the task. In order to assign tasks to individuals, it is necessary to know the expected duration of a task as well as the individual resource availability. Before assigning individuals to tasks, it is recommended to associate a task with a resource type. Then enter the expected duration of that task based on the resource chosen. This provides the ability to analyze a project schedule, assuming there are no resource constraints on an individual's availability.

Duration is the expected timeframe needed to complete the task while taking into consideration the skill level and general availability of the resource. Duration should account for reality. If the activity 'identification of focus group targets' (WBSID 1.1.1.1) is expected to take two weeks, but historically, employees are only available 70% of the time due to general meetings, holidays, vacations, etc., then planning for a duration of three weeks would be more reasonable.

The resource types used in your organization may be different than what is depicted in this chart. Utilize the resources types that exist in your own organization. The objective here is to associate a responsible party with the appropriate skill set to each of the tasks.

The work package 'project management' has been identified as a level of effort (LOE) activity. This means that the individual(s) assigned to that activity will perform various activities during the full duration of the project. Level of effort is best used when individuals are 100% allocated to the project.