May 24, 2022

Resourcing - A Function of Management

Functions of Management - Planning - Organizing - Resourcing - Directing - Controlling.


Planning - Entrepreneurial function - Identifying the business opportunity - Business conceptualizing - Business model (Revenue, Cost, Profit Estimation)

Organizing - Visualizing the facilities and people required and their organization into departments or sections with managerial hierarchies to realize the projections in the business model.

Resourcing - Acquiring capital, facilities and human resources.

Directing - Handing over facilities and circulating assets to people and providing production plans and others guidelines.

Controlling - Measuring results and adjusting plans as needed to achieve the plans that are aligned to the environment as it unfolds in an optimal way to sustain the organization for a long time to come.

A Manager's Job is to get results through people and other resources. Hence acquiring all resources (including human resources) is a function of management. - Narayana Rao (2010)


Resourcing is a function of Management. Resource Efficiency Improvement is a function of Industrial Engineering. Narayana Rao (5 February 2019)

Linkedin Post in IISE Group

The article was first published on Knol in 2010.

Principles of Management Revision/Review Articles - List

Replace the Function Staffing by Resourcing in Functions of Management



Koontz and O'Donnell outlined Planning, Organizing, Staffing, Directing and Controlling as the five functions of management and explained the process of management of these five functions.

In the place of staffing, using the word resourcing, could be a better description of management function at the current stage.

A plan to achieve something (objective) is to be  converted into an organizational plan that has resources,  facilities and people. The manager has to acquire these resources to set up the organization to implement his plan. Acquisition of human resources is staffing. But normally in modern business, the manager has to acquire money resources or finance. Then, using capital and finance, he has to  acquire land, buildings, machinery, materials and various other services. Then comes directing and resource allocation (execution).

During control phase, replanning takes place, reorganization can take place, resource adjustment (resource acquisition or disposal) may take place, and redirecting may take place to achieve the goals set forth for a period.

Planning involves choosing a direction and an intermediate destination. It has to be a profitable and a useful endeavor. In the process of planning cost benefit analysis is done.  Organizing follows and the means by which one reaches the chosen destination is defined during this activity of management.

Organizing is a process of

  • determining, grouping and structuring activities
  • creating roles for individuals for effective performance at work
  • allocating necessary authority (over resources) and responsibility for results for each role
  • determining detailed procedures and systems for different problem areas such as coordination, communication, decision-making, motivation, conflict resolution and so on.

The resources required to achieve a goal are to be identified during the organizing step of management. How many operators are required and how many supervisors are required is a function of technology employed in the organization and this decision has to be taken during the process of organization. Resourcing follows the organizing phase in the acquiring of the resources planned in the organizing phase. Organizing this way is just the planning stage. Resourcing is the stage during which all resources planned in the organizing stage are acquired by the manager.
__________________________________________________________

Resources and Resource Management (APM Body of Knowledge)


What are resources?

According to the APM Body of Knowledge, ‘the resources needed to deliver a project, programme or portfolio include people, financial resources, machinery, materials, technology, property and anything else required to deliver the work. Resources may be obtained internally from the host organisation or procured from external sources’. They can also be consumable and/or re-usable.

Resource management is acquiring, allocating and managing the resources, such as individuals and their skills, finances, technology, materials, machinery and natural resources required for a project. Resource management ensures that internal and external resources are used effectively on time and to budget. Resources may be obtained internally from the host organisation or procured from external sources.

The APM Body of Knowledge defines resource management as 'the acquisition and deployment of the internal and external resources required to deliver the project, programme or portfolio’.    

https://www.apm.org.uk/blog/what-is-resource-management/

Resource Planning 


Resource planning is an economic decision and entrepreneurs have to use it. It is discussed adequately in economics.

Choice of Inputs by the Firm

Every firm or entrepreneur has to decide how much of each input it should employ: how much labor, capital, land, energy, various materials and services.

The fundamental assumption that economists make in this context is that of cost minimization. Firms are expected to choose their combination of inputs so as to minimize the total cost of production.

Least-cost Rule: To produce a given level of output at the least cost, a firm will hire factors until is has equalized the marginal product per dollar spent on each factor of production. This implies that

Marginal product of labor/price of labor  = Marginal Product of Capital Equipment/Price of capital equipment = ...

Thus the firm will choose a factor combination or resource combination that minimizes the total cost of production.  (Source: http://nraomtr.blogspot.com/2011/12/economic-theory-of-production-and.html  )

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Recognition of Role of Resources in Management Process by Various Authors of Principles of Management or Management Process Books

Ernest Dale

Goals and Resources

Once objectives have been set,the planners must decide how far they can proceed toward them in view of the resources available, which include the money on hand, the money that sales will bring, and the funds that may be obtained by borrowing or selling equities. The decision to borrow or sell new stock will, of course, be part of the planning process and will depend on the return expected on the investment.

