Engineering Resource Planning: Best Practices for Engineering Leaders

The software development process can be messy. Stakeholder priorities can shift, developers might get pulled onto other projects, and sometimes the unexpected occurs (e.g., unplanned leave, etc.).

While engineering leaders cannot control every single internal and external factor impacting successful project execution – they can prepare.

That’s why engineering resource planning is critical for any successful project or initiative. Through resource planning, engineering leaders can forecast project needs, put contingencies in place, and better make sure projects are delivered on time and within budget.

Read on for guidance on engineering resource planning steps, best practices, and tools.

What Is Engineering Resource Planning?

Engineering resource planning is a specialized form of resource management that revolves around effectively allocating and utilizing engineering resources. Think of it as the process of planning and coordinating people, skills, time, and tools to optimize engineering capacity and ensure successful project delivery.

While exact implementation may vary by company, project resource planning at many engineering firms often includes the following key steps:

• Forecasting resource needs: Accurately predicting the type and quantity of resources required for future projects.
• Resource capacity planning: Determining the available capacity of your engineering team, considering factors like availability, skills, and current workload.
• Resource allocation: Assigning engineers to projects based on their skills, experience, and project requirements.
• Scheduling and task management: Creating detailed project schedules and assigning tasks to optimize resource utilization and ensure timely completion.
• Tracking and monitoring: Monitoring resource utilization, project progress, and potential bottlenecks to proactively address issues and adjust plans.

The Advantages of Engineering Resource Planning

Implementing a robust engineering resource planning process can yield significant benefits for engineering teams and organizations. Here are some of the key advantages:

• Improved project delivery. Often, it’s easier to complete projects on time and within budget when you first forecast resource needs and allocate engineers appropriately. Carefully scoping out and resourcing projects can also drive a reputation for reliability with clients and stakeholders.
• Optimized resource utilization. Effective engineering resource planning assigns engineers to tasks that best match their skills, experience, and bandwidth. This helps maximize productivity, minimize downtime, and prevent valuable talent from being either underutilized or overloaded.
• Reduced costs. Efficient resource allocation helps prevent overstaffing and minimizes resource waste. Over time, this can lead to lower project costs and improved profitability.
• Enhanced decision-making. Effective resource planning provides a clear view of resource availability, utilization, bottlenecks, constraints, and other project needs. As a result, leaders can practice data-driven decision-making instead of relying on best guesses or gut feelings.
• Increased predictability. By analyzing historical data and forecasting future needs, engineering resource planning improves the predictability of project timelines and resource requirements.
• Improved team morale. When engineers are assigned to projects that align with their skills and interests, it can foster increased job satisfaction and reduced stress. This contributes to higher team morale and reduced employee turnover.
• Increased agility. Effective resource planning gives team members space to adapt to changing project requirements or priorities. This agility is crucial in today’s dynamic business environment.
• Better alignment with business goals. By connecting resource allocation to strategic objectives, engineering resource planning ensures that engineering efforts contribute directly to achieving business goals.

Create an Engineering Resource Plan with These 4 Steps

Effective resource planning is more than just assigning developers to projects; it’s about orchestrating developer expertise and capacity, specialized tools, and critical materials. Here’s a step-by-step guide you can follow to put together a resource plan for your team.

Step 1: Forecast and Document Resource Needs

First, forecast the type and amount of resources you’ll need for a project. This should encompass all project phases, from initiation to closure. Identifying these details upfront provides a holistic view of resource needs, and can help you identify and mitigate potential bottlenecks and other challenges early.

Document all of this information in a single location, if possible. This document will serve as your resource plan. Include details such as:

• Project phases: Outline each phase with its associated tasks, timelines, and target dates.
• Task breakdown: Break each phase into specific, manageable tasks.
• Resource requirements: Identify what resources you’ll need for each task, including:
  • Human resources: Specify roles, skills, expertise levels, and the number of engineers required.
  • Non-human resources: Define the necessary equipment, materials, software, and their quantities.
  • Timeline and cost: Estimate the time required for each task and the associated cost of resources.

Consider documenting your resource plan in a work breakdown structure (WBS). A WBS is a visual project management tool that divides a project into smaller, more manageable phases and tasks. You can also use a WBS to define task interdependencies and specify which resources are needed for each task.

