Homework answers / question archive / Project Scenario – Avocado to Vineyard Resource Management Plan Assignment Details Addendum:  Resources   A resource plan organizes, identifies, and lists the resources required to complete a project successfully

Project Scenario – Avocado to Vineyard Resource Management Plan Assignment Details Addendum:  Resources   A resource plan organizes, identifies, and lists the resources required to complete a project successfully

Project Management

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Project Scenario – Avocado to Vineyard

Resource Management Plan

Assignment Details

Addendum:  Resources

 

A resource plan organizes, identifies, and lists the resources required to complete a project successfully. Resources are assets that are required to execute a project; a resource is a broad category and includes equipment, tools, supplies, materials, time, and people.

A proper resource plan will map out the project resource needs – the people, equipment, assets – everything that has a cost required to complete the project.

There are four main stages to resource planning one should follow to ensure your bottom line stays firm and you are able to get the available resources when you need them.  Before the project starts, begin to figure out the resources you’ll need to execute it.

1. Ascertain Resources

After you’ve evaluated the situation and determined what the objectives of the project are, you must determine the resources that you’ll need to reach that goal. This must be thought through as efficiently and cost-effectively as possible. These resources include labor, materials, equipment, facilities, contractors, etc.

2. Procure Resources

You need to start to assemble your team according to the skills and experience the project requires. Equipment must be sourced, and contractors secured. Some of the aspects of this stage of resource planning include developing team roles, procurement needs, contracts, etc.

3. Manage Resources

At this point, you need to define the roles and responsibilities of your team, who is doing what. Subcontractors’ roles also need to be defined. If you’re using tools and equipment that are being rented, then you must make sure they’re returned in a condition that meets the requirements of the contract.  There will be issues, of course, and when they occur you must identify, define, investigate, and analyze, solve and then review.

4. Control Resources  

Somewhat different from managing resources is controlling your resources, which means monitoring the resources during execution to make sure they’re delivering the results that are expected of them. What this boils down to is something called the resource utilization rate, which measures how efficiently you use the resources.  If the utilization rate is too low, action must be taken, such as a cost-benefit analysis. You should always be evaluating outcomes to make sure you stay on track.

 

 

Assignment:  create a 4-part resource management plan (identification of resources and how they’ll be procured, roles/responsibilities chart, responsibilities assignment matrix, and a resource calendar – examples included).

1. Ascertain Resources – determine the resources needed for this project, including the human resources.  List them.
   1. The ‘who’ are the team of contractors that you likely will be hiring to do the work.  There may be others involved.  Identify them all.
   2. Be thorough and thoughtful and consider all aspects of what resources would be required to remove 1000 avocado trees, prep the land, plant 35 acres of trellises and wine grape vines, and erect two structures to produce and house the wine.

 

2. Procure Resources – determine how you will source what you need and who. 
   1. Using the same list from #1, add the detail as to how you will source each of the resources you identified. 

 

3. Manage Resources – create a roles/responsibilities matrix.
   1. No need for a specific name for each role.
   2. Define the roles and responsibilities of your team, the contractors, and any others involved – include the following detail:
      1. Role – description of the portion of the project for which the member is accountable.
      2. Authority – the level at which the member may make decisions or make approvals.
      3. Responsibility – the work a team member must perform to complete assigned work activities.
      4. Competency – the skill(s) required to complete assigned project activities

Example: 

Project Manager –   responsible for the overall success of the Project. The PM must authorize/approve all project expenditures in accordance with what owners have agreed to. The PM is responsible for approving work activities. The PM is responsible for reporting project status. The PM is also responsible for acquiring all team members necessary. The PM must possess the following skills: leadership/management, scheduling, and effective communication.

Next Role –               XYZ…

 

4. Create a responsibility assignment matrix, or RACI, which describes the participation by various roles in completing tasks or deliverables for a project. 
   1. RACI stands for Responsible, Accountable, Consulted, and Informed, and it indicates how various activities mesh to accomplish a given task or complete a project. 
   2. In considering the roles defined in #3, your chart would look similar in format to this example:

5. Lastly, create a resource calendar, which indicates the timing of when your resources are needed. 
   1. Consider your project timeline.
   2. Consider each contractor, and others, and when/how long they’ll be needed.
   3. Indicate the timing and duration on a chart – see example for format of each axis and chart type*:

 

 

* P.S.  If you don’t have excel or don’t know how to create a chart, simply draw free-hand and scan/take a picture of it and upload for credit.