Undocumented Features

UF Postings Past: Pitfalls in Analyzing Resources

March 2, 2008 – 3:25 pm

One of the biggest jeopardies to any project’s timeline is for resources to not be available when you need them. Ironically enough, this seems to be one of the least talked-about risks to project failure. While I have never seen a project totally fail as a result of resource scarcity, I have seen project after project derail because of it. The cause of resource scarcity usually traces back to one thing- failure to understand the resource’s availability.

Here’s an example: a project is dependent on getting a large, complex oracle database set up. The project manager checks with IT and yes, there is an oracle DBA on staff. Yes, the DBA can be available for the project. Yes, the DBA should be available around the target deadline.

Sounds fine, right? What can go wrong here? The project manager neglected to check on a few things, namely:

1) Are there any other projects going on that require an oracle dba? Are any of them higher priority than mine? (Hint: if you’re #3 on the list of oracle dba needers, you should keep a close eye on the other projects and probably talk to the other PMs).

2) Just how many oracle DBAs does IT have? How many of them are actually qualified to do the work you need? (Hint: if they have only one or two, be concerned and include contingencies in your plan)

3) If there’s only one or two DBAs available, talk directly to those DBAs as soon as possible. You need good communication with them from now on. If they are out sick, are planning a two-week vacation, etc, then you need to keep this in the plan.

4) How many production oracle systems does IT have up? Are any of the DBAs IT has offered you responsible for production support? If so, you may be at the mercy of any of these existing systems if they go down, their scheduled maintenance schedules (find out about these!) and change requests for any and all systems that are higher on the company’s priority list than you are. You might even consider checking the bug list for any production systems a lot higher on the priority list than you are, so that you can anticipate if there’s changes coming that may affect your schedule.

Does this example give you a good picture of my point? If you are going to depend on a resource, make sure you check on:

1) The availability of the resource
2) The commitment of the resource
3) The *possible and potential* commitment of the resource
4) The *potential availability* of the resource
5) Where your project falls on the priority list against other potential demands for commitment and availability of the resources your project depends on

To sum it up, there is always a large number of important things going on in any company. Any resource you depend on more than likely is committed to some of these other things. Understand what surprises can come up that can claim your resource, keep up with and plan for these possibilities in your project plans. This will help you build a smarter, more effective timeline.

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