How Agile Project Management Prevents Resource Conflicts

Agile Project Management helps when your team has got evolving needs and wants to rapidly deliver the project.

The traditional way, mostly known as the Waterfall methodology fails to keep up with the requirements change.

On one hand, Agile Methodology is about iterative planning whereas on the other hand Waterfall is about sequential planning.

In software development companies there are constant requirements changes.

So a method that is based on continuous planning and feedback through the process will deliver the business value right from the start.

 

It has few benefits, let us walk you through it

• Regular Testing produces high-quality products
  The testings integrated through the production cycle. Regular testing makes sure whether the product is working through the development, and helps resolve issues if any.
• Meeting Customer’s needs
  User interaction is encouraged. The product owner is present every step of the way of progress of development. And his feedback and involvement is essential to deliver the right product.
• Chances of risks are reduced
  From the beginning of the project, in the very first sprint, you have a working product. It completely eliminates the chances of complete project failure.
• Seamless collaboration
  Everyone is on the same page regarding the project, the scrum master, the product owner, and the development team. Daily scrum meetings identify the work done, the work to be done and the issues.
• Prevents resource conflicts
  With ever-changing goals, your team can miss deadlines, and it could lead to project failure. But agile project management can prevent chaos in your workflow process and remove the resource conflict.

When a project manager needs a scarce resource, and there is insufficient capacity to allow all demands on that resource to be met it is called a resource conflict.

When it happens, you ought to ask yourself a few questions to gain much-needed clarity about the problem.

• Is the resource spread out too thin?
• Or is he having trouble prioritizing projects?
• Do other resources have his skill??
• Are they available?
• Can you distribute the tasks?
• If you can’t solve it, can a higher level of project manager do it?
• What is the time you need to solve the conflict?

17% of the projects fail due to poor resource management according to PMI

A proper resource planning can be done with the help of robust project management software.

It helps with planning, analysis, and forecast.

And it can also increase your project success rate exponentially.

“Even though only 22% of the organizations use PM software, 77% of high-performing projects use project management software.- Wellington’s survey”

If you want success, you need to use agile project management to prevent resource conflict.

Here is how it solves the conflicts

1. Optimal use of resources

Efficient resource management involves planning, allocation, and efficient resource utilization.

It makes sure you are making proper use of resources available to you.  It also guarantees that your team is not underperforming or your staff isn’t overburdened.

Happy resources perform to their fullest.

Resource utilization can be effective only when resource allocation is on point.

A project manager picks the resource for a particular task based on his skills and availability.

He checks whether the resource is free enough to take on the task.

Project management software provides you with features like – Resource Availability and Resource Utilization to ease your resource management process.

It helps you analyze whether your resources are over-utilized or under-utilized.

You can check the productivity of a resource by comparing his estimated hours with actual hours spent.

And you can also check whether a resource is available for a particular task with the resource availability feature. A resource availability chart maps out the time a resource can invest.

It shows you whether he is available for the task, overloaded or on leave. If a resource is booked for 8 hours of tasks for that day, then when you assign a task he is on task overload.

If a resource is spread out too thin, you can assign tasks to someone else or you can distribute the task among team members.

This way you can complete the task on time, without overtaxing the resources. The benefits don’t end here.

Here are more advantages of using resource availability.

• Heightened collaboration and team understanding.
• Awareness of task dependencies
• Enhanced clarity on project progress
• Team members are on top of their schedule
• Easy and timely delivery of projects

2. Transparent Communication

Project management becomes a piece of cake when all the information and all the team members are on a single platform.

A common chart listing the availability of all team members gives everyone clarity for future project progress.

It prevents resource conflicts because resource allocation becomes easy.

The PM needs to choose a specific member for a task with relevant skill, who is available in the said time.

When all these lengthy processes become automated through software, this saves a lot of time and there is a better alignment on business objectives.

3. Conflicts prevention saves time

Team and time are the two critical resources. You do not want to waste any.

Agile project management can solve resource conflicts and save time.

The daily catch-up ritual is something to be followed ardently by the team.

You know where your project stands, where it has to go, and you decide which route to take to reach their fastest.

Here is a simple example describing how agile project management prevents resource conflicts.

Our team had to publish five milestone content within a week. But we are a team of 3, Rachel was booked for the week, and so was Tina. It was only Rory who was available for the task.

But our content head knew that 5 for 1 is an unbalanced ratio. The unavailability of other team members took a toll on productivity.

 

So he took the matter in his hands and tried solving the resource conflict. He reallocated the tasks to Tina and Rachel. Tina had 1 milestone content, Rachel had 2 milestone content and Rory had 3 milestone content to deal with.

He reassigned the task priorities and saved the pending tasks for next week.

Even though the resources weren’t completely available, he knew how to re-prioritize and deliver the immediate results important for the project.

10 Techniques To Solve Resource Conflicts Effectively

1. Identify and Understand the Conflict:

The first step in resolving any conflict is to identify and understand its root cause. Whether it’s a clash over time, skills, or priorities, a clear understanding of the conflict’s origin is crucial. Communicate with involved parties to gather insights and perspectives.

2. Establish Open Communication Channels:

Open and transparent communication is the cornerstone of conflict resolution. Create a space where team members feel comfortable expressing their concerns and viewpoints. Foster a culture where conflicts are seen as opportunities for improvement rather than as negative disruptions.

3. Prioritize and Align Goals:

Often, conflicts arise due to misalignment in project goals and priorities. Ensure that project objectives are well-defined and communicated. Encourage teams to align their efforts with overarching project goals, making it easier to resolve conflicts based on shared objectives.

4. Implement a Resource Management System:

Leverage resource management tools and systems to prevent conflicts before they arise. By having a centralized system for resource allocation and availability tracking, project managers can proactively manage resources and identify potential conflicts in advance.

5. Empower Teams with Autonomy:

Grant teams a degree of autonomy in managing their resources. When teams have the flexibility to make decisions about resource allocation within certain guidelines, it can lead to more efficient conflict resolution at the team level, reducing the need for higher-level intervention.

6. Utilize a Conflict Resolution Framework:

Establish a structured framework for resolving conflicts. This may involve defining escalation paths, involving relevant stakeholders, and implementing a step-by-step resolution process. Having a framework in place ensures that conflicts are addressed systematically and comprehensively.

7. Explore Compromise and Win-Win Solutions:

Encourage a collaborative mindset where conflicting parties explore compromise and seek win-win solutions. In many cases, conflicts can be resolved by finding middle ground or alternative approaches that satisfy the needs of all involved parties.

8. Foster a Culture of Continuous Improvement:

Use conflicts as learning opportunities to foster a culture of continuous improvement. After resolving a conflict, conduct a post-mortem analysis to identify lessons learned and implement changes to prevent similar conflicts in the future.

9. Involve Leadership When Necessary:

If conflicts persist or escalate, involve leadership or higher management to provide guidance and support. Leadership can bring a broader perspective to the conflict and may have the authority to make decisions or allocate additional resources to resolve the issue.

10. Document and Review:

Document the resolution process and outcomes for future reference. Periodically review resolved conflicts to identify patterns or trends. This documentation can serve as a valuable resource for improving conflict resolution strategies over time.

Agile project management gives you increased control over the project and helps you to adapt according to the change. What a Project manager learns from it?

• You learn how to be more accommodating
• You become adaptable
• Become a master at re-prioritizing
• How to hit relevant and immediate goals
• How to manage resources
• Prevent project delays

Resource conflicts can be prevented by resource management components like availability and allocation. And agile project management is all about continuous planning and adapting. It is flexible enough to handle the conflicts, and not fall back on the progress.