Example:

You’re working on building a new feature. The resource plan might include phases like: designing and prototyping, development, and testing. You would then break each phase into individual, concrete tasks and determine the resource requirements for each (e.g., We’ll need one front-end engineer to build UI components during development).

Step 2: Confirm Resource Availability

Next, it’s time to make sure you have the right people and resources for each task.

Managing equipment and materials is straightforward: Check to make sure the necessary equipment, software, tools, and other resources are available when needed. Don’t forget to factor in any lead times or procurement challenges.

Matching the right talent to each task can get trickier. For example, you might consider the following factors when identifying potential resources:

• Role and skills: Ensure engineers possess the specific skills and experience required for the task.
• Expertise level: Match the complexity of the task with the engineer’s expertise.
• Location and availability: Consider engineers’ location and availability to ensure timely project completion.
• Cost: Factor in the cost of each engineer, considering their experience and skill set.
• Forecasted utilization: Predict how busy each engineer will be based on current and upcoming projects.
• Track availability: Account for planned leaves, vacations, and other factors that might impact engineer availability.

Example:

Based on our resource requirements, we might know that we need one backend developer with a few years of experience for the entirety of our new feature project. We’ll check our go-to backend developer’s forecasted utilization, planned vacation, and expertise to make sure they can take on this project without impacting other work or leading to overutilization.

Step 3: Allocate Engineers to Each Project Task

Once you have a clear understanding of resource availability and project needs, it’s time to get into the details of project management and engineer assignments for specific project tasks.

Start by creating detailed project schedules. Make sure you schedule tasks in a logical order and consider dependencies between them.

Next, assign specific engineers to each task. Try to distribute the workload evenly to prevent overutilization and burnout.

Consider using resource scheduling tools to optimize task assignments and create a balanced workload for your team.

Example:

In our project management tool, we’ll assign an engineer to each task with specific timelines. We’ll also note any dependencies on their work; for example, we might note that our frontend engineer will need API contracts from previous backend development tasks to integrate correctly.

Step 4: Implement the Right Resource Optimization Techniques and Pivot When Needed

Engineering projects are often dynamic, with unexpected challenges and changing priorities. As a result, you should track resource utilization and task progress throughout your project to proactively identify issues, such as bottlenecks and burnout, and adjust plans.

If your project hits a speed bump, consider deploying these two resource optimization techniques:

• Resource smoothing: Re-adjust task assignments to distribute workload evenly and prevent overloading critical engineers.
• Resource leveling: Extend deadlines or re-allocate tasks to balance workload when projects are not time-sensitive.

Example:

During the development of our new feature, our backend developer is assigned to a new, high-priority project. Since our feature project is a lower priority, we might use resource leveling to reallocate some of our backend developer’s tasks to another capable resource.

Tips to Improve Your Engineering Resource Planning Process

Despite its benefits, resource planning can feel like a lot of work before a project even begins. Fortunately, you can use various tips, tricks, and tools to streamline the resource planning process. Here’s a list of best practices to keep in your back pocket.

Tip 1: Use Resource Planning Tools to Leverage Real-Time Insights

Accurate data is the foundation of effective resource planning. Traditional resource management software and capacity planning strategies can provide a high-level view of resource utilization.

Meanwhile, modern resource planning tools can help you visualize resource utilization, availability, and costs. Often, modern resource planning tools can provide more granular and real-time information as well. This visibility can empower you with more accurate insights and help you make more informed decisions, proactively address issues, and improve your forecasting accuracy.

For example, consider a sophisticated engineering resource management solution like Jellyfish. Tools like Jellyfish provide a centralized view of enterprise-wide resources, allowing you to filter by skills, experience, location, and other criteria to quickly identify the best-fit engineer for each task.

Tip 2: Employ ‘What-If’ Analysis for Optimal Resource Allocation

“What-if” analysis entails modeling different scenarios and considering the overall business impact. When applied to resource planning, “what-if” analysis allows you to explore different resource allocation scenarios and their potential outcomes. This helps you:

• Evaluate different options: Assess the impact of various resource combinations on project timelines, costs, and outcomes.
• Optimize resource allocation: Identify the most efficient and cost-effective way to allocate resources.
• Prioritize projects strategically: Make informed decisions about which projects to prioritize based on resource availability and potential return on investment.

