Resource Loading: Essential Tips for Project Managers
Resource loading means dividing the hours of work required to complete a project by the available hours of your project team.
Piece of cake, right?
Like all things related to resource planning and allocation, there's a lot more to resource loading than meets the eye. Let's dig into the details so you can understand how to use resource loading effectively. It's worth considering resource allocation software, which is a huge help in loading resources optimally.
What Is Resource Loading?
Resource loading calculates the time it will take to complete project tasks based on resource availability, that is, the amount of work your project team is programmed to take on.
Resource management or project scheduling software can help you build the equation, but it's good to understand the reasoning behind the formula. Thankfully, it's pretty easy concept to understand.
If it were a math problem, it would look like this:
Hours of work required for project completion
————————————————————
Available hours to perform the work
Obviously, the first step is to fill in your numbers. To estimate the numerator, check out DPM’s guide to the project resource management process.
Here, we're going to calculate the denominator—resource availability.
The wrong way to do it
Assuming team members are 100% available to the project and the standard work week is 40 hours, then you simply multiply 40 hours by the number of available resources, and then by the number of weeks.
What's wrong with the math there? We’re talking about humans, not robots. When was the last time you produced eight hours of work uninterrupted? What about meetings? Coffee breaks? Bathroom breaks? Never mind paid time off and sick leave.
The right way to do it
So contrary to what your ex-boss thinks, resource utilization should not equal 100%.
If eight hours per day is not a realistic resource utilization estimate for project planning, what number is reasonable?
Stakeholders likely won’t object to a baseline of 5-6 hours a day, factoring in bathroom breaks, context switching between project tasks, and the inevitable fire drills.
Understanding resource loading is critical when developing strategies for managing multiple projects to prevent over-allocation and ensure project success.
Resource Loading vs. Resource Leveling
Now that I’ve covered resource loading, you may be wondering about another commonly used resource management technique—resource leveling. The table below summarizes the key differences between resource loading and resource leveling.
| Aspect of Project | Resource Loading | Resource Leveling |
|---|---|---|
| Calculating the amount of work you expect team members to perform based on their available capacity (i.e., resource utilization) | Yes | No |
| Rightsizing resource allocation based on priority, project timeline, milestones, and budget | No | Yes |
| Project start and end date | Fixed | Can be adjusted to accommodate resource conflicts |
Check out this article on resource leveling techniques to learn more.
When To Do Resource Loading
You should perform resource loading during the project planning phase to set a baseline for how much time people will have available to dedicate to the project. But, this is not a “set it and forget it” exercise.
You’ll want to reassess resource loading during the monitoring and controlling phase of a project, as many factors may impact the availability of resources:
- New projects arise that take time from critical resources
- Project requirements change, affecting the project duration and/or skill sets required
- The team has optimized its workflow and is able to complete project tasks in a shorter time frame.
How To Create A Resource Loading Chart
Resource loading charts show how work is allocated across your team. The best part? A resource loading chart doesn’t have to be much fancier than a spreadsheet (although using resource scheduling software can streamline the process). Follow these steps to generate your template for a resource loading chart:
- Create a matrix comparing team members with project tasks
- Calculate the number of hours spent on project tasks
- Compare the actual number of hours with the target utilization rate.
1. Create a Matrix Comparing Team Members with Project Tasks
List the team members that support your project on the Y axis. List the tasks required for project completion on the X axis.
2. Calculate the Number of Hours Spent on Project Tasks
Survey your team members to understand how many hours they spend on project tasks each week. For this example, I’ll assume a standard work week of 40 hours.
3. Compare the Actual Number of Hours with the Target Utilization
Now that you understand resource scheduling, you’ll want to compare that with the target utilization. In this example, I’ve decided that team members should aim to spend 6 hours per day on project tasks. Set up conditional formatting to alert you if someone exceeds their target utilization.
Since the project start and end date is fixed, you’ll need to make some trade-offs. Descope some work or identify opportunities for process improvement if you want to reduce how much time Bertram and Lisa are spending on project tasks.
Why Is Resource Loading Important In Project Management?
Resource loading is an important part of managing resources. It benefits your stakeholders, team members, and you! If done properly, resource loading:
- Keeps your stakeholders happy by setting realistic expectations for project success. Having a robust resource calendar and factoring in resource constraints makes it more likely that you will overdeliver than overpromise and underdeliver.
- Reduces the risk of burnout by ensuring that you’re not overloading your team.
- Simplifies your job as a project manager by accurately forecasting resources and the work your team can perform.
Read more about the importance of resource management.
What’s Next?
Want to master the finer points of resource loading? Check out expert-created training from our DPM School.