Finally, the planners must decide on the allocation of the funds to the various company activities and the way in which these funds will be used to generate greater income in the form of sales.  The volume of sales is, in fact, the key factor in all corporate planning.

Ernest Dale, Graduale School of Business, University of Virginia, Management: Theory and Practice, McGraw-Hill Book Company, New York, 1965, p.352, Chapter 22. Planning and Forecasting.

An interesting entry in Wikipedia - Resource Management

In organizational studies, resource management is the efficient and effective deployment for an organization's resources when they are needed. Such resources may include financial resources, inventory, human skills, production resources, or information technology (IT). In the realm of project management, processes, techniques and philosophies as to the best approach for allocating resources have been developed. These include discussions on functional vs. cross-functional resource allocation as well as processes espoused by organizations like the Project Management Institute (PMI) through their Project Management Body of Knowledge (PMBOK) methodology to project management. Resource management is a key element to activity resource estimating and project human resource management. Both are essential components of a comprehensive project management plan to execute and monitor a project successfully
_______________________________________________________________
Resourcing and Resouce Planning Departments
Office of Resource Planning, Universit of Regina
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A new concept being developed as enterprise architecting clearly brings out the need for organizing material and human organizations and provides a process for developing the both organization. From this organization output, resource requirements will be clearly specified and during the resourcing function, manager has to acquire the resources specified in the organization structure.

Harvard Business Essentials on Resource


In the book, Coaching and Mentoring: How to Develop Top Talent and Achieve Stronger Performance, published by Harvard Business School Publishing Corporation, in 2004

Page 2

A Manager's Job is to get results through people and other resources.



Industrial Engineering

Resourcing and resource allocation is Manager's job. Resource efficiency (using resources efficiently) is the concern of Industrial engineers



PPT of Salah R. Agha, Professor Industrial Engineering, Islamic University of Gaza on Facilities Planning and Materials Handling

Indicates role of IEs.


100 Pioneers in Efficient Resource Management: Best practice cases from producing companies

Mario Schmidt, Hannes Spieth, Christian Haubach, Christian Kühne
Springer, 04-Dec-2018 - Science - 530 pages

The book presents about 100 current examples of how energy and materials can be saved in manufacturing companies. They serve to show which measures can be used in modern companies to exploit the potential for resource efficiency. The book is aimed at practitioners in companies and consulting firms, but is also suitable for the university sector as a practical introduction to the topic of resource efficiency. The materials used account for almost 43 percent of the costs of an average industrial company in Germany. Personnel costs, on the other hand, are only 22 percent, while energy costs are as low as 2 percent. If a company wants to save costs, above all it must consider the use of materials and produce in a resource-efficient manner. This simultaneously relieves the environment and reduces dependence on scarce raw materials. The implementation of resource efficiency is not easy. There are indeed numerous starting points in production, often in process innovations or in product development. However, only a few companies publish their measures and savings potentials. In practice, this means that there are often no learning examples in practice, but some of them are explicitly listed in this work. As you can see, resource efficiency in production and products can also be seen as a success factor for many companies. In the project 100 Pioneers in Efficient Resource Management, committed companies from
Baden-Wuerttemberg are showing their solutions. The project was carried out by a competent team from the Pforzheim University and the State Agency for Environmental Technology. Leading trade associations in Baden-Württemberg have supported it.

Resource Management Excellence: The Art of Excelling in Resource and Assets Management

H. James Harrington
Paton Professional, 2007 - Capital - 302 pages
https://books.google.co.in/books?id=tPQSjc7SXXwC

Facilities Planning


James A. Tompkins, John A. White, Yavuz A. Bozer, J. M .A. Tanchoco
John Wiley & Sons, 19-Jan-2010 - Technology & Engineering - 864 pages


When it comes to facilities planning, engineers turn to this book to explore the most current practices. The new edition continues to guide them through each step in the planning process. The updated material includes more discussions on economics, the supply chain, and ports of entry. It takes a more global perspective while incorporating new case studies to show how the information is applied in the field. Many of the chapters have been streamlined as well to focus on the most relevant topics. All of this will help engineers approach facilities planning with creativity and precision.

https://books.google.co.in/books?id=-xBIq6Qm2SQC


Resourcing Activity is well described in Project Management Literature.

Interesting Article

Resource Management by Management Yogi

Resourcing - An Important Activity in Project Management


Resource and Capacity Management - Bibliography


Related topics

The Nature and Purpose of Planning
The Nature of Organizing
Resourcing - A Function of Management
Leading - Introduction
Planning and Execution - Theory and Practice
The System and Process of Controlling


Information Resources Management Association
Advancing the Concepts & Practices of Information Resources Management in Modern Organizations

About Us
IRMA is an international organization dedicated to advancing the research community by bringing together researchers, practitioners, academicians, and policy makers in information technology management. With members spanning over 50 countries worldwide, IRMA seeks to assist organizations and professionals in enhancing the overall knowledge and understanding of effective information resources management in the early 21st century and beyond.

