What Is Resource Management?

Effective resource management is nowadays fundamental for an efficient operation in a company. It is a process of transferring resources so that they bring the greatest benefit to the company. They can be divided into tangible (financial and physical resources) and intangible (human, organisational and technological resources) ones.

The following article tells you everything about resource management, why it is so important, the different techniques and the benefits of resource planning.

What are resources?

To explain resource management in an understandable way, it is essential to know what resources exactly are. According to Wikipedia, a resource is a tangible or intangible good.

For example, a mobile crane with a load capacity of 130 tonnes is in transport logistics a material resource.

Individuals with a particular gift that decisively helps them in their work have intangible resources.

In project management, these resources are relevant:

Money: What is the staff, software, hardware, or equipment budget?
Staff: How many staff members are needed to provide a planned delivery on time? What qualifications are required for this, and at what time do you need the manpower?
Work equipment: What equipment is needed and is it available at the appropriate time? Work equipment includes: vehicles, pipe systems, hardware, conference systems, software licences, storage systems or knowledge databases, and much more.
Infrastructure: This is usually office space or other workplaces eg. laboratories for the production of medicines. Ethernet connections or power sockets are also part of the infrastructure.

What is resource management - explanation?

What is resource management? It is the process of allocating resources, so they bring the greatest benefit to the organisation.

A good resource manager ensures that the appropriate resources for the relevant tasks are available at the right time.

Resource Management Definition:
What is resource management? It is defined as the practice of planning, scheduling and assigning people, financial resources and technology in relation to a project or programme.

To achieve a goal, such as carrying out a task or project, or analysing the amount of work needed, it is essential to have resources.

The aim of good resource planning is to use the best combination of different resources to meet the requirements, and to recognise that there is an equal need for the same resources in other areas of the business.

These questions should be asked during the planning process:

When will each resource be available and to what extent?
What is the expected timetable for the activities?
How many resources are needed to carry out each activity?
Who is best suited to carry out the activities?

What is resource management - plan of action?

An effective resource plan represents the specific resources (including human and financial as well as technical and physical resources) and related activities that are needed in a project.

It provides guidance through all the variables of the project, such as budget, human resources, capacity planning, technological limitations or whatever is needed.

With the resource management plan, the resource manager can easily manage, plan and allocate each resource while optimising its availability. This results in more effective execution of projects or initiatives.

Why is resource management so important?

First and foremost, resource management is transparent. This means that you have absolute control, the ability to see, monitor and achieve everything that is needed to deliver projects. The resource manager can, among other things, minimise the idle time or overload resources.

With a complete overview, tasks and resources can be planned and managed more effectively or added to the appropriate actions at the right time.

To realise the importance of resource management, you only have to consider the disadvantages of a missing resource planning. There is neither control nor an overview of the projects.

No business enterprise can afford any wastage, which is why resource management matters so much. It focuses on optimisation and efficiency.

Some companies specially assign a resource manager who is only responsible for this task.
While a project manager creates and assigns tasks for the execution of a project, the resource manager is responsible for providing the necessary resources to make the action successful.

What is resource management - efficient benefits?

The importance of good resource management can be easily explained by the following advantages:

Keine unvorhergesehenen Störungen:

Zero unforeseen disruptions: Faults and errors can be prevented due to good resource management. This is done by pre-understanding the opportunities and planning their use. No work overload: You get an insight into the workload of the team and therefore avoid being overloaded.
Security network: Through resource planning and management, you can demonstrate that everything possible was done with the available resources in the event of an unsuccessful project.
Transparency: Absolute transparency means that nobody is left out. Other teams have insight into your projects and can plan better accordingly.
Efficiency: With good resource management, you understand what is required to manage and execute a project. This leads to effective planning and the return on investment (ROI) becomes measurable.
Efficiency: With good resource management, you understand what is required to manage and execute a project. This leads to effective planning and the return on investment (ROI) becomes measurable.

What does resource management include and which techniques are there?

Resource management is very complex because many elements are involved in the optimisation process, such as skills, availability, location, and cost.

To maximise the efficiency of resources, companies use certain techniques and rely on appropriate software for the best possible transparency and the smartest decisions.

Resource allocation

Resource allocation is the process of extracting maximum value from available resources. Yet, it involves more than just allocating funds to projects. It involves the skills of the team and the available resources. Project managers like to use resource allocation reports to filter resources by skills and capacities, so that not only is it possible to see who is currently available, but also which skills are at hand. This makes planning easier and reduces possible delays.

Use of resources

The purpose of resource utilisation is to maintain the capacity of the team over a period of time and to be able to determine whether resources are under utilised or overloaded. This resource management technique is important because overloaded employees are often affected by burnout. Through utilisation reports, it is possible to see if there are opportunities for improved effectiveness, productivity, and performance without overstretching the workload.

Resource alignment

Resource alignment is a balancing process of supply and demand. During this important process, resources for one or more projects are being maximised according to their capabilities. The objective is to maximise the use of the resources already available before having to increase staff or hire an external service provider.

By recognising all the staff's skills, it is possible to fill any gaps that may exist and minimise the use of resources.

Resource projection

Resource management ensures that ongoing projects can be smoothly carried out with the appropriate resources. The real advantage is planning. To weigh up possible resources for current and future actions. For this, it is necessary to know the current capacities as well as the future actions and their requirements.

Thanks to resource projection, it is possible to make predictions, identify possible conflicts and prioritise resources on a timeline.

Conclusion – Good resource management for more efficiency

Commercial enterprises are particularly dependent on effective business processes to be competitive. For this, resource management is of great importance because it focuses on optimisation and efficiency. Good management is beneficial for the company as well as for the employees, as work overloads are eliminated and all staff skills can be drawn upon.

An important resource in your company could be Air-Log's pneumatic tube system. Whether it's a dairy, a chocolate factory or a steel mill, a freight forwarding company, an automotive company or an airport – all larger industrial operations have one thing in common: very long distances. However, these have to be overcome in the shortest possible time, for example to send a food sample to the laboratory or a steel sample to quality assurance. Simple, fast and cost-efficient, our industrial pneumatic tube systems support your large-scale operation by reducing production processes and the number of employees to achieve the same production output. Soon, the ROI will be measurable.

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