Resource Leveling

Test Your Knowledge

Resource Leveling Quiz

Instructions: Choose the best answer for each question.

1. What is the primary goal of resource leveling? a) To reduce the overall project duration. b) To distribute resource workloads more evenly over time. c) To identify critical resources and allocate them to specific tasks. d) To minimize the number of resources required for the project.

2. Which of the following is NOT a benefit of resource leveling? a) Improved resource utilization. b) Reduced overtime and stress. c) Increased project duration. d) Enhanced budget control.

3. When implementing resource leveling, which step involves analyzing the resource requirements for each task? a) Identify critical resources. b) Analyze resource demands. c) Adjust task start and finish dates. d) Monitor and adjust.

4. What is the key difference between resource allocation and resource leveling? a) Resource allocation focuses on assigning resources to tasks, while resource leveling optimizes their utilization over time. b) Resource leveling focuses on assigning resources to tasks, while resource allocation optimizes their utilization over time. c) Resource allocation is more important than resource leveling. d) Resource leveling is more important than resource allocation.

5. Which of the following is an example of a tool that can be used for resource leveling? a) Spreadsheet software. b) Project management software. c) Time tracking software. d) All of the above.

Resource Leveling Exercise

Scenario:

You are managing a software development project with a team of 5 developers. The project has the following tasks:

• Task 1: Design (3 developers, 2 weeks)
• Task 2: Coding (5 developers, 4 weeks)
• Task 3: Testing (3 developers, 2 weeks)
• Task 4: Deployment (1 developer, 1 week)

The project has a strict deadline of 8 weeks. Currently, the project schedule has all tasks starting and ending consecutively. This leads to a peak workload of 5 developers during coding and a shortage of developers during design and testing.

Task:

Apply resource leveling techniques to create a more balanced schedule for the project, considering the following:

• The overall project duration should not exceed 8 weeks.
• All tasks have dependencies (Design must be completed before Coding, Coding must be completed before Testing, and Testing must be completed before Deployment).

Solution:

You can use a Gantt chart or project management software to visualize the project schedule. The goal is to distribute the developer workload more evenly by shifting the start and finish dates of tasks while maintaining the dependencies.

Techniques