RAMPS Details

Resource Allocation and Multi-Project Scheduling, or RAMPS, involves managing resources like software, hardware, and other hard costs to appropriately meet an organization’s needs. Employees and human capital are also considered resources that must be divided to accomplish required tasks. A number of factors play into RAMPS such as balancing competing priorities, determining the most effective course of action to maximize limited resources, and making returns on investments.

Resource allocation and multi-project scheduling can be achieved in these steps as listed below:

Establish the desired end goal whether it be revenue, increased productivity, improved products, or stronger brand recognition.

Create a plan before commencing the allocation of resources. The plan needs to be detailed enough to specify the needs, scope, budget, manpower, and any other requirements necessary to complete a project in accordance with an organization’s goals.

Allocate enough resources at every level of the project to ensure it is completed according to the goals previously established by the organization. Joel Trammell of Forbes stated, “Once employees are on board, the CEO needs to realize that each person is a unique individual with differing strengths, weaknesses, and expectations.”

Example of RAMPS

Instagantt describes several examples of resource allocation, stating, “if you need the company accountant to help you with specific financials for your project but she’s working on another task elsewhere you’re not properly allocating your resources. If you need a meeting room to host a big discussion but they’re all booked then you also haven’t properly allocated your resources. That’s why it’s so important to get these things done as early as possible.”

Allocating resources ensures an organization that everything is in its place where needed and when it is needed. Once allocated resources are assigned, these should not be revoked unless additional or supplemental resources are to take their respective place. Otherwise, allocated resources are allocated for a reason.

Significance of RAMPS

RAMPS specifically dedicates people, tools, time, and money to all the tasks that are required in order to achieve project completion.

In an extract from The PERT Algorithm, S. Lambourn states, “The functions of forecasting, research and development, design, purchasing, production, finance, personnel, and others are all involved, and each element of work has to be dove-tailed into a coherent program in which the minimum of resources are wasted and end products are completed on time.” Essentially, a company puts every asset to work with the end goal in mind.

Types of RAMPS

Companies use RAMPS when one or more projects with different completion dates use the same set of resources. You can also use it when the resources required to complete each job are quantifiable and consist of manpower, machine power, materials, or money.

Additionally, each resource can be described in terms of the number of units available over a period of time. This way, you can accurately track and maintain the proper allocation of resources.

S. Lambourn continues to say, “Several independent projects each having its own arrival and due date enter a scheduling system, [and] the available resources must be allocated to activities belonging to different projects to meet the system’s objectives.” Overall, planning and scheduling a large organization over several projects results in a logistical nightmare, allocating resources allows for multi-projects to be scheduled seamlessly and effectively.