Section 9: Design

Resource
Capacity Planning
Processes ​

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 Roll Out Capabilities and Assess and Evolve the
Establish Buy-in and Objectives Lay the Foundations
Services PMO

Section 6: Define a
Demand Intake Process

Section 7: Define Project

Management Practices

Section 8: Create Effective

Portfolio Management and
Governance Section 9: Design Resource Capacity Planning Processes
• 9.1 Establish a Dedicated Resource Capacity Process
Section 9: Design • 9.2 Evolve to Adaptive Resource Capacity Planning
Resource Capacity • Case Example: Responsive Delivery Resourcing and Funding in Product Lines (Autodesk)
Planning Processes • Case Example: Optimized Resource Capacity Planning to Drive Digital Innovation (Grey Chorus)
• Case Example: Human-Centric Resource Capacity Planning (NW Natural Holding Co.)
Section 10: Implement
a Benefits Realization
Framework

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9.1 Establish a Dedicated Resource Capacity Process
Four Steps to Institute Resource Capacity Planning

1 2 3 4
Assess Resource
Forecast Capacity Analyze Resource Create a Gap
Capacity
Demand Demand Gaps Mitigation Plan
Allocation

Supporting Technology Solution

Source: Gartner
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 9.1 Establish a Dedicated Resource Capacity Process
Templates for Assessing Resource Capacity Utilization and Availability Across All Active Initiatives

1
Create a talent inventory of the available talent pool (both for business and IT resources) mapped to their primary initiative roles and key skills.

Resource Resource Active Initiatives Primary Primary Skills Critical Experience Core
Name Type initiative Resource Capabilities
Roles
< Name > < Internal or < Active Initiatives > < Role > < Primary Skills < Yes or No > < Years of <Core
external resource > Experience in this Capability>
> Role >

< Name > [Example] <Active Initiatives > [Example] [Example] [Example] No [Example] [Example] Data
Internal-Finance Data Analyst Big Data 2 Years Analytics

2 Understand the resource capacity available for new FTE Utilized

Current Total FTEs
initiatives. Initiative Roles FTEs Utilized FTEs Available
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4
Capture the total FTEs in the organization for a particular role
and compare them against FTEs utilized in active initiatives < Insert Role A > [FTE’s] [FTE’s] [Example] 2.00 [Example] -0.43*
to assess resource capacity to take on new initiatives. Gather
resource utilization data from initiative managers and time- < Insert Role B > [FTE’s] [FTE’s] [Example] 3.00 [Example] 5.45*
tracking tools. < Insert Role C [FTE’s] [FTE’s] [Example] 1.00 [Example] -8.55*
>
*Color code the values on an objective basis, a surplus = green, a deficit = red, and neutrality (0) = yellow.
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9.1 Establish a Dedicated Resource Capacity Process
3 Steps to Inform Resource Capacity Demand, by Role

1 2 3
Define standard initiative complexity Segment initiatives into repeatable Enter key roles involved in execution of the project and
attributes and evaluate new initiatives patterns based on complexity the forecast capacity demand for the role. To inform
against them. assessment. forecast demand, use historical data on resource-
allocation information for completed initiatives that map
to the initiative complexity patterns.
Sample Project Complexity Attributes
Project Size High Complexity
 Estimated project cost
 Geographic span of impact
Medium Complexity
Scope Complexity Low Complexity Project Resource Profile
 Stability of scope/requirements Enter resource capacity demand, by role
 Clarity of project scope to participants Low Complexity Enter project
name Role 1 Role 2 Role…
Organizational Impact
 Number of business units impacted by the project Project A [FTE’s] [FTE’s] [FTE’s]
outcome
 Degree of business process impact
Business Case Soundness
 Alignment of project outcome to business vision
 Clarity of benefits

Technical Complexity
 Uniqueness of project’s technical requirements
 Operations to support new offering