For example, you might use “what-if” analysis to model different scenarios around what would happen if a key team member took a leave of absence (such as parental leave) during a critical project phase. You might look at how allocating different resources or delaying certain tasks might affect overall project timelines or outcomes.

Tip 3: Mitigate Project Risks with Contingency Planning

Unforeseen circumstances, such as resource unavailability, unexpected server downtime, or sudden project changes, can disrupt even the best-laid plans. While you can’t predict every single twist and turn on a project, you can prepare for common or likely roadblocks. Here’s how:

• Identify potential risks: Conduct a thorough risk assessment to identify potential disruptions, such as an employee going on unplanned leave or a cyberattack impacting a key software platform or tool.
• Develop contingency plans: Create backup plans for critical resources and scenarios. Try to be as detailed as possible.
• Implement mitigation strategies: Take proactive steps to minimize the impact of potential risks, such as cross-training employees, securing backup equipment, or establishing alternative sourcing options.

Tip 4: Utilize a Mix of Permanent and On-Demand Engineers

Engineering projects often face evolving requirements and unpredictable fluctuations in resource needs. To maintain flexibility and responsiveness, consider building a blended workforce comprising permanent and on-demand resources.

Permanent employees can provide stability and deep knowledge of your organization, while on-demand resources (contractors, freelancers, or consultants) can offer specialized skills and scalability to meet fluctuating demands.

For example, if your project requires expertise in a specific programming language or a niche area like machine learning, you can proactively hire engineers with those skills, upskill your existing team, or engage external experts to bridge the gap.

Tip 5: Invest in Training and Development to Enhance Engineering Skills (as Required)

One sometimes overlooked advantage of resource planning is that it can highlight time you can use to address potential skills gaps. By identifying and addressing these gaps early on, you can better equip your team to handle different projects down the road. Consider investing in your team’s development to:

• Address skill gaps: Provide training to equip engineers with the necessary skills for current and future projects. Upskilling existing employees can equip them to handle projects with more complex coding
• Enhance expertise: Offer opportunities for professional development to deepen engineers’ knowledge and expertise.
• Boost employee engagement: Demonstrate investment in your team’s growth, leading to increased motivation and retention.

Tip 6: Improve Employee Engagement by Allowing Them to Select Projects

Effective managers know when to advocate for their teams – and when to give them space to advocate for themselves. During the resource planning process, consider giving your engineers a voice in project selection to:

• Increase engagement: Allow engineers to contribute to projects that align with their interests and career goals.
• Boost morale: Foster a sense of ownership and autonomy, leading to increased job satisfaction.
• Improve performance: Motivated engineers are more likely to perform at their best.

Best Engineering Resource Planning Software Solutions

Today, there are a plethora of project, engineering, and resource management tools to choose from. Consider the following popular tools for resource planning at your company.

Jellyfish

Jellyfish’s engineering management platform excels in connecting engineering work with product and business goals. It provides valuable insights into engineering output, helps track progress against roadmaps, and facilitates better resource allocation decisions. For engineering managers, Jellyfish offers a clear view of engineering capacity and helps align product strategy with engineering execution. With Jellyfish’s suite of developer experience (DevEx) features, engineering leaders can also track quantitative and qualitative insights to ensure teams are productive, happy, and engaged.

Jira

While known for its strength in software development, Jira’s versatility extends to various engineering disciplines. Its customizable workflows, issue tracking, and agile boards help manage complex engineering projects. Product managers can leverage Jira to understand development progress, prioritize features, and collaborate on roadmaps.

Asana

This flexible project management software is well-suited for both engineers and product managers. Its intuitive interface, customizable workflows, and task dependencies help streamline engineering processes. Product managers can use Asana to track engineering initiatives, manage product launches, and collaborate with cross-functional teams.

Optimize the Engineering Resource Planning Process with Jellyfish

Many traditional resource planning methods often fall short in today’s complex development environments.

That’s where Jellyfish comes in.