The specific aims of IRMA, include:
To promote and encourage the association among individuals with an interest in the field of management of information resources.
To provide resources, assistance, encouragement, and incentives to individuals either engaged in or planning to become engaged in, the field of information resources management in order to enhance professional's knowledge or IRM issue, and trends.
To promote and publish professional and scholarly journals, periodicals, bulletins, and other forms of publications in the field of information resources management.
These objectives are accomplished through the association's diverse collection of scholarly publications, its membership, and bringing the IRM research community together.

https://www.irma-international.org/about/

Updated  on 24.5.2022, 22.4.2022, 11.3.2022, 10 June 2021
24 December 2019,  9 June 2019,   5 February 2019,  10 August 2018,  3 July 2017,   26 July 2016,  1 Feb 2016, 17 Sep 2015, 25 Feb 2014,
Pub 17.3.2012
Original knol - resourcing-a-function-of-management    2utb2lsm2k7a/ 2345



Details of the Knol

Resourcing - A Function of Management

Authors
Narayana Rao


All Rights Reserved

Version 14

Last edited: 02 Mar 2010

Exported: 26 Nov 2011

Original Knol Number 2345

7 comments:

  1. This blog is very nice and informative!
    Keep update...
    Thanks for sharing.
    Project Resource Management

    ReplyDelete
  2. Comments on Knol

    Comments

    Short urls

    http://knol.google.com/k/-/-/2utb2lsm2k7a/2345


    Narayana Rao - 15 Apr 2011
    short term vs. long term resourcing practice

    Seems to be a good analysis or operational resourcing,
    but I think there is also strategical resourcing,
    which supposes to allow that in long term there be
    no shortage or glut of any resource, and that take
    into account expected evolutions in risk and prospects.

    There might be a conflict between the two aspects.
    A compromise would be to have some flexibility,
    to starve some resources that are presently needed
    for some activities but that might become a weight
    in the future if those activities that are going
    to shrink (or can be sensitive to an economic
    downturn, or to a marketing or technology change)
    and to have more resources than presently needed
    for activities that have a bright future, just to
    be prepared.

    In other word, resourcing should be risk oriented
    and prospect oriented, and take into account the
    "product life cycle"
    There is an article that might help in my site:
    http://pagesperso-orange.fr/pgreenfinch/eanprosp.htm

    Peter Greenfinch - 04 Mar 2010
    Yes, let us accumulate some material and try to develop a knol.

    I am also thinking of the trust capital. Resources will not come to an aspiring manager or an entrepreneur unless he has that trust capital. The providers of resources have to trust his ability to take care of their interests. Management books have to emphasize this point in principles of management books. Customers also will not come and suppliers on credit also will not come. Even employees will not join.

    We know many of us joined knol because we had trust in google management.

    Narayana Rao - 04 Mar 2010
    OK, although I don't think I would be the best one to write such a knol. Maybe we try something collaborative instead. At the moment I would add a couple of ideas.
    * The resource to optimize in priority is the scarciest and costliest one, now or in the future. For example energy is becoming costlier and scarcer.
    * A resource which is getting more and more important in many activities is immaterial, it is the "knowledge + innovation + trust capital". This is often the main element of a business "goodwill" even if it does not show in its accounts. That immaterial part just skyrocketted for Apple an went to the dogs for Toyota.
    * To find resources involves several Departments in a firm : finance, procurement, human resources, but they should not work alone, about every manager in the firm should contribute to combine and optimize those resources.
    * Oh, I was going to forget, the main resource of a business is its customers.

    Peter Greenfinch - 03 Mar 2010
    Very interesting. I suggest that you write a detailed knol on how to determine the optimal resource combination. My thrust is presently on the point that in management process description, resourcing comination decision and resourcing activity have to be brought out prominently. How to take resource combination decisions could be a big area and a detailed knol by people with background in management would be a good addition to online article base.

    I am presenly going through books on management process to find out their treatment of this topic. I found a paragraph in Ernest Dale's book on goals and resources in corporate planning chapter. I need to collect such small paragraphs from various books first to present an argument on how it has to be incorporated in more detail in the introduction to management books.

    Narayana Rao - 02 Mar 2010

    ReplyDelete
  3. Interesting Article. Hoping that you will continue posting an article having a useful information. Guide to resource management

    ReplyDelete
  4. Updated and circulated in social media today. Functions of management list and explanation need change. Organization has to cover organization of material resources also. Resourcing acquisition all resources has to be added to the list of functions in place of staffing.

    ReplyDelete
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  6. Thanks for sharing this blog, Great write-up, and detailed info. There are many online PGDM courses in financial management and I am planning to do one of these course form a distance learning center. keep sharing.

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  7. Planning Resources Required, Organizing Resources and Acquiring Resources. Then they have to be installed and handed over to operating departments. Control of utilization and getting results planned is also involved.

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