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9.1 Establish a Dedicated Resource Capacity Process
Process to Surface the Gap Between Resource Supply and Demand for Key Project and Delivery Role

2 3
For each initiative across the business Calculate the resource deficit/surplus at
units or portfolio, determine the available the initiative, BU and the portfolio level
and the needed number of resources by using the available (supply) and
available for each key, in-demand role. needed (demand) resource capacity
information.
1
Determine the time
period to plan for XX-Day Resource Capacity Forecast
resource capacity Resources Available (Supply) Resources Needed (Demand) Resource Deficit or Surplus
forecast.
[Additional [Additional Project BU Level
Role 1 Role 2 Role 1 Role 2
Role] Role] Level
Role 1 Role 2 [Additional Role]
Project A [FTE’s] [FTE’s] [FTE’s] [FTE’s] [FTE’s] [FTE’s] [FTE’s]*
Business Unit 1/
Project B [FTE’s] [FTE’s] [FTE’s] [FTE’s] [FTE’s] [FTE’s] [FTE’s]* [FTE’s]* [FTE’s]* [FTE’s]*
Portfolio 1
Project C [FTE’s] [FTE’s] [FTE’s] [FTE’s] [FTE’s] [FTE’s] [FTE’s]*
Business Unit 2/ Project E [FTE’s] [FTE’s] [FTE’s] [FTE’s] [FTE’s] [FTE’s] [FTE’s]*
[FTE’s]* [FTE’s]* [FTE’s]*
Portfolio 2 Project F [FTE’s] [FTE’s] [FTE’s] [FTE’s] [FTE’s] [FTE’s] [FTE’s]*
Business Unit […] /
Project […] [FTE’s] [FTE’s] [FTE’s] [FTE’s] [FTE’s] [FTE’s] [FTE’s]* [FTE’s] [FTE’s] [FTE’s]
Portfolio […]
Portfolio Level
4 Role 1 Role 2 [Additional Role]
Identify the resource bottlenecks to plan
for resource capacity.
[FTE’s]* [FTE’s]* [FTE’s]*

*Color code the values on an objective basis, a surplus = green, a deficit = red, and neutrality (0) = yellow.
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9.1 Establish a Dedicated Resource Capacity Process
Assessment Plan for Determining Bottleneck Role Substitution

Key Functional Competencies

Bottleneck Roles
Technical Knowledge Process Knowledge Business Knowledge People Leadership [insert key competency]
[select proficiency
Project Manager 1 4 3 4
level]
[select proficiency
Business Analyst 2 4 4 3 Competency
level]
[select proficiency Proficiency Levels
Technical Analyst 5 3 2 1 1 - Very Low
level]
[select proficiency 2 - Low
QA Lead 2 4 3 4
level] 3 - Average
[select proficiency 4 - high
Application Developer 5 4 3 2
level] 5 - Very High
[select proficiency
QA Analyst 4 4 3 1
level]
[select proficiency
Development Manager 4 4 3 4
level]
[select proficiency
Application Manager 5 5 4 5
level]
[select proficiency
Infrastructure Analyst 4 3 2 1
level]
[select proficiency
Technical Architect 5 4 3 1
level]
[select proficiency
Business Architect 3 5 5 1
level]
[select proficiency
Release Analyst 4 3 2 1
level]
[select proficiency
DBA (Database Administrator) 5 3 2 2
level]
[select proficiency [select proficiency [select proficiency [select proficiency [select proficiency
[insert bottleneck role]
level] level] level] level] level]

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9.1 Establish a Dedicated Resource Capacity Process
Role Substitution Chart for Mitigating Resource Gaps

Bottleneck Role

Project Business Technical Application Development Application Infrastructure Technical Business

QA Lead QA Analyst
Manager Analyst Analyst Developer Manager Manager Analyst Architect Architect

Project
- Not Ideal Not Ideal Select Select Select Select Select Select Not Ideal Select
Manager

