Resource Planning – How to Do It Right

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“Even the best team without a plan, can’t score” – Woody Hayes

What is the number one aspiration of a business organization? You can easily answer this question without even thinking for a second – success! This is indeed true. Success is the number one aspiration of every business organization. You want your organization to gain a wide range of customers, earn huge profits, and soar high in success.

You are so enthusiastic and determined to accomplish all these things that you want to jump right into the action. But, hold on determined enthusiasts! Don’t forget to perform resource planning before jumping into action. This is really important as jumping into action, without proper planning of resources may not actually yield the desired results. Further, the mere act of resource planning takes you halfway on the journey to success.

 🚀Read The Ultimate Guide to Productivity🚀

Now, let’s first discuss what resource planning is?

Resource planning is the process by using which you can make the most of your organization’s resources. It helps you make the optimum use of both human and other resources. Further, it also helps you maintain a fine balance between everything such as your organization’s needs and your people’s needs, without compromising on one thing for the other.

All these things make resource planning a very beneficial process.

After discussing the meaning of resource planning, let’s discuss how to do this process in the right way.

7 Steps in Resource Planning 

1. List the Different Projects Your Organization Needs to Undertake for Success

Every organization has some specific requirements for success. Some need to work on their product quality, others need to cultivate an engaged workforce, and so on. So, the first task you need to perform is to list the different projects your organization needs to undertake for success.

To create the list, you have to identify your organization’s shortcomings. Along with this, you also have to think of the new ventures your organization should take up for success.

Further, there are two ways you can create the list in a proper manner. One is to work together with your organization’s leaders and create the list. The other is to include both the leaders and other employees in the process. Both ways are good.

But, the second one, will help you get a broader range of opinions about the projects you need to undertake.

So, you can choose to undertake this step of resource planning either way. However,  you should execute this step with a calm and patient mindset. This is important as this step plays a vital role in deciding the course of action further.

Read Setting Small Business Goals

Picture 1. Make a list of projects

2. Create Teams to Work on Different Projects

After creating the list of projects, you have to designate people with the right skills to work on each one. For this, you can take help from your organization’s HR managers. They are the best people to help you with this process and constitute the right project teams.

But, while constituting a work team, you have to ensure that it has a good number of engaged employees. This is because the presence of some engaged employees is a must for the proper functioning of each team. They give a boost to team productivity and also keep everyone motivated. 

Further, engaged employees are the ones who can lead well and bind the team together.  Not only this, only they can take the team forward to work well for the attainment of the desired results. Otherwise, if an entire work team is constituted of disengaged employees, it will lag behind all other teams and negatively impact your organization’s journey of success. So, you should always add some engaged employees to every work team.

Now, here are some signs to help you identify your engaged employees and ensure their proper division in different work teams.

7 Signs of Engaged Employees

• Engaged employees behave cordially with everyone
• They exhibit lower absenteeism.
• These employees do not engage in conflicts. Rather, they are the conflict resolvers.
• Engaged employees offer you their valuable feedback and help the organization grow.
• They are productive, meet every work deadline, and do not give you a single chance to complain.
• These employees are ready to adjust in all circumstances. This makes them the best people to work in teams.
• Engaged employees participate well in every activity you conduct within the organization. Workshops, celebrations, whatsoever it is, they are ever ready to participate and add positivity to the environment with their presence.

You can utilize these signs to identify your engaged employees. But believe me, in your heart, you are already aware of the engaged ones without even analyzing your employees according to these parameters. Still, these traits of engaged employees will help you get reassured of your beliefs. Further, if there is a lack of engaged employees in your organization, there is still no need for you to worry. You can create different work teams and then implement various employee engagement strategies to engage your employees.

Read Best Examples Of Effective Company Values And How To Make Them

3. Discuss With Different Teams and List the Tools and Resources Required by Them

When done with the creation of different project teams, you can conduct individual meetings with each one to discuss the different tools and resources they need to work. Afterward, you can sit with the team leaders and analyze the list created to ensure that no requirement gets missed.

Once, you are done with listing the requirements of different teams, you can assign the responsibility of making the things available at the earliest, to your organization’s purchase or other suitable departments. Moreover, you should check the status of the availability of the requirements from time to time.

4. Discuss and Set the Time Limits for the Fulfillment of Every Project

As the different requirements of respective teams are getting fulfilled, meanwhile you can conduct meetings with the team leaders and set the timelines for the fulfillment of every project. A timeline is important both to keep your workforce productive and to track the progress of the project. So, you should sit with the leaders of different teams and set achievable timelines for the fulfillment of every project.

Read Project Managers: 5 Best Tips on How to Avoid Burnout

Picture 2. Set time limits

5. Conduct Regular Meetings to Check the Fulfillment Status of Every Project

Your employees need your constant support to stay on track. They need you to push them to work well and stay productive. So, you should conduct regular meetings with different project teams to check the fulfillment status of every project. In fact, you should also keep a check if your employees need any additional tools or resources to perform their work in an even better and speedy way.

Further, if you find that some of your work teams are working slower than expected then, you can tell them to speed up a little. But, make sure to do that in a cordial and soft manner. If you behave harshly, your employees may start getting disengaged.

6. Keep Motivating Your Workforce to Achieve the Desired Goals

This is an important aspect of resource planning, which primarily focuses on keeping your human resources on track of achieving the desired goals. You need to keep your human resources i.e your employees motivated to accomplish the desired results.

For this, you can conduct group meetings, every day in the morning and motivate your workforce to give the best. During these meetings, you can use motivational words to encourage your employees.

Further, you can also play motivational videos during the meetings to inspire your employees. This motivation will fuel your employees to go every extra mile to accomplish the desired goals in the desired time frame. As a result, there will be a tremendous increment in your workforce’s productivity, enthusiasm and you’ll see it achieving everything that you desire.

Read 5 Tips for Effective Communication While Working Remotely

7. Appreciate Your Employees to Keep Them Engaged

Your employees are your best resources and to keep them working in the best manner, you have to keep them engaged. This is because engaged employees are more productive, give the best output, and are self-motivated to ensure your organization’s success.

Now, to keep your employees engaged, the best strategy you can utilize is appreciation. Your appreciation makes your employees feel valued, which boosts their self-esteem and leads them to engagement. So, you should appreciate your employees for every effort they put in to take your organization to the next level. It doesn’t matter whether their efforts produce immediate results or not, but if they put sincere efforts, they deserve your appreciation.

Wrap Up

Resource planning is a prerequisite for your organization’s success. It enables you to make the best use of every resource your organization has. When you make the optimum use of every resource of your organization including time and people, then, nothing can stop you from success. You’ll achieve success for sure.

So, before commencing your journey towards success, you should conduct proper resource planning and this blog will help you do it the right way. Now, wishing you all the best, and may your organization soar high in success.

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Jessica Robinson is a woman of words, who brings with her an experience of a decade. She is an educational writer and has even penned down many motivational blogs for various websites. She spills the magic of her thoughts through her blog ‘The Speaking Polymath’. In this blog, she makes the reader experience her management proficiency along with her skill to resolve matters of global importance.