Project Human Resource Management What is Project Human

Project Human Resource Management

What is Project Human Resource Management? • Project human resource management includes the processes that organize and manage the project team. Processes include – Human resource planning – Acquire project team – Develop project team – Manage project team

Human Resource Planning • Identifying and documenting project roles and responsibilities, and reporting relationships, and creates the staffing management plan • The staffing management plan can include how and when project team members will be acquired, the criteria for releasing them from the project, identification of training needs, plans for recognitions, safety issues, and the impact of the staffing management plan on the organization

Roles and Responsibility Definition Formats

Sample Organizational Chart for a Large Project

Sample Responsibility Assignment Matrix (RAM)

Acquire Project Team • Obtaining the human resources needed to complete the project • Project staff assignments is done when appropriate people have been assigned to work on it

Acquire Project Team • Staffing plans and good hiring procedures are important in staff acquisition, as are incentives for recruiting and retention • Some companies give their employees one dollar for every hour a new person they helped hire works • Some organizations allow people to work from home as an incentive • Research shows that people leave their jobs because they don’t make a difference, don’t get proper recognition, aren’t learning anything new, don’t like their coworkers, and want to earn more money

Resource Loading and Leveling • Resource loading refers to the amount of individual resources an existing project schedule requires during specific time periods • Resource histograms show resource loading • Over-allocation means limited resources are assigned to perform work at a given time • Resource leveling is a technique for resolving resource conflicts by delaying tasks (see Time Management Chapter)

Develop Project Team • Improving the competencies and interaction of team members to enhance project performance. Objectives include: – Improve skills of team members in order to increase their ability to complete project activities – Improve feelings of trust and cohesiveness among team members in order to raise productivity through greater teamwork

Develop Project Team • It takes teamwork to successfully complete most projects • Training can help people understand themselves, each other, and how to work better in teams • Team building activities include – physical challenges – psychological preference indicator tools • Team-based reward and recognition systems can promote teamwork

Manage Project Team • Involves tracking team member performance, providing feedback, resolving issues, and coordinating changes to enhance project performance • The project management team observes team behavior, manages conflict, resolves issues, and appraises team member performance

Keys to Managing People • Psychologists and management theorists have devoted much research and thought to the field of managing people at work • Important areas related to project management include – Motivation (Maslow, Mc. Gregor) – influence and power (expert, coercive, legitimate, referent) – Effectiveness (7 habits)

Conflict Management • Confrontation or problem-solving: directly face a conflict • Compromise: use a give-and-take approach • Smoothing: de-emphasize areas of differences and emphasize areas of agreement • Forcing: the win-lose approach • Withdrawal: retreat or withdraw from an actual or potential disagreement

Project Human Resource Management Processes

Project Resource Management Involves Much More Than Using Software • Project managers must – Treat people with consideration and respect – Understand what motivates them – Communicate carefully with them • Goal is to enable project team members to deliver their best work