Business
Not Ideal - Not Ideal Select Select Select Select Select Select Not Ideal Select
Analyst

Technical
Not Ideal Not Ideal - Select Select Select Select Select Select Not Ideal Select
Analyst

QA Lead Not Ideal Not Ideal Not Ideal - Select Select Select Select Select Not Ideal Select
Substitute Role

Application
Not Ideal Adjacent Role Adjacent Role Select - Select Select Select Select Not Ideal Select
Developer

QA Analyst Not Ideal Not Ideal Not Ideal Select Select - Select Select Select Not Ideal Select

Development
Alternative Role Not Ideal Not Ideal Select Select Select - Select Select Not Ideal Select
Manager
Application
Alternative Role Not Ideal Not Ideal Select Select Select Select - Select Not Ideal Select
Manager
Infrastructure
Not Ideal Not Ideal Adjacent Role Select Select Select Select Select - Not Ideal Select
Analyst
Technical
Not Ideal Adjacent Role Alternative Role Select Select Select Select Select Select - Select
Architect
Business
Alternative Role Alternative Role Not Ideal Select Select Select Select Select Select Not Ideal -
Architect

Source: Gartner
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9.2 Shift to Adaptive Resource Capacity Planning
Example: Responsive Delivery Resourcing and Funding in Product Lines From Autodesk

Autodesk’s Challenge: Balance resource efficiency and reallocate resources to align with demand as the business context evolves
and new opportunities emerge.

Autodesk’s Approach:

Autodesk aimed to maximize stability and

minimize disruption to dedicated delivery
teams while also providing flexibility to
reallocate resources in alignment with
changing business priorities.

Autodesk separates its funding and

resourcing into two categories:

• Minimum Viable Teams: Resources

are dedicated to each product line to
ensure stability and support the core
capabilities.

• Flexible resources are allocated based

on a product line’s contribution to
strategic priorities and can be
reallocated as needed.

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9.2 Shift to Adaptive Resource Capacity Planning
Example: Optimized Resource Capacity Planning to Drive Digital Innovation From GreyChorus

GreyChorus Challenge: An over-reliance on vendor partners to fill talent gaps or ad-hoc work allocation between internal and external
resources. This leads to challenges in developing core capacity for high-priority initiatives, internal intellectual capability gaps, and increased
cost implications.

GreyChorus Approach-1:

To align the right talent to their most

strategic initiatives, GreyChorus
defines a target talent sourcing model
based on maturity stage of the initiative
and capacity variance to choose an
optimal resourcing plan.

This encourages utilization of internal

employees for initiatives aligned to
growth or differentiation, while
encouraging external partners for work
requiring a niche skill set for a limited
time, or for work that didn’t differentiate
the company from competitors.

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9.2 Shift to Adaptive Resource Capacity Planning
Example: Optimized Resource Capacity Planning to Drive Digital Innovation From GreyChorus

GreyChorus Approach-2:

GreyChorus further enables its

business and IT leaders to
move away from reflexive
decisions to source externally.

It embeds a set of self-reflection

questions into the talent-
sourcing process to
help stakeholders assess their
dependence on external sources
for talent needs.

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9.2 Shift to Adaptive Resource Capacity Planning
Example: Human-Centric Resource Capacity Planning From NW Natural

NW Natural Challenge: Unexpected resourcing constraints as delivery teams get overwhelmed by the project- and enterprise-level
changes such as technology migrations, project handoffs or shifts in strategic priorities.

NW Natural Approach:

• To enable optimal resource

utilization, NW Natural proactively
identifies the impact of change on its
resources.

• NW Natural adopts human-centric

capacity planning by quantifying the
degree of change impact on different
resource segments and enables portfolio
leaders to take that into account while
making resourcing decisions.

• NW Natural tracks change impact on

each resource segment and uses it to
identify possible resource constraints,
avoid overwhelming employees and
take optimal capacity planning
decisions.
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