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First, remember that resources on a project do not always mean human resources. For

example, equipment and materials are a type of physical resource. In Chapter 5 I
talked about using a hydraulic drill on the project and using the resource calendar to
determine the availability of this resource. I also talked previously about functional,
matrix, and projectized organizations. In projectized organizations, you’ll recall that
resources are typically dedicated to the project. Dedicated resources are the ideal

scenario for a project manager because you have full authority and control of the
resource time and the tasks they work on. You don’t have to coordinate schedules with
another manager or fear having the resource pulled off the project because of an
“emergency” in the functional area.

In a functional or matrix organization, you’ll find you often have to share resources. A
shared resource works for both the functional manager and the project manager.
Typically, the team member will remain loyal to the person writing their performance

appraisals and reviews. And in my experience, shared resources are often torn between
their functional work and project work and find themselves defaulting to functional
work because the business has to continue operating and they fear their work might
pile up while they are busy working on project tasks. Project managers working with
shared resources should negotiate with the functional managers to make certain the
shared resource has the appropriate amount of time available to work on the project.
They should also negotiate the ability to have some say in the team member’s

performance ratings. This will help you reinforce that the project work is important
and needs to be addressed and prioritized by the team member.

Another element to keep in mind when working with functional managers is that they
may jump eagerly at the opportunity to assign resources to your project. However,
buyer beware! I have experienced that having overeager functional managers
sometimes means the resources they’re giving me are low-quality resources. This
doesn’t mean they’re bad resources, but it generally means they don’t have skill sets

needed or, worse, they may have abrasive personalities or a history of conflicts with
other team members. If you have no choice, I recommend meeting with such a team
member as soon as possible and setting clear expectations. I’ll talk more about this
concept in the “Personnel Management” section of this chapter. Also, beware of low-
quality physical resources that won’t hold up to the wear and tear needed to complete
the task.

A resource shortage can also lead to a resource overallocation. In other words,

because of the shortage, the resource with the skills needed to perform your task is also
assigned to other projects. Resource shortages are not always the cause of resource
overallocation. It could be that you’ve scheduled the resource to complete more tasks
than the time available. Overallocated resources will show up on a project schedule as
100 percent (or more) allocated. In reality, resources never have 100 percent of their
time available for any task because they also have administrative functions they need

to perform, such as filling out time cards, attending staff meetings, and answering
emails.

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