Jellyfish is a powerful engineering management platform that can revolutionize your resource planning process. By providing real-time insights, automation, and streamlined workflows, Jellyfish empowers engineering teams to optimize resource allocation and maximize productivity.

Here’s how Jellyfish can help you optimize your engineering resource planning:

Real-time Visibility into Resource Utilization

Jellyfish provides a comprehensive view of your team’s capacity and workload. You can easily identify bottlenecks, underutilized resources, and potential conflicts, so you can make data-backed decisions and optimize resource allocation.

Resource Forecasting and Capacity Planning

By analyzing historical data and current trends, Jellyfish helps you forecast future resource needs with greater accuracy. This helps you plan for upcoming projects and avoid resource shortages or overallocation.

Automated Workflows and Task Management

Jellyfish automates routine tasks, such as time tracking and project management, freeing up your team to focus on high-value work. This streamlined approach improves efficiency and reduces errors.

Advanced Analytics and Reporting

Jellyfish provides insightful reports on resource utilization, project performance, and team productivity. These analytics help you identify areas for improvement, optimize resource allocation, and make data-driven decisions.

Integration with Development Tools

Jellyfish seamlessly integrates with popular development tools like Jira, GitHub, and GitLab, providing a unified view of your engineering projects. This integration allows you to track progress, identify dependencies, and optimize resource allocation across different projects.

FAQs

What is the difference between engineering resource planning and project management?

While related, each has a distinct focus. Project management is about managing the overall project lifecycle, ensuring projects deliver defined deliverables on time and within budget. This involves defining project scope, creating Gantt charts to track timelines, and monitoring progress against key milestones.

Engineering resource planning, on the other hand, dives deeper into the effective allocation and utilization of engineering resources. It’s about having the right engineers with the right skills available at the right time to execute the tasks defined in the project plan. This often involves using resource management tools to manage resources, track their availability, and optimize their utilization throughout the project lifecycle.

How often should I update my engineering resource plan?

This depends on the nature of your projects. For relatively stable projects, updating your resource plan monthly might be sufficient. However, in dynamic environments with evolving priorities or frequent changes in resource availability, more frequent updates – perhaps weekly or even bi-weekly – are recommended.

Additional factors that might necessitate more frequent updates include:

• New project requests: Incoming projects might require reallocating resources or adjusting existing plans.
• Changes in project scope: If project deliverables or timelines change, the resource plan should be adjusted accordingly.
• Employee availability: Unexpected absences, leave requests, or new hires can impact resource availability and require plan adjustments.
• Performance tracking: Regularly reviewing metrics like resource utilization and project progress can reveal areas needing optimization in the resource plan.

What are some common mistakes to avoid in engineering resource planning?

Effective resource planning can be a bit of an art and a science. To make your resource planning as accurate as possible, try to avoid the following common missteps:

• Underestimating resource needs: Inaccurate estimations can lead to project delays and overworking engineers. Use historical data, detailed work breakdown structures, and input from engineers to create realistic estimates.
• Overlooking skill gaps: Ensure your team possesses the necessary skills for the project. If gaps exist, address them proactively through training, hiring, or utilizing contractors.
• Neglecting to track resource utilization: Without tracking, you can’t identify bottlenecks, underutilized resources, or areas for improvement. Utilize resource management tools or even spreadsheets to monitor engineering capacity.
• Not having contingency plans for unexpected events: Develop backup plans for potential risks, such as key engineers becoming unavailable or equipment failures. This ensures project continuity and minimizes disruptions.

How can I prevent engineer burnout due to overallocation?

Engineer burnout is a serious concern that can impact productivity, morale, and project success. Here’s how to prevent it:

• Monitor workload carefully: Use resource management tools, developer experience tools, dashboards, and regular check-ins to track individual workloads and identify potential overallocation.
• Utilize resource leveling and smoothing techniques: Distribute workload evenly across the team and avoid overloading critical engineers.
• Promote work-life balance: Encourage healthy work habits, provide adequate time off, and foster a supportive work environment.
• Gather feedback from engineers: Regularly solicit feedback from your team to understand their workload and identify any signs of stress or burnout.
• Offer support and resources: Provide access to resources that promote well-being, such as employee assistance programs or mental health services.